Coming Soon – The Godfather, Part III: Revamped
Article Series by Ray Schillaci
Okay, I can see Francis Ford Coppola monkeying around with his Apocalypse Now! for a third time to get a better cut. I loved the original theatrical cut at 153 minutes. Then came his Apocalypse Now Redux at 197 minutes which was interesting but probably could have used a bit of trimming.
There is rumored to be a whopping 289 minute work print version that is a bootleg that has scenes never seen before. It’s doubtful most of us will ever see it. Besides, that’s longer than Scorsese’s The Irishman, talk about a long haul. Finally, we get a 4K version, Apocalypse Now: Final Cut, at 183 minutes. Let’s face it, for most of us, the film is a masterpiece of cinema, and if the maestro has best intentions for what he truly feels is a definitive version. all the power to him on this one.
But, the idea of taking the sow’s ear The Godfather: Part III and trying to turn it into the proverbial silk purse like his two previous films seems like an improbable feat. What’s he going to do? Cut out all of Sofia’s parts? Her presence grounded the film to a halt. Hey, I like Andy Garcia, but he just did not have the chops or charisma of the cast of the other two movies. Coppola’s forced trilogy felt like the third installment was pushed through too hastily, like a vaccine for the Coronavirus.
Paramount and Coppola are even saddling it with a truncated title Mario Puzo’s The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone. Jeez, that’s long winded. It almost feels like if it fails, Coppola and Paramount have Puzo to blame, brandishing his name into the title. Paramount, Coppola and Puzo have also stated that this the original vision they had.
Frankly, I just don’t know if that is a good sign after looking at the films he had full control over after Apocalypse Now!…that fell flat: One From the Heart, The Outsiders, Rumble Fish, Gardens of Stone. He did show a glimmer of a comeback with Peggy Sue Got Married. But, then came The Godfather: Part III and many of us cried foul and wondered how the richness of the tale of the Corleone family had become so stale and melodramatic. Sure, we had Pacino, Diane Keaton and Talia Shire for Part III, but instead of Robert Duvall, John Cazale (dead), James Caan (killed off), Robert De Niro and Marlon Brando, we get lightweights: Andy Garcia, Sofia Coppola and George Hamilton.
Coppola tells us that the film will have a new beginning and ending, some rearranged scenes and shots along with music cues that will be truer to his and Puzo’s vision as to how they wanted the trilogy to end. The question is, does anybody care enough? Yes, the films have their following, but the third one was nearly dismissed by fans and critics alike.
I can see when a film ends up with different versions as with Blade Runner, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Heaven’s Gate, Lord of the Rings or Brazil. Some of these changes have been for the good (Heaven’s Gate, Brazil), others have been total misfires where the director should have left well enough alone (Close Encounters).
Taking a good movie and trying to make it better can be welcome to fans. De Palma’s Scarface or even Orson Welles’ The Magnificent Ambersons would be something many cinephiles would look forward to. On the other hand, promising to take the bad taste out of our mouth with a new improved version of something many of us would rather forget for some reason reminds me of my wife taking a bite of something, telling me it tastes like shit, and then insisting on me trying it and getting my opinion. Just not interested.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t think Coppola’s third film was a stale turd. I just felt (like so many others) that it came nowhere near the bar that he had set with his two previous films and the casting was less than to be desired. And, that’s what made the first two Godfather movies so damn memorable. There are scenes sprinkled in the third installment that give us a glimpse as to how good the Godfather saga was. But, the film never amounted to being the crowning achievement we so looked forward to. With the announcement of this new version I can only hope I’m totally off and Coppola, Puzo, and Paramount prove me wrong. But, I smell a special engagement of the film on Netflix or Prime foregoing a limited theatrical release.
Visit Ray’s blog at themonsterinmyhead.com
