One of the aspects of the Godfather films that makes them so great is the high quality of narrative that they exhibit. Virtually every scene, every snippet of dialogue, every nuance has a purpose - either to develop or explore a character and/or a subculture, or to advance the plot. Very little of it is gratuitous; very little is inconsequential.
In the scene during Connie's wedding reception, while Johnny Fontane is unloading his troubles onto Don Vito, Vito suddenly erupts in anger:
You can act like a man! What's the matter with you? Is this how you've turned out? A Hollywood finocchio who cries like a woman? What can I do? What can I do?
It's not clear to me just what function this scene is supposed to serve. Is it simply to establish Vito's strict, traditional outlook on manhood - in order to flesh out the details of Vito's character for the audience? Or is it to set up Tom's visit to Jack Woltz and all that it entails - in order to establish even more important details about Vito's character and values?
Somewhat of both? Anything that I've missed? Something else?
~ Q
