The Godfather and The Godfather Part II

With the release of the remastered Godfather Trilogy, a reappraisal of brilliant scoring for films is in order. Paramount is hard-selling the titles, and they feature brand new remasters of the soundtracks in stereo for the first time, as well as the first ever release of the first two films in their original widescreen format. The first two Godfather films are wonderful pieces of cinema, and are graced by extraordinary scores.

The first two films were scored by Italian composer Nino Rota, who is best known for these films and his collaborations with Fellini. Except for the Fellini pictures and the Godfather films, his output was uneven, but these bodies of work have remained ingrained in cinema history. Original source music for the first two films was composed by Francis Coppola's father Carmine, who also conducted the orchestra for the second film. (The third film, which was produced long after Rota's death, was scored completely by Carmine Coppola.)

The music from the first two films is brilliant, fusing dramatic scoring with more pop styles of the eras depicted, as well as Sicilian folk music. The music for the third film contains the themes from the originals, with some extra material written by Coppola in Rota's style.

The Godfather opens with a dark trumpet solo, which would eventually become the opening titles for the sequels as well. This is (for the first film) Vito's (Marlon Brando) theme, and is most closely related to his vision of "the old world." The theme is a waltz, but is capable of evoking varied emotions. It sounds intimate in the garden scene (in the track "Main Title" on the soundtrack album), and foreboding in the actual main title and "The Halls of Fear," for the scene in which Michael (Al Pacino) finds his father without protection in the hospital. The final appearance of the theme in the first film is its sad reprse over the end credits (oafishly edited in the film).

The most popular of all the Godfather themes, the Love Theme, a lilting piece linked to Michael's doomed courtship and marriage to Sicilian beauty Apollonia (Simonetta Stefanelli).

The last major theme from The Godfather is the seven note lietmotiff for Michael himself. Although it is nowhere near as popular as the other two themes, it is the most important in this film and its sequel. The theme is at once attractive and forbidding, reflecting the character's charisma as well as his loss of soul. Although the theme appears on the album fairly often, one of the most provocative versions, the robust cue that immediately follows the Sollozzo (Al Lettieri) and McClusky (Sterling Hayden) murders, does not. (A concertized version of this cue appears as one of the variations of "Michael's Theme" on the album The Godfather Suite.)

Along with these, there is plenty of other material in the score. A jazzy, sax and piano cue called "The Pickup" was apparently written for when Michael is—er—picked up by McClusky in order to meet with Solouzzo. Its appearance in the film is trunucated, but it is preserved on the album. In "The Halls of Fear," the Godfather Waltz and Michael's theme play over a funereal drum beat, giving the impression of a dirge.

And, of course, there is the baptism sequence, a cinematic tour de force in which Michael eliminates all of his enemies while he attends his nephew's baptism as the baby's godfather. This is a brilliantly constructed sequence, not only due to its celebrated montage, but also for the sublime irony of Michael piously renouncing the works of Satan despite the fact that he has set in motion what is, essentially, a bloodbath. Moat of the music for this sequence consists of church organ standards by J.S. Bach. The sound of the baptism is heard over the preparations, with the sound of the organ very high on the soundtrack. It dips when Michael speaks, however, implying that the music is actually very low in the church. Even so, it is diegetic until Clemenza (Richard Castellano) performs the first murder. The organ suddenly is playing a dirge version of the waltz, with frequent flourishes that are practically the stereotypical silent film villian music.

There is a nice roundup for the end credits, presenting each of the three themes, starting with Michael's, then the love theme, and then a very dramatic coda of the waltz. Although edited down in the film from its original version in the film, it is still a dazzling close to the film.

The Godfather Part II is a film that, almost unbelievably, is even better than its predecessor. Rather than just continue the story, which would have been fine enough, Coppola reached into the history of Mario Puzo's Don Vito Corleone (played at nine by Oreste Baldini and as an adult by Rober De Niro) and contrasts the rise of the Corleone family with its destruction from the inside out.

To complement this aspect of the new film, Rota composed the most epic of all Godfather themes, The Immigrant. This theme is first heard as nine year old Vito Andolini arrives at Ellis Island, where he is renamed "Vito Corleone." Although ostensibly a theme for Young Vito Corleone, the theme is often heard outside of the "flashback" sequences, implying that Michael is obsessed with his father. The theme is most movingly heard counterpointed with Michael's theme in the cue "The Brothers Mourn," for Mama Corleone's (Morgana King, played in the coffin by Coppola's mother) funeral. As Michael walks over to his dishonored brother Fredo, (John Cazale) we hear the Immigrant theme and Michael's theme mixing together. Then there is a wrenching presentation of the Immigrant theme as Michael and Fredo embrace, signifying that Michael has forgiven Fredo. It stops suddenly, and we hear Michael's theme again as we see Michael glance over at Al Neri, silently confirming Fredo is to die.

One theme that reappears throughout the film is the Godfather waltz. What it represents in its new contexts becomes startlingly clear right after Vito murders Don Fanucci (Gaston Moschin) in the track "Ninna Nanna A Michele," which has a vocal version of the waltz, connecting it to the underlying current of violence throughout the Corleone family's history. The love theme also reappears as Vito and his family return to Sicily.

There is a theme for Kay, an enchanting piece usually bookended with a decending thread of notes reprised from the first film. The melody is sad, and mirrors the character's helplessness.

There is also an enchanting tarentella-style composition called "A New Carpet," so called because it is first heard when Vito and young Clemenza (B. Kirby Jr.—yes, Bruno Kirby). The theme appears briefly then, and again when we see them set up the Genco Olive Oil company.

The second score complements the original one very well, but is more dramatic in its own way, with the Immigrant theme providing the emotional attachment to many of the characters in the story.

Once again, the end credits open with Michael's theme, segueing into Kay's theme, then presenting the A New Carpet theme, leading into the Immigrant. The film and score close with a different version of the waltz, this time leading to an almost unresolved conclusion.

The Godfather and The Godfather Part II are two masterpieces of film scoring, offering many pleasures. Although the themes are often nice to listen to, they are also very functional within the body of the scores themselves. The films are excellent, and so are the albums.

The Godfather (MCA 10231) 12 tracks (31:40) 4.5

The Godfather Part II (MCA 10232) 14 tracks (38:37) 5

Also available:

The Godfather Part III (Columbia 47078) 17 tracks (54:24) 3

The Godfather Suite (Silva Treasury 5001) 14 tracks (40:50) 2.5