The Godfather Part 2 is only a half hour longer than the first Godfather film, yet it feels much longer. The first film is largely linear story telling that focuses on Michael Corleone changing from the college kid returning from war who bluntly says he is not his family into the head of that same crime family. He's even willing to have relatives killed and lie about it to the other relatives.
The second part, however, reaches an epic proportion, showing the extent of the mafia. It's also an examination of Michael Corleone--he starts as his father, but becomes worse than he or anyone in his family ever was.
Michael Corleone is a man weighed down by the world. He's constantly exhausted. It's like he's haunted by death. NOW contrast that with Vito, his father, who grew to power by helping other people and connecting with the community around him. Vito's story, despite the violence and murder, is much more positive because it shows a man rising to become someone great. Michael, however, becomes a shell of a man. He does all these things "to protect his family," but just drives them all away in the end.
I think it's the complexity of the storytelling that really makes Part II outshine the first. They are both masterpieces, but I really feel that Part II is essentially perfect with every frame and every word that's spoken.
The second part, however, reaches an epic proportion, showing the extent of the mafia. It's also an examination of Michael Corleone--he starts as his father, but becomes worse than he or anyone in his family ever was.
Michael Corleone is a man weighed down by the world. He's constantly exhausted. It's like he's haunted by death. NOW contrast that with Vito, his father, who grew to power by helping other people and connecting with the community around him. Vito's story, despite the violence and murder, is much more positive because it shows a man rising to become someone great. Michael, however, becomes a shell of a man. He does all these things "to protect his family," but just drives them all away in the end.
I think it's the complexity of the storytelling that really makes Part II outshine the first. They are both masterpieces, but I really feel that Part II is essentially perfect with every frame and every word that's spoken.