Godfather II (1974)

If there's one thing that everyone can agree on it's that sequels suck. Ask anyone what they think of sequels and they'll say, "I hate sequels, they're never as good as the original...except for Back to the Future...those sequels are great." If you don't believe me, here's a list of terrible sequels. Go find out for yourself:

1) Return of Jafar
2) Home Alone 3 (part 2 was ok)
3) Tremors 2
4) Tremors 3
5) Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea
6) Air Buddies
7) Alien vs. Predator
8) Pokemon 2 (That's not fair because the first one sucked too)

While most sequels do in fact suck, there are a handful of sequels that are great, or at least tolerable. While The Godfather II wasn't amazing, and it wasn't as good as the original, it fell in the tolerable category.

The Godfather II tries to be a lot more artistic than the first movie by following two plots at once. The first plot picks up where the first movie left off. It follows Michael Corleone as he deals with the emotional strain of being the head of the family, and how he deals with a recent attempt on his life. The second plot follows the beginnings of Michael's father Don Corleone, and shows his trip from poverty in Sicily to his life of organized crime in New York.

Al Pacino returns to his role as Michael Corleone and that role set the pace for the rest of his career. Correct me if I'm wrong but it seems that Al Pacino only plays gangsters. I think it's time for another list. He plays (I may have missed a few):

1) Michael Corleone in The Godfather
2) Lefty Ruggiero in Donnie Brasco
3) John Milton in The Devil's Advocate (Technically he was Satan who is the ultimate gangster)
4) Tony Montana in Scarface
5) Willy Bank in Ocean's Thirteen (Everyone knows casino owners are all gangsters)
6) Starkman in Gigli
7) Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way
8) Big Boy in Dick Tracy



Type casting at its finest!

Robert De Niro plays Don Vito (who later becomes Don Corleone) and does a great job picking up the character where Marlon Brando left off. To be honest De Niro's performance was the only one in the movie of consequence. The whole film just seemed tired and dragged out. Even the music that I loved so much from the first movie was dry and boring. This movie, although full of iconic scenes, really left a lot to be desired. I suppose you can't expect much from a sequel though.

The bottom line:
Rating: 3.0
Would I own it? Forget about it
Would I recommend it? Probably not