The Godfather (1972) on Netflix
Don Vito Corleone heads the Corleone crime family. When Sollozzo seeks his backing for a heroin trade, Vito refuses. His son Michael, home from the war, wants no part in the business.
- Netflix4.4/5
- IMDb9.2/102,256,480 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes97%
Trailer
Plot summary
Late summer 1945: Don Vito Corleone, head of the Corleone crime family, grants favors at the wedding of his daughter Connie to Carlo Rizzi, among them a request from undertaker Amerigo Bonasera to punish the men who beat his daughter and a plea from singer Johnny Fontane for a film role. Vito's youngest son Michael, a decorated Marine, brings his girlfriend Kay Adams and tells her he wants no part in the family's dealings. When Virgil Sollozzo, who has the backing of the rival Tattaglia family, asks Vito to finance and protect a heroin trade, Vito refuses, saying the judges and politicians he has cultivated would abandon him. Sonny, the eldest, breaks rank to question the deal, and his father silences him.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Godfather (1972)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The windows of producer Albert S. Ruddy's car had been shot out with a note on the dashboard which essentially said "shut down the movie - or else". It was revealed in August 1971 that Ruddy had personally met Colombo family head Joseph Colombo, Colombo's son Anthony and about 1,500 delegates of Colombo's Italian-American Civil Rights League.
- According to Martino, after being stripped of the role he went to Russell Bufalino, his godfather and a crime boss, who arranged for news articles claiming Coppola was unaware of Ruddy giving Martino the part; although Frank Sinatra threatened to bar him from Las Vegas, the part of Johnny Fontane went to Martino.
- Robert De Niro was originally given the part of Paulie Gatto, but a spot opened in The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight after Al Pacino quit that project in favour of The Godfather, so De Niro auditioned, got it and left The Godfather.
- One scene involved an actual severed horse's head. Coppola received some criticism for it, although the head was obtained from a dog-food company from a horse that was to be killed regardless of the film.
- Executives allowed Coppola to cast Brando only if the actor accepted a lower salary and put up a bond to ensure he would not cause any delays in production; Brando earned $1.6 million from a net participation deal.
