The Godfather: Part II [Blu-ray] [1974] [Region Free]

My family stumbled across this obscure film about the experiences of an Italian-American family. It turned out to be quite good. I suggest you give it a try.

This is a rare case where I think the sequel is superior to the original.Pacino's performance is top notch, but De Niro's portrayal of a young Vito Corleone was probably the highlight for me. The parallel stories, the cycles of beginnings and endings and new beginnings, and strong, individualistic character arcs for many, many characters make for a deep story, rich with intrigue, suspense, and mystery.The artistry is superb, camera work, sound, etc. are all masterful and will draw you in and fix your attention throughout this 200 minute behemoth of a classic.

So, so good... made in an age before special effects, "de-ageing" etc. It's all in the camera - and shot on actual film. The image quality isn't quite up to today's standards, but the lighting, direction, set decoration, period cars, costumes etc are all top notch. I'm not sure you could make this movie today, although "the Irishman" comes close in production value (although that had lots of technical advantages over "The Godfather Part II")The story stands alone without the original, but it's definitely better after seeing the first one. The characters are rich and complex, the story is well thought out.It deserves being considered a classic.

The Godfather wasn't really a gangster film. It was always a family film. The first installment was about Vito Corleone and his family. The second installment was about Vito Corleone and his family. The second installment was also about Michael Corleone and his family. The third installment was about Michael Corleone and his family or what was left of Michael Corleone's family. Michael Corleone is the man born into a mafia family who doesn't want to be a Don. Michael takes the role of Don because he loved his father and his family. I thought the ending of the third installment was pretty sad. Michael Corleone sick, depressed, slumps over in a chair and dies. Puzo was trying to show that family is everything and that without family you have nothing. I think there is also an underlying message about God being the "Ultimate Don." No matter how much a person can escape the law's punishment, a person can never escape God's punishment. In a lot of the scenes where killing takes place there is some kind of church scene or Catholic religious scene concurring at the same time. The films show the mafia as human beings that are human. They have families. They struggle to earn a living. They come from a foreign land. They helped to make America what it is today. It is kind of a brutal world where it's kill of be killed. The Dons remind me of kings residing over kingdoms. You kill one of mine. I kill one of yours. I kill one of yours. You kill one of mine. I want to stay in power so I kill you. He wants to stay in power so he kills me. And so on. There is a lot of revenge killing as well. They do also eat a lot of good food.

Good movie, but Amazon should consider at least discounting these movies for Prime customers. There are VERY FEW good movies available on Prime and $3.99 is a lot to rent, compared to Redbox!

It might be hard to believe that a sequel to The Godfather could surpass its progenitor, but Part II does. As the great film critic Pauline Kael wrote, the sequel both widens and deepens the original story, and it punishes audiences for growing so comfortable with the fundamentally monstrous deeds of the primary characters. To be fair, Part II is not a standard sequel; it's really a seamless extension, in opposite temporal directions, of the original story, combining both movies into one epic history of a particularly violent American family. And actually, it's more than an epic - it's a screen opera. It begins in Sicily right at the turn of the 20th century, where young Vito Corleone's father and older brother have been murdered by Don Ciccio, the local warlord. It then follows Vito to America, where he grows to young manhood, and it depicts his transformation from quiet family man to avenger and then to Godfather. At the same time, the story follows Michael Corleone's struggle to maintain control over his family despite an assassination attempt and a dangerous rivalry with Jewish mobster Hyman Roth (played by the legendary acting teacher Lee Strasberg). Sequel or not, this is one of the truly great American movies. It stands after nearly 40 years as Coppola's masterpiece, a savage portrait of a family gone horribly wrong. In fact, it's so skillful that the final scene, which contains no violence, is probably the most shocking of all, because it confronts the audience with the magnitude of the tragic journey the Corleones have undertaken in less than two decades. [Technical note: This was the last movie ever to be shot in the classic Technicolor process, and although its colors are subdued, they are unfaded by time. Today, digital processing can maintain and restore colors, but Technicolor was a glorious and unique resource, and anyone who saw movies in this format in theaters will never forget them.]  Phil's Favorite 500: Loves of a Moviegoing Lifetime (2014 edition)

Fantastic sequel, showing the gradual turning of events and history of the ruthless Corleone family…down to the killing of those closest to them; whether betrayal, power, jealousy was involved, a true classic that made a lasting impression on American movie-goers then, and still today…an absolute classic…watch all of them…and wonder why America/ Hillywood can't seem to do it anymore!

Liked everything about the film. Mike’s struggle with good and evil. Personal family loyalty vs loyalty to his mafia family, dim to dark lighting to represent sinister and evil, dark clothing, black cars, and much more to represent evil, flowered clothing (Kate) to represent good. Great plot. Critics acclaim it as one of the best films of all time.

Development on the first Godfather with Al Pacino as Godfather Michael Corleone, with failing health of his father Vito Corleone Marlon Brando . Depiction of making offers that others could not [or dare not] refuse. Unmissable

A contender for the greatest film ever made. I have been replacing my VHS collection with DVD and while I had no problem with purchasing pre-owned discs (in fact, most of them) I just couldn't do it with the Godfather films.

Best sequel ever

A great film , safely delivered . Thank you .

Best movie ever.