The Godfather

*oldmanwinters* · 03-22-2022, 09:58 AM

Yeah, I know the first two Godfather movies are all-time classics, both in the conversation for "Best Movie of All Time."

I want to talk a bit about the infamous third movie. I actually never watched it until a few years ago when I bought "The Godfather Collection" on DVD. It's... fine I guess. Back in 2020, Francis Coppola decided to recut the movie and re-release it as "Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone." I have yet to watch the re-cut, but from what I read it doesn't transform the movie into something dramatically superior. The laborious title probably does capture more of the spirit of the director's intent moreso than the ol' "Part III" (and the new cut's runtime is shorter, for whatever that's worth).

Today, I noticed that the theatrical cut of Godfather Part III seems to have been purged from most digital streaming platforms: Amazon Prime, VUDU/Fandango, Apple iTunes Store. I have a digital license for the theatrical cut through VUDU from years ago, but I really hate the idea that studios believe they have to take away a consumer's ability to watch/purchase an older version of a film, presumably to push the newer cut. At least with films like Apocalypse Now, you have the option of buying/streaming theatrical, Redux, or Final Cut versions. Similarly, you can buy/stream three different cuts of the Richard Donner 1978 Superman film [Donner would have flipped out if Warner's vaulted his theatrical cut in order to push the 3-hour TV extended cut]. The Godfather Part III was never a classic, arguably not even a "historically significant" influential movie, but it is a part of film history, and in some ways stands as an prime exhibit on how hard it is to make sequels as good as original movies. Sure, there are tons of VHS tapes and DVDs of it taking up space in second-hand stores, but I'm disappointed it seems to be disappearing from future availability.

03-22-2022, 09:58 AM	#1
oldmanwinters Overlord Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Between yesterday and tomorrow! Posts: 15,504	The Godfather Yeah, I know the first two Godfather movies are all-time classics, both in the conversation for "Best Movie of All Time." I want to talk a bit about the infamous third movie. I actually never watched it until a few years ago when I bought "The Godfather Collection" on DVD. It's... fine I guess. Back in 2020, Francis Coppola decided to recut the movie and re-release it as "Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone." I have yet to watch the re-cut, but from what I read it doesn't transform the movie into something dramatically superior. The laborious title probably does capture more of the spirit of the director's intent moreso than the ol' "Part III" (and the new cut's runtime is shorter, for whatever that's worth). Today, I noticed that the theatrical cut of Godfather Part III seems to have been purged from most digital streaming platforms: Amazon Prime, VUDU/Fandango, Apple iTunes Store. I have a digital license for the theatrical cut through VUDU from years ago, but I really hate the idea that studios believe they have to take away a consumer's ability to watch/purchase an older version of a film, presumably to push the newer cut. At least with films like Apocalypse Now, you have the option of buying/streaming theatrical, Redux, or Final Cut versions. Similarly, you can buy/stream three different cuts of the Richard Donner 1978 Superman film [Donner would have flipped out if Warner's vaulted his theatrical cut in order to push the 3-hour TV extended cut]. The Godfather Part III was never a classic, arguably not even a "historically significant" influential movie, but it is a part of film history, and in some ways stands as an prime exhibit on how hard it is to make sequels as good as original movies. Sure, there are tons of VHS tapes and DVDs of it taking up space in second-hand stores, but I'm disappointed it seems to be disappearing from future availability. __________________ Experience the TMNT Fan Commentaries! Check out my TMNT fan comic, "Nothing to Fear"! View my sketch work! I'm selling some of my hard-to-find TMNT items! Last edited by oldmanwinters; 03-23-2022 at 08:43 AM.