Faith, Family and Films
Page to Picture Part Three
J. K. Tang
I BELIEVE IN FILM. Film has made me happy. And I hold certain films in particular high regard. This is a film that gives us a sense of freedom, but Coppola’s The Godfather (1972) taught the audience never to dishonour the novel. Indebted to Mario Puzo’s ‘crime-canon’, this crime-thriller “Don” reigns quietly in the depths of Netflix, “ready to make an offer [contemporary audiences] can’t refuse”. As Coppola and Puzo open a retrospective window into 70s ‘Mafia’ culture, shall we awe at their seamless projection from page to picture?
The Title Card
Under the immense symbolism behind the infamous ‘puppeteer’ title card, the film perpetuates ideological parallels between ‘mobster’ crime structures and the Catholic paradigm. Firstly, the titular term, ‘Godfather’, associates the role of Marlon Brando’s Don Vito Corleone as a paternal figure of authority and power in both his family and New York’s criminal underworld. Hence, the metaphorical ‘puppeteering’ emphasises the narrative power of Vito for he commands the rise and demise of certain participants in his illicit games. Furthermore, a crucifix binds the deification of the Godfather to the Catholic backbone of Italian-American culture.
The Wedding
By taking historical glimpses into real-world events, Coppola situates us in a wedding-reception based on the marriage of mobster Salvatore Bonanno to Rosalie Profaci in August 1956. Held in a mansion, located in Long Beach, NY, the suburb was notorious for rum smuggling during America’s prohibition era. A Sicilian wedding in the rum-smuggling neighbourhood. Nothing more ‘mafia’ than that.
As Don Vito wrestles with the instability of organised crime, Coppola commits to layers of subtle cuts between the confines of his office and the glamour of the Corleone wedding. Thus, elucidating the bi-faceted responsibilities as ‘The Don’; family-man and mob-boss. Running very Mod B Henry IV (Part I) undertones here.
Amidst the festive affairs, we immerse ourselves into Michael’s distant reality. His anecdotal exposition contextualises, not only Corleone’s past, but foreshadows the events of Corleone’s future. Via these close-ups, we are intimate and drawn to his story as he rises from a prodigal son to a worthy successor of Vito’s criminal empire.
In just twenty seven minutes, the genius of Puzo and Coppola has already “made an offer [we] can’t refuse”. Consider the history, the location and theological semantic field. In just twenty seven minutes, “the first Godfather is in the best 20 movies of all time…” – Mario Puzo, himself.
More than novels. More than ‘films’. Have ‘faith’ that I will continue this intermedial journey into the expansive story of cinema’s most dangerous crime ‘family’.