Ultimate Film Guides: The Godfather

From a penniless director, a has-been star and a relatively unknown lead came a movie which own three Oscars.

• Includes excerpts from original reviews of the film.
• Provides a background including biographies of key cast and crew and a cultural context of the movie.
• Looks at the production, key scenes, themes and techniques used in making the movie.

Go behind the scenes with the ultimate film guides and get the bigger picture. Examine how The Godfather was Francis Ford Coppola's vision and how he achieved it through his casting decisions, his choice of location for filming and the use of light to create mood and atmosphere. Consider how by use of narrative, imagery, and cinematography, he is able to convey an atmosphere of the family as a close knit community and the characters as tragic figures. Find out what Marlon Brando brought to the role of Don Vito Corleone and how important the film was to Al Pacino's career. Get short biographies of Francis Ford Coppola, Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Mario Puzo, the writer, and Robert Evans, who was head of production at Paramount. Get a bibliogrpahy of the books related to The Godfather, a listing of cinematic terms used and a filmography of Coppola. Written in an accessible manner, The Godfather is excellent reading for the movie fan and film student alike.

William Malyszko is the head of Film & Media studies at the Langley