The Godfather: Part III (1990)

 

 

 

In the midst of trying to legitimize his business dealings in 1979 New York and Italy, aging mafia don Michael Corleone seeks to vow for his sins while taking a young protégé under his wing.

 

It's a good movie with all the ingredients of the previous parts, but adds nothing in scope and depth, and the plot is not as stringently scripted.

 

On re-watching: This remains an ambivalent experience, since it falls so way down below the previous two films and has so many flaws and only rare moments of brilliance.

 

Halliwell**: "Overlong, often confusing to those who cannot remember the earlier films, and hampered by at least one wretched performance, it fails to reach the standard of the first two movies in the series. But for all that it retains one's interest most of the time."

 

Maltin***: "Only a filmmaker like Coppola (teamed with writer Mario Puzo) could extend his history-making Mafioso saga and make it work so well. Absorbing story...Longish, but masterfully told, with one almost-fatal flaw: the casting of Coppola's daughter Sofia (an amateur) in the pivotal role of Pacino's daughter."

 

[N.B.: Although many have criticized Sofia Coppola, I disagree: she plays adequate to the role. The problem is that the love story with her cousin is in itself misconceived from the start.] 

Lake Placid (1999)

Three people attempt to stop a gigantic crocodile, who is terrorizing residents in Black Lake, Maine.

Slightly amusing, tongue-in-cheek monster with a star cast doesn't want be taken seriously, and one shouldn't.

Halliwell (no star): "A cheapjack horror movie that puts the emphasis on jokes, but a few good one-liners are not enough to enliven so much predictability."

Maltin**: "David E. Kelley, writing down to the material, provides lots of wisecracks, but few scares. Brief but tiresome film tries - but fails - to be a monster movie and environmentally correct at the same time." 

The Godfather: Part III (1990)

 

 

In the midst of trying to legitimize his business dealings in 1979 New York and Italy, aging mafia don Michael Corleone seeks to vow for his sins while taking a young protégé under his wing.

 

It's a good movie with all the ingredients of the previous parts, but adds nothing in scope and depth, and the plot is not as stringently scripted.

 

I watch the Godfather trilogy at least once a year; nothing to add to my previous comment.

 

Halliwell**: "Overlong, often confusing to those who cannot remember the earlier films, and hampered by at least one wretched performance, it fails to reach the standard of the first two movies in the series. But for all that it retains one's interest most of the time."

 

Maltin***: "Only a filmmaker like Coppola (teamed with writer Mario Puzo) could extend his history-making Mafioso saga and make it work so well. Absorbing story...Longish, but masterfully told, with one almost-fatal flaw: the casting of Coppola's daughter Sofia (an amateur) in the pivotal role of Pacino's daughter."

 

[N.B.: Although have criticized Sofia Coppola, I disagree: she plays adequate to the role. The problem is that the love story with her cousin is in itself misconceived from the start.]