Best of MAMI'12!

Packed with over 200 films from all over the world, with great restored classics, new locations, MAMI this year seemed promising. (Even in terms of their organization, which it wasn’t!) And despite the cancelled or the housefull shows, going through Inox securities for numerous times or getting frosty in NCPA’s grand Bhabha auditorium, I must say MAMI’12 was a great experience.

Ofcourse it’s difficult to catch all the good films, many playing simultaneously across different screens. So here’s a pick of the best of all the ones I watched at the MAMI. The order isn’t indicative of any kind of rating whatsoever. French film has dominated MAMI over the years and though this year’s two anticipated biggies have been disappointing, quite a few French films have done well. Yet, MAMI has been quite a global experience.    

1. Dreamers

Noelle Deschamps’ directorial debut is a brilliant documentary about how screenwriters and film-makers go about ‘creation’. Her ensemble of 11 endowed film-makers include prominent writers like Guillermo Arriaga, Akiva Goldsman, also directors like Jacques Audiard, Michael Gondry etc that speak whole-heartedly about film-making. The last question has some brilliant responses!

2. California Solo

A former rock artist who has long left his Scottish ways and settled down as a commoner with content in US has to confront his disturbed past when his citizenship is legally troubled. A light-hearted yet touching story which is painfully connected with the Britpop genre that hasn’t seen its glory in the modern days.

3. Kauwboy

Beautiful. Just plain beautiful. An emotional yet brave 10 year old boy who connects with an abandoned jackdaw as he finds solace from his hot-tempered but caring father. One of THE best films of MAMI’12.  

4. The Conformist

Bertolucci’s masterpiece based on Alberto Moravia’s novel, was one of the great classics screened at MAMI’12. Conforming to Fascism and then the post-war revolution, The Conformist tells us the life of a man trapped between his ideals and fear to do what is right, how power can easily reduce a weak man to comprise his principles and live along the profane side of sex & violence.   

5. Something In The Air

One of the many directors of the brilliant Paris, je t'aime (2006), Olivier Assayas brings us another superb film. A young man’s journey about his wants and how he reacts to the social reforms of the 1960’s of Europe. It’s free-flowing, spontaneous and deep. A refreshing piece of cinema, it’s a must watch for any film-lover.      

6. D. Phalke’s silent films (Kaliya Mardan, Raja Harishchandra, Lanka Dahan, Krishna Janma)

Dadasaheb Phalke

What. An. Experience! Magical. Accompanied by the talented Marathi musician Kaushal Inamdar’s live orchestra, Dadasaheb Phalke’s films were a true revelation. They are the pride of a country that is the biggest producer of cinema in the entire world. It’s a lesson of history, a dose of old-school. Watch it whenever you can!

7. Amour

Amour is a film that everyone talks about, everyone is excited about, which has won a great deal of accolades (& awards), about which you’re worried if all the lining up in the queue will be worth and which doesn’t disappoint you. Michael Haneke has deservedly picked up his 2^nd Palm d’Or for this disturbing, beautiful and heart-wrenching story of a couple that has grown old with each other. Love in its purest and most beautiful form. Easily the best French film at MAMI’12.

8. Beyond The Hills

Intelligent and deeply moving. Two orphan girls whose lives are intertwined about each other by love find themselves in conflict of interest over spirituality & reality. Insightful with terrific treatment and a mind-blowing ending. Beyond The Hills is a piece extra-ordinary film-making.  

9. Ship of Theseus

Ship of Theseus is one of the few Indian films that have a great global appeal. It explores different aspects of life through three diverse lives and brings a meaningful experience. It’s one of the films which you can forgive for it’s bad technicalities, for it moves you in a simple yet in an evocative way.

10. Holy Motors

MAD! Absolute mad film-making! Holy Motors was the bouncer that completely went over my head and yet I couldn’t stop myself from loving it! The film is wicked, phenomenal and doesn’t wait for you. It takes you inside its amazingly spun web of random-ish events and you’re left stunned! You cant toss down this spectacle. 

Worth watching:

In worth watching there were good films that, had they been a little better would’ve made it to the Top 10, in the sense that I’m still glad to have seen these films! Watch Liv & Ingmar for Liv Ullman speaking about everything that made her relation with the legendary director a beautiful love story.

Disappointments:

This year’s biggest disappointment has to be Rust & Bone by Jacques Audiard. One of the highly anticipated films before MAMI, Rust & Bone let down most of the film-enthusiasts and critiques alike. Another huge disappointment was the closing film of MAMI, Blacanieves which is the Spanish entry for Oscars. A supposedly homage to silent films, Blacanieves broke all the silent film rules except those of the sound & the aspect ratio and yet presented a weak script. Worst adaptation of Snow-white ever. And last big disappointment was another French film Augustine that charmingly tried to tell us something deep but floated on the surface and left us with nothing but good imagery and a good sex scene.

 Missed out on:
Due to packed schedule and simultaneous screenings, there were quite a few that I had missed out on, which are on my immediate watchlist.

Electric Children, Beasts Of The Southern Wild, Children Of Sarajevo, No, Outrage Beyond and Tenchi: The Samurai Astronomer.

                        Hope you all will find and watch the best of these soon! Season's greetings!

Watch these!

Two movies I saw recently that blew my mind, Ridley Scott's Prometheus and Anurag Kashyap's Gangs Of Wasseypur. Leading their genres and comprehensively superb pieces of film-making, these two are must watch. This post might just be a little late, as Prometheus is taken down from most of the theatres. But nonetheless, try laying your hands on it (you-know-how!) Meanwhile Gangs Of Wasseypur is cooking up a storm at the theatres!

Prometheus marks the return of Ridley Scott to his favorite genre of Science-fiction after Alien (1979) and Blade Runner (1982). Ancient cave paintings from different cultures lead a group of scientists to a planet which is possibly inhabited by our "makers". The crew in search of our beginning, faces inexplicable adverse events that might even lead to the end of mankind.

With mind-boggling VFX & CG effects, Prometheus is another Ridley Scott wonder. No traditional cliches and yet he holds the grip over the viewer; with well protected mystery element. A must watch for fans of Michael Fassbender. One can say - as many already have - that Prometheus is, in a way prequel to Alien; although its individually a great film. Make this number one priority on your sci-fi watchlist!

And while you do that, don't forget to book your tickets for Gangs Of Wasseypur. Its a brilliant film with impeccable story construction, like a Sergio Leone styled film. Although quite a gory film, its realism and witty sequences are no-nonsense stuff. A simple revenge story stretched over two generations with much complexity of interplay of characters with excellent detailing, something that is hard to find in Indian Cinema. Dark, gripping and entertaining without a doubt. 

Originally a five hour long film, its cut halfway and being released in two parts. Its such a powerfully entertaining film that I'd have sat through all the five hours. No wonder the people at Cannes did so. Manoj Bajpai and Tigmanshu Dhulia are just simply brilliant in their roles. This! Is! Without! A! Doubt! THE! Best! Film! Of! Bollywood! in recent years. And its Anurag Kashyap's finest film after Black Friday. While I wait for the second part, I'm gonna watch this again. Make sure you watch this too, nahin toh mein Tumhari Keh Ke Lunga!   

Aakra-Man!

In a big city, every day senses an undercurrent of a tangled, underlying world of wrong. In the night, it unfolds in the darkest of areas. Crime takes advantage of the 12 hours sun turns away from us, employing all the complications human mind can provide. And someone has to fight it. Someone who loves his city no matter how much he has suffered there. No matter how much lonely he is there. If law isn't suffice, he has all the right to protect his city and armed with conscientious delusions & household weapons he steps out to fight crime. That’s how Aakra-Man would like to look at himself.

Written by Rahul Desai & directed by Mihir Desai (they’re not related!), Aakra-Man (attack) is a story of a man who loves Mumbai. He defines his relationship with Mumbai as an abusive one. And yet he wants to fight crime in the city. Well, which city-loving person with a liking for heroics doesn’t want to? Every superhero is a superhero because he feels his city is worth his powers. And one doesn’t need to have a supernatural power to be a superhero. In the words of Plato, ‘the city is what it is because the citizens are what they are’. Otherwise New York won’t have a Peter Parker. Or Gotham won’t have a Bruce Wayne. But it’s not always possible. Truth is not only stranger than the fiction but also not viable - everyone can’t afford a batcar.

Although presented as a mockumentary, Aakra-Man is no different from batman or spiderman or any other superhero for that matter. Afflicted by personal losses, loneliness & will to do some good in the world, this gentleman steps out in the night to fight the longest battle of mankind: good vs. evil. Inspired by Woody Harrelson starrer Defendor (& the local mosquito killing racket), Aakra-Man buckles up with all the domestic gear he can find helpful. One cannot discard him just as a wannabe-superhero. His delusions have taken control over him but they originate from his unquestionable love for this city. And so like a superhero, he wants to conceal his identity & wants the society to accept this new avatar. Clearly, his unconventional methods do quite the opposite. City is wary about this cape-wearing insomniac & crime is puzzled but not halted. Yet he continues to think that the city needs him.

Recent releases like Kick-Ass, Malegaon Ka Superman, Super etc. bear a similar theme but still Aakra-Man is unique in its own way. In Rahul’s words the concept ‘is so region-centric and charming’. In a city like Mumbai, crime is constantly wary of getting exposed. Aakra-Man hasn’t a slightest of clue what he will do when he confronts a criminal. His delusions push him to acknowledge (& sometimes believe the lie) that crime is out there. When the adrenaline is pumped he may even run away from the delusions temporarily (and also from the crime scene!) but not without exposing crime or making it aware of watchful eyes. And the process crafts dark humor which is ironic of the time he fights crime.  

  

Shot over 3 days & nights on a Canon 7-D, I contributed on technical & design aspects of the film under Mihir’s guidance which was a very good experience. Rahul played Aakra-Man himself & still damns the costume. Being a DIY production, late night shoots were a tad bit risky and we really didn’t rely upon Aakra-Man’s corny line, “Kanun bhi raat ko so jaata hai; kutte ki tarah!” (At night, even the law is asleep like the dogs). But we got through to tell the story. Or rather show the story. The official selection at MAMI’11 and South Asian Film Festival at NYC, Aakra-Man has been released online. We hope to make it a full-length feature film someday, should Aakra-Man let us follow him. Meanwhile, you can watch. And spread the word. 

Oscar Predictions

The red carpet is laid. The paparazzi have loaded their cameras. Top designers have delivered their finest clothing to the celebs. The little golden men are polished. Los Angeles is set.

And the whole world is waiting.

As the 84th Academy Awards get underway within hours, here are Filmanalytique's predictions for Oscars for a brilliant year in film-making. With so many great films, the Oscars this year have been quite unpredictable. Although The Artist have led from the front (also already dominating Independent Spirit awards that are a prelude to the Oscars), it definitely has a serious competition. Read on!

Best Actor
Most Likely: Jean Dujardin for 'The Artist'
A long shot: Demián Bichir for 'A Better Life'
Filmanalytique's choice: Brad Pitt for 'Moneyball' 

Best Actress
Most Likely: Michelle Williams for 'My Week with Marilyn'
A long shot:  Rooney Mara for 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'
Filmanalytique's choice: Michelle Williams for 'My Week..'or Meryl Streep for ' The Iron Lady'  

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Most Likely: Kenneth Branagh for 'My Week with Marilyn'
A long shot: Jonah Hill for 'Moneyball'
Filmanalytique's choice: Kenneth Branagh for 'My Week with Marilyn'

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Most Likely: Bérénice Bejo for 'The Artist'
A long shot: Jessica Chastain for 'The Help'
Filmanalytique's choice: Bérénice Bejo for 'The Artist'

Best Animated Feature Film
Most Likely: 'Rango'
A long shot: 'A Cat in Paris'
Filmanalytique's choice: 'The Adventures of Tintin' (Not nominated)

Best Director
Most Likely: Michel Hazanavicius for 'The Artist'
A long shot: Terrence Malick for 'The Tree Of Life' or Alexander Payne for 'The Descendants'
Filmanalytique's choice: Michel Hazanavicius  for 'The Artist'

Best Cinematography
Most Likely: Guillaume Schiffman for 'The Artist'
A long shot: Janusz Kaminski for 'War Horse' or Emmanuel Lubezki  for 'The Tree Of Life'   Filmanalytique's choice:  Emmanuel Lubezki  for 'The Tree Of Life' or Wally Pfister for 'Moneyball' (Not nominated)

Best Foreign Language Film
Most Likely: 'A Seaparation'
A long shot: 'Monsieur Lazhar' or 'Bullhead'
Filmanalytique's choice: 'A Separation'

Best Film
Most Likely: 'The Artist'
A long shot: 'The Tree of Life' or 'Moneyball'
Filmanalytique's choice: 'The Artist'

Must-watch releases of February

Less than a week to Oscars, three Oscar nominated films release in India on February 24. Here's the list of the films that should not be missed by any film-enthusiast:

The Artist

A silent-film actor (Jean Dujardin) is threatened by the advent of talking pictures. Weary of fading away from the spotlight, he engages himself with a rising starlet (Bérénice Bejo). What is to happen to the artist?

Bagging 6 BAFTA & 3 Golden Globes, The Artist has 10 Academy nominations and has already shot to #118 in IMDB Top 250. A guaranteed entertainment, The Artist should not be missed at all.

Moneyball

A powerful star-cast that comprises of the-super-brilliant Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill & the-super-awesome Philip Seymour Hoffman, Moneyball is another major Academy nominated release of February. Anticipate a baseball flick with much more than just baseball. A low budgeted team's manager (Brad Pitt) alongwith a Yale grad (Jonah Hill) finds a statistical approach to pick the team which his manger (Philip S Hoffman) is not happy with. Does he and his team find what are they really worth?

My Week with Marilyn

The blonde bombshell comes back on the big screen. Michelle Williams brings you the boldness that was Marilyn Monroe. Nominated for best actress, Michelle is convincing in the film promotions itself. Marilyn & her struggle with fame, is seen through a young film student Colin (Eddie Redmayne) who is intrigued by her while Sir Laurence Olivier (Kenneth Branagh) is struggling with her demands. How does this week go?  
 

Carnage

Although not nominated for Oscars, Carnage is still a must watch for the return of Roman Polanski. A lighthearted comedy of an evening on the backdrop of civilized manners, Carnage has peculiar characters in a battle of wits. Two couples (Jodie Foster & John C. Reilly, Kate Winslet & Christoph Waltz) try to settle their son's fight & end up in a fight themselves. Watch how manners to no-manners tickles your funny bone.

Mihir Desai's Auteur Mark

Here's a film blog that a film-aficionado must read. Mihir Desai is an award-winning passionate filmmaker.  I had the oppportunity to work with him on a short film "Aakra-Man" which was an official selection for MAMI '11 & South Asian Film Festival at New York. His earlier works have earned him many accolades. Working with minimalistic resources, Mihir can elicit a top-class result with his framed, disciplined work. Mihir started his own company “Auteur Mark” which is also India’s first DIY production company. An  avid film-enthusiast, he eats, drinks, lives films. His film blog regularly lists some of the best of filmmaking and also contributing to the advent of Digital Filmmaking. Follow his blog here:

http://www.filmblog.auteurmark.com/

Reasoning with The Godfather

I

f reason was always a precursor of the civilized world, more than half the world’s stories would’ve never been scripted. Nor would they be immortalized through the art form Ingmar Bergmann so famously proclaimed as the one “that goes beyond the ordinary consciousness, straight to our emotions, deep into the twilight room of our soul.” Reasoning is never the cause for any conflicts in the world; it is the lack of it that has triggered battles between men - civilized or otherwise - for centuries. But life would be cruel for an illiterate, self-esteemed simple laborer man of a murdered family, laced with a cataclysmic childhood & banished from his own unsophisticated land of savage history, if it expects him to reason rather than seek vengeance or redemption by any unfair means possible. And even though the unfair means are employed, vengeance is realized, the equanimity with which he reasons, remains quite unparalleled. Vito Corleone is deservedly The Godfather.

 The character is a villain yet highly charming & fascinating, although by no means is the story the greatest in literature. The film version was made by the then relatively unfamiliar director, an erstwhile hit actor and a bunch of up-and-coming actors. Yet, it has topped or almost topped every film chart of great movies that is ever made. No account of film history is complete without it. No critic or enthusiast of films can claim to be one without watching it. Its influence on modern cinema is enigmatic. The film is an undisputed, timeless classic, just like its sequel.

The genre is crime-noir. It’s a reflection on gangster philosophy (deep yet immoral), only this time, from inside out. But not before we realize that the Don isn’t the main lead, it is his son Michael who’s reluctant to get along with his father’s business. (How did the Academy miss the strong character shift from Vito to Michael & the fact that the lead is Michael, is beyond my grasp.) The movie opens into the already established crime-organization of Don Corleone. The charismatic Brando portrays a wheezy-voiced Vito Corleone, a man extremely comfortable for his power, mainly because he is not bothered with the ethical repercussions of his deeds, partly because he knows he does not get carried away with it. One by one, masterful characters come before us, be it the frightening Luca Brasi, the dutiful consigliere, the short-tempered Sonny, the charming, composed Michael or the drunk & eccentric Fredo. And we quickly bond with these even through the wedding of Constanzia, arrival of Johny Fontane or the appeals of the mortician & the baker. All the strings are in Don’s hands, except Michael’s, whose distance bothers him constantly.

In the one wedding chapter of the film, Coppola takes us on a roller-coaster ride from the infidelity and recklessness of Sonny, aloofness of Michael, the reach of Don through the politician & judges’ letters and their discomfort of publicly bonding with Don to the arrogant tearing down of the photo film by the power-drunk Barzini. The details are attended with an amount of care that is not catered in today’s cinema. It firmly establishes Don Corleone as a man of honor, a family man but nevertheless, a crime syndicate. His control amplifies in the next chapter where the beheaded horse & dreadful bellowing of the Jack Woltz fades into his face. Nino Rota’s terrific, disturbingly haunting score creates a depth of the grave mind capable of committing coldblooded felony & also a halo of power around the Godfather.

The introduction of Turk brings the portent yet we do not see the further danger. The crisis of Corleone family & uncertainty surrounding it is thrilling, dramatic and yet very much realistic in its depiction. Anyone can relate to it and thus start sympathizing with the Don, while being perfectly aware of his criminal background. Coppola’s use of angles is intriguing, e.g. the bird’s eye shot of assassinating Godfather. The viewer feels the tension in Michael’s mind when he’s about to assassinate Sollozzo, featured by the contrast of his silence & the harsh train clamor. It is also made dramatic by slowly dolling in on his face. Coppola cuts short on McClusky’s background by casting Sterling Hayden whose iron-clad voice ensures a required sense of authority & he delivers a short-timed but brilliant crooked cop. Coppola doesn’t spend more time to intensify the brutality & assorts the life of the buttonmen on the mattresses with newspaper headlines of the gang war through a simple montage. The plot moves on with ease, conveying the violence through the montage and thus, while the three hour long movie doesn’t let the viewer settle down, it doesn’t hurry him either.

Francis Ford Coppola explaining a scene to Marlon Brando

Puzo’s story is undemanding, in the sense that, the events arrive in a lucid flow but that doesn’t mean it’s obvious. It’s a plain story of mafia world with guns, violence & revenge. But there is something to it that made it an immense success. There is a hook that makes it special beyond common underworld stories. The protagonist is the antagonist himself & in a very unconventional way. The Godfather isn’t just about Vito Corleone; it’s more about Michael Corleone. But most importantly it is about ‘Godfather’ which isn’t just one man. It’s a title, a crown of thorns to be worn by a man of strong mettle and supported by ‘family’ men who are loyal & gritty enough. When it becomes about Michael, it’s a story of a right man gone wrong, a good man become bad, maybe due to circumstances. No one (even Vito Corleone himself) expects his rise to the head of the family when he initially asserts himself, “That’s my family Kay, that’s not me.” But Michael doesn’t remain faithful to that assertion. He takes over the family business he utterly despised as a young man and reasons with equal composure as that of his father. We get a glimpse of it when Michael proposes extermination of McClusky & Sollozzo with a cold, fixed gaze. He eclipses his older brother Fredo in the transit, which delineates the theme for the sequel. And all the while, we empathize with the ‘Godfather’, the lead, a contemplating villain with substance. But the hook is not complete here, it is not whole just yet.

Michael’s exile in Sicily interspersed with the essential & parallel story of Sonny’s dealing with Carlo holds a grip on the viewer. The wedding with Apollonia makes Michael’s life easier during the exile & lightens up the plot but Constanzia’s troubles with Carlo never lets go of the anxiety. (Coppola later admitted that Connie’s violence scenes were introduced to make the film more ‘exciting’ to keep the studio happy.) In creating a fiercely violent killing of Sonny, Coppola creates fear under broad daylight. And the very next scene is the dark study room of Godfather. See the effect of immediate contrast. It creates that bleak mood. There’s is no loud mourning. No bold exhibition of the bereavement. Just a conversation of two men in a dark room & the grief of loss they’re suffering. The graveness of the calamity strikes when Godfather breaks down at the mortuary, “Look how they massacred my boy.” The next chapter intensifies the panic where car-blast-ploy to kill Michael takes Apollonia down. With Sonny murdered & Fredo in Vegas, we’re substantially ready to tackle the possibility of Michael returning back to action and this time, not just as a runaway assassinator.  

Here comes a time leap which is unexpected. It’s almost a year after Michael returns from Sicily. The lead has been Michael, but the character shift from Vito to Michael has just begun. Coppola skips period of Michael’s entering the business. It is quite understood through his stepping up to kill Sollozzo & the death of Sonny. This year long leap is tad bit difficult to digest unless you’re aware of the difficulties (bringing Michael back to America, arranging someone to take Michael’s charge on his head etc.) mentioned in the novel. Then, the fedora hat comes on, his walk becomes a bit rigid and his expressions graver, with a fixed, cold stare which became a legend. It characterized Al Pacino’s Godfather. Next thing we know, he’s sitting in the Godfather’s chair, making big decisions about the Capo-regimes, Consigliere and moving the family business to Nevada.

His composedness stands out in the encounter with the head-strong Moe Greene. While firing his consigliere with “You’re out Tom”, he is curt, but not arrogant. He exhibits his soft side for Kay & their son. He’s receptive to his father’s advice on the probable traitor but he’s determined to wipe out his enemies based on his instincts & perception. Everything while keeping his head cool. And Al Pacino delivers all this in a short-spanned screen time after return of Michael from Sicily. He brings about a convincing heir to Vito Corleone after his death (Although Fredo’s absence at Godfather’s funeral doesn’t make sense). But even if Brando is off the screen, Pacino shoulders the lead role with great ease.  

     

Brilliant screenplay from Coppola & Puzo throughout the entire film raises the bar for the climax & it doesn’t disappoint us at all. The pitiful end of Tessio & Tom Hagen’s image behind the window panes resonates revenge, preparing the viewer for its echo. Then, comes the dichotomy of baptism & assassinations of Barzini & others, that can undeniably be hailed as one of THE best in Film history. It gives a different dimension to the entire film. A calm & composed Michael at the baptism while being aware of the killings raises the cold-bloodedness of his methods by which he brings about the whole blood-smeared business. Each scene raises the tempo of the drama about to occur. This is editing at its best. When the exterminations end, Coppola takes us to the vital turn. The final conspirator, unnoticed, unthought-of. 

If until now, we’ve been influenced by Godfather’s forbearance, then wait for his tactics. If we’ve been taken by his unperturbed poise, then wait for his wisdom & judgment. One of the masterful single shots in the history of cinema arrives here. Michael enters Carlo’s house and his face is half-lit from the window side & the other half is dark. This frame has become immortal. A perfect symbolic depiction of the hardhearted, astute, socially-honored conman.

Carlo’s betrayal surprises us and yet convinces soon. Keeping it behind the curtain is the pinnacle of Puzo’s story and Coppola’s direction. The hook completes here, in the battle of undying loyalties & dreadful treachery. In demanding a confession from Carlo, “Only don’t tell me you’re innocent, ‘cause it insults my intelligence; makes me very angry”, Michael establishes his intellectual & muscle supremacy over everything. And when Clemenza garrotes Carlo, his walk suggests that the vengeance is finally realized.

What could possibly be described as some of the best editing, casting, cinematography & direction in cinema, we see Coppola establishing a mood & period that not only suited The Godfather, but it would’ve suited only The Godfather. This is story-telling at its best. This is film-making at its best. Even if the viewer has not read the novel, it will not make much difference. And those who’ve read it, have their imagination in physical. Coppola & his cinematographer, Gordon Willis, have created some of the excellent frames in the history of cinema. When Kay Adams - dressed in bright crimson - comes to the mall, the grey tones of other men & the gloomy ambience, produces a contrast that is not only captivating but also symbolic of the soft subplot that eventually goes on to provide a vital perspective in the end. The set design of Corleone mall is outstanding, especially Don’s study room. Coppola’s creation of the post-war Sicily and the roughness of the place is excellent. In casting, a then-slumping Marlon Brando was a surprise choice as Vito Corleone. Even Al Pacino & James Caan were not well recognized. But all have delivered masterful performances. There are immensely impactful dialogues. “Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.” Or “I made my bones when you were going out with cheerleaders!” or “I believe in America.” From the brilliant editing to the superb art direction, The Godfather was brilliance on the technical level too.   

And yet The Godfather did not win a single technical Oscar.

But it did beat Cabaret (which had tied up with Godfather at 10 nominations) as the Best Picture. It did beat Cabaret as the Best Adapted Screenplay. The story of the youngest, unwilling son of a crime pyramid going to the top of the hierarchy is definitely intriguing but it’s the way it happens that is more gripping. Always willing to break free from the family business, Michael is the most liberal son of the family. He may despise his family’s methods but his love for his blood is still intact. Circumstances ask a lot of Michael and he doesn’t disappoint his family. In evolving through the perils, he’s aware where he’s going and all he’s left with is to reason with life. Understanding his father’s rationale of becoming who he was, he evolves into a considerate heir. And as he holds the strength for his family, the Corleone family prevails over its enemies. Michael Corleone deservedly inherits The Godfather.

A masterpiece, an all-time-best, The Godfather influences our deepest concepts of conscience about crime. It expands our ideas of circumstantial crime & cold-blooded conspiracy. It became an exemplary role for real-life gangsters for a large time. And yet it exhibited the diminishing attribute crime brings with it, the darkness that constantly haunts it. When Michael finds that lie is the only way to hold him & Kay together, he employs it. In the end, this soft subplot of Kay offers us the most important perspective on Godfather, the one where it is no longer inside out. When Clemenza kisses Michael’s hand with respect and greets him, “Don Corleone”, Al Neri closes the door on a concerned Kay who’s just struck with a bitter realization. The door closes into darkness; depicting what is best described by something Michael says to Vincent Corleone in the last installment of The Godfather trilogy - “It’s the price you pay for the life you choose.”     
 

"Don Corleone!"