20 facts you might not know about ‘The Godfather’ and ‘The Godfather Part II’
Many movies have made about the mob. Few of them are considered true works of cinematic art, though. One clear instance of that, and a movie that changed the landscape of film, is Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather.” The movie was a huge box-office success, for a time the highest-grossing movie ever made, and so much more. Many consider “The Godfather” the best movie ever. Well, except the people who consider its sequel “The Godfather Part II” the best movie ever. What an incredible combo of movies. You may know these movies, but do you know these 20 facts about the films?
Mario Puzo actually sold the rights to the manuscript for the book that would become “The Godfather” before it was even finished. Evidently, the author was in need of a quick influx of cash and was happy to sell the rights to Paramount’s Robert Evans, the legendary producer. It paid off for the studio after the book became an incredible hit. Puzo’s “The Godfather” was on “The New York Times’” bestseller list for a staggering 67 weeks.
Coppola became a huge name in showbusiness after “The Godfather,” but before he got the job he was not necessarily a success. He had not really had a big hit yet and was coming off a flop in “The Rain People.” After many directors, including Sergio Leone, Peter Bogdanovich, and Arthur Penn turned it down, Coppola got the opportunity, in part because he was an Italian-American and Evans felt that was important.
Paramount was worried about whether or not Coppola was capable of taking on such an epic production. The cost of the film was rising and Coppola was making decisions they didn’t necessarily like. In fact, Evans talked to director Elia Kazan about taking over the film. Despite the tangible fear that he would be fired, Coppola finished the production.
Puzo, who also worked as a screenwriter on the movie, wrote a letter to Brando to say he felt he was the only actor that could play Vito Corleone. In the end, it came down to Brando and Ernest Borgnine for the role. Some executives were worried because Brando didn’t a reputation as necessarily being easy to work with. However, he was serious about getting the role and put cotton balls in his mouth for his audition to change his diction and to give Vito a certain look he felt he should have. It paid off, as he got the role.
Caan’s turn as Sonny Corleone, the hot-tempered son of Vito, earned him an Oscar nomination. However, it was not the role he had at first. Originally Caan was cast as Michael, the role that went to Al Pacino. Coppola really wanted Pacino, who was not a famous name at the time, and Evans agreed as long as the role of Sonny went to Caan. An agreement was reached, and we’re all probably pretty happy with that.
