• Pablo Villaça in Brazil
Every and each year, I take a day to watch The Godfather trilogy back-to-back-to-back. If I manage to do that more than once a year, I feel even better about myself. I've been deeply in love with these films since I first discovered them so many years ago - and every time someone asks me what's my favorite movie (a question that a film critic hears quite often), I never hesitate before answering "The Godfather - all nine hours of it".
In the last couple times I watched them, I realized I'm starting to cry earlier and earlier during the first film: as soon as I see Michael (Al Pacino) and Kay (Diane Keaton) arriving at Connie's (Talia Shire) wedding, the tears show up in response to the contrast their youth, happiness and love establish with the tragedy their future holds for them.
But if there's something that always amazes me in the trilogy is its capacity of surprising me even after... what?... 20 visits? 30? Sometimes, it's a minor insight about its structure - as when I first realized that in the first two films Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall) has to tell his Don about the death of a child (in Part I, that of Santino to Don Vito; in Part II, about Kay's abortion to Don Michael). Sometimes, it's a realization regarding the particular relevance of an specific moment (I've written in my blog about how I consider Santino's line to Sollozzo "Whoa, now, you're telling me that the Tattaglias guarantee our investment without...?" as the most important one in the whole trilogy).
The last time I watched the films, however, I was struck by Kay's clothes.
(Note: the color of her costumes change somewhat dramatically depending of the media: in VHS/DVD, they're mostly orange; in Blu-ray, the red becomes more evident.)
Yes, it would be impossible not to notice her dress when she visits the Corleone compound while looking for Michael (who's hiding in Sicily) - its intense orange/red color basically screams against the grey and the black usually seen on the clothes of her boyfriend's family. And it's pretty clear the idea behind this choice is to stress how distant Kay is from the dark universe of the Corleones.
But if you pay close attention to how Kay's clothes change during the three films you'll realize how brilliant the visual logic of the trilogy is.
Showing a weakness for orage/red tones on her clothing from her very first scene, Kay is always seen wearing costumes dominated by those colors during the sequences in which she's still a single woman.
During Connie's wedding:
When showing Michael the headlines about Don Vito's shooting (notice her dress under her coat):
In her last dinner with Michael before he gets involved in the Family's business (they'll only meet again years later):
When visiting the Corlone's house looking for information about Michael:
We'll only meet her again when Michael, back from Italy, looks for her in the school she works for (and that's the only scene during which her clothes don't have orange/red details). Once again seduced by her ex-boyfriend and his promise of making the Family "legitimate", Kay marries Michael and, when we see her again, her clothes gradually start losing her trademark color, symbolizing the harmful effect of the Corleones on her personality and on her life (and there lies the brilliance of Coppola and of costume designer Anna Hill Johnstone). Notice, for instance, the orange/red details on her belt (also present on her hat) during the scene she tells Michael he's been invited to be godfather to Connie and Carlo's son:
During the baptism itself, all orange/red has left her costume, although she still shows a final attempt to hold to her old vitality through her very faint lipstick:
Her efforts, however, don't resist to Michael's destructive force - and so, when we arrive at the final scene, all color has been completely drained from her life and from her clothes:
That, in itself, would be enough to applaud the visual logic of the her costume design. But then, during Part II, Coppola proves he hasn't forgotten about it - and I literally lost my breath when I first noticed this. After years of living under the weight of the Corleone Family and her husband's unfulfilled promises, Kay completely loses the hope of seeing Michael redeeming himself and going back to being the idealistic young man she first met. So, when he comes back from the long trip that keeps him away from her through most part of the second film, he finds Kay alone in their house. In that moment, although he doesn't know it yet, Kay had already decided to end their marriage and she even had had an abortion.
After a long effort, she was determined to go back living and to move away from the Corleones.
And what's the color of the clothing she's seeing sewing in that precise moment?
Exactly. How not to love those films?
But Part III is not different in this aspect (and I'm always amazed by how underestimated is this brilliant conclusion to the trilogy): after being denied access to her children for years, Kay is now a much stronger woman, although also a sadder one - and so, when we first meet her in the third film, her clothes reflect that. They're not as dark as those of the rest of the Corleone family, but they're muted in their brownish tones.
We can see that during the celebration that opens the film:
When she visits Michael in the hospital:
And when she arrives in Sicily:
That's when Michael takes her to visit his father's town and, once again, she's seduced by her old lover - and his effect is immediately represented in her clothes:
And the result, of course, is the usual one when it comes to the Corleones: tragedy and loss.
Pablo, is it that you keep getting better and better or that I keep paying more and more attention? It's the latter.
I've watched "The Godfather"s at least as often as yourself and it has never, ever occurred to me to so much as notice the clothing, except that it matches the times, as do the cars.
I wonder then, what HAVE I been doing all these years, sitting there with my jaw slack, breathing through my mouth, absorbing and re-absorbing this saga? Everyone involved thought far more through than I've yet begun to shut my mouth, wipe off the drool and consider consciously. Thanks.
Sometimes artists evince accidental brilliance. Do you believe all of these choices were a) deliberate and b) Coppola's?
And, on a different note, how would you compare the chronological cut of the first two films that ran on TV several years ago with the original presentation?
This bit in parentheses:
... just sent me off searching around the internet, all over the Suntimes site and Google, trying to find the blog post. I'd love to read up on that, but haven't been able to find it so far. Where is it?
Terrific observations ...
Interesting! I had noticed that pretty much everything she wears is in the taupe-to-red range, but had not caught the symbolism of how the color choices move with (her part in) the dark and starkly colorless story.
Fuck! Excellent observation.
Confession: I've always disliked the character Kay in equal proportion to how much I like Diane Keaton. In other words, a lot.
No doubt it's related to being a WASP myself, but I find Puzo and Coppola's one non-Italian female the wimpiest, most skin-crawling character imaginable. Almost unwatchable. Seeing her on screen makes me cringe. She's a character for whom one should feel empathy but I don't. Instead I want to yell: "Get a spine, Kay. Turn into a person."
Now, Pablo, with your unexpected take here, you've offered a whole new way to consider (or tolerate) her. Next time I watch, I'll look at her clothes.
I too watch films many times. At first I watch for the overall impressions. Then sometimes I'll watch for the dialog, the settings, the costumes, each actor, the photography, the direction. Paying particular attention to a certain aspect of great films makes them even more interesting. Even after many years of watching them. One of my favourites in terms of sets and costumes is Amelie. Genius! Great films are like onions with many layers. Seeing them layer by layer increases our appreciation of the filmmaking team.
Great article!
Funny I should find this here right know, because guess what I've been doing the last three days in the evening? That's right - watching the trilogy for the first time in my life. Yes, I've got some catching up to do on you - but hey, I'm not even 30, so there's a lot of great movies out there I haven't seen simply because I haven't gotten around to them yet.
With the Godfathers, I figured if I'm doing it, I'll do it right. All three movies in a row, so I won't miss the little connections - but that means sitting through nine hours of epic, and that's something you have to be in the mood for.
Now that I've seen them, I see why you like to rewatch them annually. I'll come back at some point, too - good thing I bought the Coppola Restauration DVD Boxset instead of catching them on TV. (No half-assing here, no Sir!)
So, a beginner's first thoughts on what makes the movies especially great for me:
- the story (duh)
- the acting (Pacino never got an Academy Award ... why?)
- the music
- the look
- how well-told the story is - the movies are VERY long, but they don't feel long at all, right?
Also, I don't see why people single out Part III as being "weaker" than the other two. Sure, the whole Pope business is a bit far-fetched (an elderly Mafia bodyguard breaking into the vatican and killing a bishop all on his own? Really?), but overall it's a worthy final chapter.
And it looks from the media coverage like Sofia Coppola is renowned to be epicly bad here. I don't think so. Sure, compared to all those acting heavyweights her performance falls short, but she was a 19-year-old with little experience when this role fell into her lap over night after Winona Ryder was suddenly unavaible (or so the story goes). Under those circumstances, she could've done a lot worse. Besides, she's definitely not weak enough to harm the film overall.
All the best from Germany,
Marcus
One more thing:
"I've written in my blog about how I consider Santino's line to Sollozzo "Whoa, now, you're telling me that the Tattaglias guarantee our investment without...?" as the most important one in the whole trilogy"
Why is that? You've got a link (if your blog's in English, that is) or care to explain? I took that line simply as an indication that Sonny C. is hot-tempered and likes to shoot his mouth off instead of quietly "reading" his opponents for their strategy like his father and Michael do.
Thanks in advance!
Very cool. Costume designers are often very under-appreciated, and few people consciously recognize how costuming can sometimes tie in thematically to the film at hand. This is a great example.
Thanks for an insightful review. I have not watched the Godfather trilogy for several years since 2005, and your review will be helpful when I watch it someday with Blu-ray. I will really have to look closer at her costumes, I guess.
I think you're 100% right about Kay's costume design for The Godfather, though I'm not so sure about GII (and I really hate GIII, so I won't comment on that).
On a slightly different design issue...
Last spring, I was planning a stay at Lake Tahoe for a few days in August. I found a B&B overlooking Lake Tahoe with a striking stone front. It reminded me of Michael and Kay's Tahoe estate, so I reserved a few nights there.
It turned out that the estate used for GII was less than a mile away.
Great observations, including the ones about Kay's clothing. I had never given a single thought to that aspect of her character.
However, I have to agree with one of the earlier posters about Kay being the weakest, least memorable character in the three films. Realizing that it was of course intentional to make her an 'outsider' in the story, I still feel she is an outsider in other ways that make her character a detriment, rather than a plus, to the movies. Her presence undermines the otherwise tightly drawn Sicilian/Mafia world that every other character lives in. It's almost like they lifted a neurotic young female from some sitcom and plopped her into the middle of this masterpiece, the Godfather.
Regarding the Santino's to Sollozzo line: It shows that it's personal, not about business. In all 3 films they spout off about keeping things business (e.g. Roth to Michael in Havana), but that's just candy coating for what's really going on: It's about vanity and the imposition of will, which, in all tragidies, lead inevitably to ruin.
Here's the thing: Without the spiffy clothes and the nice cars, the Corleone family might as well be the Texas Chainsaw Massacre family. They, and the other mafia characters, are psychopaths hiding behind "It's business, not personal", while their actions show that it's always personal, not business. Santino's line to Sollozzo is a peek behind the mask of civility. It shows the vanity and will to impose power on others that is so often the downfall of characters in epic tragedies. At least that's what I think. :-)
Just to clarify why I think ""Whoa, now, you're telling me that the Tattaglias guarantee our investment without...?" is the most IMPORTANT line in the whole Godfather trilogy (not the most memorable or the "best", but the most IMPORTANT):
If you don't remember, Santino says that when Sollozzo is presenting his offer to Don Vito and after the latter had answered "no". When his son opens his mouth, Don Vito looks at him and then says to Sollozzo: " I have a sentimental weakness for my children and I spoil them, as you can see. They talk when they should listen.".
As soon as Sollozzo leaves the room, Don Vito tells his son this:
"What's the matter with you? I think your brain is going soft with all that comedy you are playing with that young girl. Never tell anyone outside the Family what you are thinking again.".
Which brings us to why that little snippet of a line is so important. By questioning the involvement of the Tattaglia family, Santino lets Sollozzo realize that he had an interest in his offer. And that's the main reason that drives Sollozzo to the decision of trying to kill Don Vito, since he thinks that, after everything calms down, Sonny would make the deal in order to avoid a war and because he recognized its business potential. However, because Vito survives, Santino decides to go to war - and that's what leads Barzini to approach Carlo and use him to kill Sonny.
Well, if Vito hadn't got shot (forcing Michael to kill Sollozzo) and Santino hadn't been killed (forcing Michael to take control of the family business), Michael Corleone would have followed his original intention of turning his back to a life of crimes and would never had become the Don - which would turn him into a monster capable of sentencing his own brother to death and costing him everything he loved the most, including his wife and children.
All of that because, in a certain morning, his brother Santino didn't think before opening his mouth to ask an apparently innocent question - but that carried implications that his father, wise as few men can be, immediatelly recognized.
WOW! This is just brilliant. I've watched this trilogy countless times. I've only done the back-toback-toback viewing twice or so as I sometimes watch the first or second individually. My point is, I've never noticed this cinematic expression of character. The mise-en-scene and tone of "The Godfather" is one of the best I've ever seen. Thank you making me love this trilogy even more!
I found your remarks and photos to be spot on. In the future, I hope you review what Theadora Van Runkle's beautiful costumes in GFII reveal.
Buckeye,
This is the link for Villaça's blog: http://www.cinemaemcena.com.br/pv/blogpablo/, and here's, more precisely, the link for his post about Sonny's line: http://bit.ly/21XDA4, but there is a catch: It is written in Portuguese.
However, Google Translate is here for serve us, right?
very nice analaysis of the wardrobe and its effect on kays psyche. i really liked the analysis of sunny's line as well. maybe a little tenuous, but it is definitely arguable that line brought about the decline of the corleone family, it's very much a "butterfly effect" correlation. its also equally arguable that someone would have bumped the don off soon anyway, thus instigating a war between the families. as clemenza tells michael, (from memory) "its alright, this kinda thing happens about every ten years or so, helps to clear the bad blood." murder and family wars are an accepted part of mafia life.
WOW! I always loved Diane Keaton's wardrobe in these films, especially Godfather Part ll. I love what she has on at their son's confirmation party in the beginning of the film; plus those 2 outfits she wears at both of the senate hearings and in the hotel when she and Michael are fighting and she tells him about the abortion. I love her as a brunette as well. Great article, glad you picked up on it, too.
I don't think the link between Sonny's line and Michael's ultimate demise is tenuous. I think it's rather clearly stated in the diner by Solozzo. He tells the kidnapped Hagen that, "Sonny was hot for the deal...Get him to make peace."
Without Sonny's mistake, Vito isn't shot, Sonny isn't killed, Michael doesn't take over.
I loved this post, for what it's worth. I think the Godfather is the greatest picture ever, and I've watched it more than 100 times. But I never noticed this about Kay's clothes. Or rather, I'm sure I noticed it (subliminally), but wasn't able to pinpoint it or articulate it. A true masterwork on many, many levels.
Excellent analysis. I, too have seen the Godfather films many, many times, though most of the new things I notice have to do with character and acting.
I work in the film industry and have met several good costumers. The best of them take great care in their work, and work closely with directors to dress characters in ways that support and illuminate the story. It would be interesting to compare how other female characters in these films were dressed. I'm sure that many filmmakers and costumers will find your analysis useful - I hope this is widely read.
I've seen the threesome maybe two and a half times but being that obsessed with a movie seems an expensive indulgence--people claiming, credibly, with having seen certain films something like a hundred times. Twice is enough for the best of them, unless life is to be but a dreamin' about flicks.
@Pablo:
"By questioning the involvement of the Tattaglia family, Santino lets Sollozzo realize that he had an interest in his offer. And that's the main reason that drives Sollozzo to the decision of trying to kill Don Vito,....
[...]
All of that because, in a certain morning, his brother Santino didn't think before opening his mouth to ask an apparently innocent question - but that carried implications that his father, wise as few men can be, immediatelly recognized."
*slaps his hand across his forehead*
Of COURSE! How could I have missed this?
Surely Jeremy is right in assuming that there might be other possible scenarios that could have led to the Corleone-Sollozzo gang war, but I think you're right on the money: it is absolutely plausible that this comment was the precise moment that made Sollozzo decide to go forward with his assassination plan - an important incident to set the further plot of the trilogy in motion.
"for want of a nail, a horse was lost" and so on, right?
As others have noted, the line is important because it shows that Sonny is at the very least interested, if not actually *hot* for the deal.
There's a psychology in negotiations; once the deal is in the air, the first person to talk loses. That's why the car salesman pushes the price across the desk to you on a piece of paper; he's trying to provoke you and your behavior is his first "tell." He doesn't want you reacting to his words, he wants you biting on the deal. By putting the ball in your court, he's actually taken control, because now you're on defense. ("But I need leather seats" or "the price is still too high" or whatever. You're telling him which little details to nail down, not that it's something you're not interested in anyway.)
Sonny's reaction is more than an oblique "tell", it's the crux of everything that unfolds thereafter. Good negotiators know when to shut up, something that Santino would never have mastered. He was transparent where a Don needs to be opaque, he was impetuous (and got killed at the toll booth for it). He would have made a terrible, shortlived, and brutish Don, not that there haven't been plenty of those, too.
[Great piece on Kay's clothes, BTW. Thanks to Pablo for that.]
What about all the oranges themselves? The Godfather is in an orange garden when he dies. Michael sits before a bowl of oranges when he dies. There are oranges throughout the movies.
Great article, there's always something I like to call "hidden treasures" in the Godfather, finally liked even more Pablo's article about Santino's line in the Sollozzo meeting. Having seen the trilogy never realized about how that apparently simple reaction changes the fate of Michael Corleone and the family.
You can find Pablo's post on this link: http://www.cinemaemcena.com.br/pv/BlogPablo/post/2009/10/13/Eles-falam-quando-deveriam-ouvir.aspx
I don't know if you know Portuguese, but just in case: Pablo writes, basically, that he considers that the most important line of the Trilogy because when Santino says it, during Vito Corleone's meeting with Sollozzo, he reveals his interest on the Tattaglia's offer. Realizing that Vito Corleone wasn't going to accept such offer, but that Santino could be interested, Sollozzo and the Tattaglias try to kill Vito, so that his eldest son could become the head of the family. Summarizing, that was what leaded to Michael becoming the new godfather and to all the subsequent events of the Trilogy. Therefore that line would be the most important one to the whole plot of 'The Godfather' movies.
Hope I have helped a bit. ^^
Great to read from such a nice appreciation of the Godfather films. One of the things I've noticed is hthe subtlety of Robert Duvall's performance. When he watches (through a window) Tessio being led away, he straightens his tie and seems to shake his heady.Another classic Duvall moment is right after he talks to Santino through the door while Santino is having sex. As he walks away, he smiles. Little moments like that, which might seem insignificant, add a sense of humanity to the Godfather films.
Rob Ager is this brilliant film analyst guy from bloody Liverpool UK that does this insanely insightful film reviews on YouTube and his own site (Collative Learning dot com).
Ager notices all these things directors like Kubrick, who is a favorite of Ager's, do with/in their films to communicate meaning and send messages, cues to the audience about what their movie is about.
I'm surprised Rob Ager isn't famous..
I think Michael's "I'll do it." (from memory), when he volunteers to murder Tattaglia and the cop, is the most important line. This is it for Michael - the point of no return, a giving in to the forces he has tried so hard to escape, and the genesis of his long unwinding tragedy. Santino's line may be the most important to the plot, but this line is crucial to the central character.
Roger & Me:
This is why Roger was always my favorite. I could only agree more if I had said it. Every year I always watch the triology at least once. Colors are so much better corrected on Bluray. This year, I too found myself crying very early on. Never seen an opera before, but watching truer art, a Curuso for the first time perhaps. Perfect review and observation and yes, my favorite movies too!
Okay, I see your point about Kay's wardrobe. My questions is in the scene in which Kay leaves Michael in Godfather II she is wearing this hideous honker of a necklace. It looks like a traffic light, what's the symbolism in that? Would love to know who designed that thing and if it was ever sold in the retail market.
There's an exception to the "red" theory in Kay's clothing. In the scene in GF II when Kay sneaks back to the Tahoe compound to visit her children with Connie's help -- and this is AFTER she's left Michael-- she is wearing a black turtleneck, very dark brown skirt, and a dark striped coat. Other than Vito's funeral, these are the darkest clothes I can recall seeing Kay wear in any of the films. This is the scene where she is begging Anthony to give her a goodbye kiss as she's standing in the doorway and Michael walks into the room and catches her. Surprisingly, it is Michael who is wearing something in the red family, not Kay. He's wearing a burgandy shirt underneath his camel colored jacket and matching scarf (he looks incredibly well-dressed and handsome in this scene). It is surprising to me that Kay is not wearing something with color to go along with her blossoming independence, but rather colors like she's in mourning. And maybe she was without her children.