Final Comparison Essay : The God Father part one & Scarface

Introduction

God Father Pt.1 and Scarface are one of the best gangster and crime movies ever made. They both took film noir to the next level. Although both of the movies were in color it gave the viewers a feel of the olden black and white films. The dialogue used in both movies was very dark and had a deep meaning. Till today some of the phrases used in both movies still stand out and are considered some of the best phrases of all time for example in God Father part one; Don Vito Corleone the Head of the Corleone family said one fantastic line that has ever since lingered around the world till today “I’ll make an offer he can’t refuse” and Tony Montana in Scarface said many lines that still stand out and are constantly spoken by youngsters today; one famous line of his was “Say Hello to my little friend!” Although both movies revolve around the business of crime; both the movies share the theme of respect and importance of family. One of the major differences I have noticed in God father part one and Scarface is the role played by AL Pacino; even though he was involved in the crime world in both movies, the way he dealt with brutal situations differ by a great deal. The soundtracks in both movies are also different; the God Father incorporated slow tunes to its scenes and Scarface incorporated fast and upbeat tunes to its scenes.

The God Father is a 1972 mafia movie that was based on Mario Puzo’s novel “The God Father”. The movie was created by Francis Ford Coppola, which revolved around the Corleone Family that forms part of the Italian Mafia in New York. The Corleone Family was led by Don Vito Corleone who had three sons one of which Michael refused to take part in the family business; however later at the end of the movie he becomes Vito’s successor and the next God Father. The movie is all about the Family underworld business where it is governed by respect and honor. The family would only show intolerance and ruthlessness to those who break their code of honor and respect.

Scarface is a 1983 movie directed Brian De Palma and written by Oliver Stone. It revolves around the life of a Cuban immigrant struggling to gain status, power and respect in Miami. The movie shows how two Cuban immigrants Tony Montana and Manny Ray rise in the drug cartel of Miami and become one of the most powerful men in the drug business; however at the end of the movie Tony Montana is overwhelmed by greed and power; that is when his major down fall took place; causing a bitter end “Death”

Similarity in the Theme of Family and Respect

No matter how much violence and bloodshed was shown in both of the crime movies; family was the utmost important aspect of the movie.  The movie God Father as we can see represented their business by giving their own family name “The Corleone family”. The business revolves around the family and any outsider that joins the business and who is loyal becomes family for example Tom Hagen who was not an Italian but a German-Irish by birth took part in the business not as a separate individual but as a family.  Tom Hagen was not family by blood but once accepted as a family member by the Corleone he remained family for life; we as viewers come to an understanding the importance of the meaning of family for Corleone’s when Michael Corleone tells his girlfriend Kay “when my brother Sonny was a kid, he found Tom Hagen in the street. And he had no home and so my father took him in — and he’s been with us ever since.”  Now Tom Hagen is one of the most important characters in the movie, the family made him consigliere which is the main advisor of all family business matters.  In one scene Don Vito refuses to take a family portrait during his daughter’s wedding because Michael was not yet present; this scene again shows the importance of family. The Family will always look out for one another and have each other’s backs; this is revealed to the viewer’s when Michael Corleone moves his father’s body from one hospital bed room to another to protect him from Sollozo’s goons that were on the way to kill him. This scene is also a turning point in the movie as Michael starts realizing the importance of family and decides to take control of the family business; he eventually murders Virgil Sollozzo and Mark McCluskey who were the main culprits for the attempted assassination of God Father Vito Corleone.  The most important magnification of family importance is a line said by the God Father himself in one scene while conversing with Johnny Fontane “A man that doesn’t spend time with his family can ever be a real man”

The movie Scarface focuses on the importance of family as well. Viewers understand the value and importance of family when Tony visits his mother and sister Gina after a long time. This occurs when Tony has already earned his riches in the Drug business and is able to provide an ample amount of money for his family. He visits his mother’s house by gifting her with a thousand dollars and gifts his sister a necklace. However things turn bad when he tells both his sister and his mother that they no longer have to work anymore as he has established himself and has more than an average individual . Tony’s mother starts getting upset and orders him to leave her house, giving his money back; calling him a disgrace due to the fact that he had to kill many men in order to earn all his riches. She found his job to be evil and disrespectful. Even though he was kicked out of his house he still gives his sister the money ordering her to give it to their mother. This shows that anger does not get in the way of Tony’s love for his family; he still holds immense importance for his family members. One more example is when Tony protects his sister when he fears his friend Manny was going to take advantage of her.

The second theme that is commonly shared by both of the movies is respect. Respect in Mafia and Gangster movies is the pillar that holds everything else. The more respect you gain, the more dignified and powerful you become. We can see the importance of respect in the first scene of God Father when Amerigo Bonasera asks Don Vito Corleone for his help by offering him money. He asks The God Father to grant his daughter Justice by taking revenge on two men which has beaten her up brutally. Don Vito refuses he says that Bonasera never wanted to keep any sort of relationship with him and that he was afraid to be in Dons Vito’s debt; he further says “you don’t ask with respect. You don’t offer friendship. You don’t even think to call me Godfather. Instead, you come into my house on the day my daughter is to be married, and you uh ask me to do murder, for money.” From this conversation we can see that aside from money; friendship, loyalty and above all respect is the most important.  Throughout the movie Scarface the importance of respect can be seen through many scenes as Tony Montana believes that respect is never letting someone hurt your ego and pride; Tony will never back down from a fight because he believes he will lose his respect. One brilliant example is when he was insulted and called a dishwasher by Omar Suarez. He retaliated and tried to fight back with him even though Omar pulled out a gun.

 Differences

The major difference I noticed watching both the movies is the acting of AL Pacino. AL Pacino in God Father had a more subtle attitude in facing dangerous as well as anger arousing situations; playing as Michael Corleone, AL Pacino showed little emotion of anger and pride. This could be seen when in one scene the police Chief officer punches him on the face, he still kept his composure and cool by not getting angry and boasting his family name.  There is a scene in the movie when Michael kills Sollozzo and McCluskey by shooting both of them in the head in an Italian restaurant. After the shooting Michael seemed very calm and collected, he walks out the restaurant as if without much emotion. There are several scenes throughout the movie in which he is aggravated yet he never truly yells at the top of his voice. In Scarface however AL Pacino’s acting totally differed from his calm and collected personality in God Father. Throughout the movie AL Pacino playing Tony Montano showed his character as being wild, constantly angry, rebelling and raising his voice. He also abuses and curses at people which in God Father he didn’t.  There is one climax scene in the movie where he goes total blizzard; taking out his M16 gun and shooting all of Sosa’s men and as he pulls out his gun he screams and says “Say Hello to my little friend!”  The major reason in contrasting personalities of AL Pacino from both movies is the difference in cultures. In The God Father he plays as an Italian Mafia member whereby elegance and composure is the key of success whereas in Scarface he plays as a Cuban gangster whereby the style and attitudes are more rough, rowdy and violent.

Another difference I observed was the soundtracks played by both movies. The main sound track played in The God Father was Speak Softly Love which is traditional Italian origin music. The song was very slow and mellow giving the movie a bluesy feel. The song beautifully depicts the movie, it had a slow and calm start just like the beginning of the movie where everything was perfect then the song depicts struggle in the middle  this could be during Don Vito’s attempted assassination and when Santino Corleone was murdered and the ending of the song depicts hope and faith this could be when Michael Corleone rises to be the new God Father. The Soundtracks in Scarface however were more upbeat and represented the disco fever of the 1970’s-1980’s. Throughout the movie we as viewers see sets in Discos and hear disco music; this depicts the life of people consuming cocaine always in a rush of adrenaline. The soundtrack “Push It To The Limit” in the movie portrayed Tony Montana’s Life as it is about how one lives life full of risk; just like Tony constantly endangering himself in a life filled with drugs, violence and sex.

Conclusion

The God Father and Scarface in my opinion is one of the most brilliant crime movies ever made and will always be cherished as one of the greatest movies of all time; although the movies revolved around crime and violence. Both of the movies taught the audiences the importance and value of family and respect. It also showed the audience that life is not always a bed of roses, in order to achieve something we all must always work hard and struggle.  The two movies were brilliantly made in terms of film noir as well. The God Father made use of cigarette smoking brilliantly and also some scenes shot near alleys etc. Scarface portrayed film Noir through the costumes, beautiful women and also smoking. Both of the movies also constructed their dialogues with perfection as said earlier some of the lines said in the two movies are still remembered and used today such as “Say Hello to my little friend!” and “I’ll make an offer he can’t refuse”

Citations

• Puzo, Mario, and Francis Ford Coppola. “The Godfather Part I Transcript.” THE GODFATHER TRILOGY – The Web Site You Can’t Refuse. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Aug. 2012. <http://www.thegodfathertrilogy.com/gf1/transcript.html&gt;
• “What is Film Noir? | film noir.” film noir. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Aug. 2012. <http://filmsnoir.net/what-is-film-noir&gt;.
• Scarface. Dir. Francis Ford and Coppola. Perf. AL Pacino. Universal, 1932
• The God Father Part 1. Dir. Francis Ford Coppola. Perf. Marlon Brando, Al Pacino and James Caan . Paramount Pictures, 1972. Film.