Why is "The Godfather" considered such a perfect film?

[ReservoirAngel]

First off, let me just construct my little flame-proof shield around myself here...there we go, nice and safe.

Now then, the question is pretty much in the title. Everybody I've spoken to, and every review I've seen, praises the living fuck out of the Godfather for every single aspect of it. Nobody can seem to find anything wrong with it at all.

But I've found one problem with it: It's BORING!

I can handle boredom in films no problem. Hell, if I can sit through 'Alien' and 'Jaws' without going mad and having to entertain myself I can sit through anything. But sitting through 'the Godfather' I was going insane with boredom. It can't just be me to find this film duller than watching a giant sack of potatoes roll around in the back of a truck.

Admittedly I only saw this film last night, so one could argue that I'm "of the wrong generation to understand it" or some shit like that. But even people of my own age range and attitude seem all too willing to lovingly tongue-bathe the balls of this film, and I just don't get it.

I mean...any other film that spend the first half an hour just showing guys talking in a room, then cutting to a wedding, would be considered bullshit boring and slow-as-fuck in its setup of the plot, but somehow this film gets glorious praise for this slow-as-fuck unfolding.

P.S: This criticism kind of goes for 'Scarface' too. That's not given SUCH a perfect score all the time, but it's still loved and adored by almost everyone while it makes me want to kill myself with boredom.

I have a feeling this is going to turn out like my 'anti-Beetles' thread with people just claiming it's "influence" as a defence for it being boring as hell, but I reckon I'm entitled to criticise any film that I can't stand but my boyfriend would willingly pass up sex just to watch. (Yes, he actually did. I was pissed off.)

 

[Khalma]

I personally find The Godfather to be really boring too, so much so that I've never sat all the way through it without leaving or turning it off. I have about 2 other people out of everyone I even consider a remote acquaintance in this world whom agree with me. Everyone else loves it. I've basically experienced that scene from Family Guy where Peter expresses these same feelings to his family to hilarious result. To each their own I suppose.

 

[Space Spoons]

Simply put, it's a character-driven drama. It's a genre that doesn't generally feature giant explosions and shoot-outs, because the conversations are where the real action is happening. If you don't like that kind of movie, you're not going to like The Godfather.

With that in mind, it's really not fair to call it the perfect film. It's the perfect character drama, sure. But perfect film? Not a chance. Heck, I'm not convinced there yet exists a film that could be called truly perfect. Perfection implies the ability to satisfy anyone, something no single film could possibly do.

 

[The_Yeti]

Like any medium, its subject to personal opinion and personal reception, the only reason anything gets so reputedly claimed as brilliant is because its the popular view on it.

All movies are equally as mind numbingly boring when you don't personally find it immersive.

Say you fancy a corny robot battle movie like Transformers, if it was made with Miscellaneous robots rather then the famed characters, and there wasn't a whole tv series and more drawing you to said theme, you'd be bored out of your f'ing mind watching something that appeared absurd or unprovocative to your personal liking, while it could still be overwhelmingly positively reviewed by the lemming kings, with all the lemmings aspiring to feel hoity-toity following in line, whether or not the movie was complete crap.

The guy below me ~> perfect proof of Hoity-Toity mindset, perfection in the art of movie crafting by dedication and skill? obviously an opinion, while they did well and as intended with their movie, sometimes a flaw makes something twice as beautiful, heart-warming, and human.

 

[Toriver]

The reason The Godfather and a lot of other films get high praise isn't for how interesting or entertaining they are, but for the cinematic aspects of it, all the high-quality work that went into the process of making them. It's not that it's a "great" film in the sense that it keeps you interested in what's going on, but that it shows a mastery of the art of film production, acting, direction, and so-on. I didn't find it "boring", but it certainly wasn't the most entertaining film I've ever seen either. But I could see where people say it's great, as an example of dedication, care, and sheer skill in all aspects of film-making, especially for its time, where it really would have been seen as a true gem amidst the wave of cheap, low-budget films released in that time. It's the magnum opus of just about everyone involved in it, and I think even though it's not an entirely entertaining film, it deserves much of the praise it gets.

 

[Tarkovsky]

The reason The Godfather is considered a good movie has little to do with whether or not ReservoirAngel was bored by it.

I suggest he put his 'thinking cap' on next time he sits in front of the tv and leave his 'hispster opinion cap' in the garbage where it belongs.

Hi Forum, my name is Tarkovsky and I love movies.

 

[Brendan Main]

The first time I saw The Godfather I was dumbstruck.

And I say "saw," but I didn't really "see" anything. The t.v. at my place only had a handful of channels. The rest were scrambled - the color palette flipped into its negative, and the screen distorted by crackles of snow. But late, late at night, when the regular channels would default to test patterns and skeevy infomercials, I would flip through the ghost-channels, looking for something that sounded interesting.

Because that was just it: For all its visual distortion, the sound would come through crystal clear. And the first bit I heard, and I still remember this, was Bonasera's speech about his daughter. And I could try, and fail, to quote it properly, but since this is the internet I took a quick detour and grabbed the quote outright. And here it is.


---


"I believe in America. America has made my fortune. And I raised my daughter in the American fashion. I gave her freedom, but I taught her never to dishonor her family. She found a boyfriend; not an Italian. She went to the movies with him; she stayed out late. I didn't protest.

Two months ago, he took her for a drive, with another boyfriend. They made her drink whiskey. And then they tried to take advantage of her. She resisted. She kept her honor. So they beat her, like an animal. When I went to the hospital, her nose was broken. Her jaw was shattered, held together by wire. She couldn't even weep because of the pain. But I wept.

Why did I weep? She was the light of my life, a beautiful girl. Now she will never be beautiful again. I went to the police, like a good American. These two boys were brought to trial. The judge sentenced them to three years in prison ? suspended sentence. Suspended sentence! They went free that very day!

I stood in the courtroom like a fool. And those two bastards, they smiled at me. Then I said to my wife, for justice, we must go to Don Corleone."


---


That was enough for me. I spent the next three-odd hours crouched against the screen, ear pressed to the speakers so as not to wake my family, and just listened.

I'm not that scrawny, dumbstruck kid anymore. I don't have to sniff around for bits and pieces. It's on Netflix, and all over the internet. It's DVD, remastered with commentaries and special features.

But you know? Give me a scrambled old TV and a couple hours in the dead of night, and I'd do it again.

 

[manaman]

I'm sorry you lost me at the point where you used Alien and Jaws as examples of incredibly slow paced films.

Its a matter of taste anyway. I enjoy a fast paced shoot-em as much as the next guy, but I also find enjoyment in movies that are much slower paced.

Hi Forum, my name is Tarkovsky and I love movies.

Hi Tarkovsky, my name is... apparently still Nameless. I enjoy swimming naked, long walks on the beach, sharing a blanket outside under a full moon with that special someone, and candleit dinners.

 

[ChupathingyX]

I thought Jaws was a really good movie that constantly kept me entertained.

Which brings me to my point, everyone has a different opinion on movies. You don't like The Godfather, oh well, a lot of people do.

 

[frago roc]

I'm sorry you lost me at the point where you used Alien and Jaws as examples of incredibly slow paced films.

Agreed. Op should go watch some Michael Bay shakey-cam explosion fests, clearly character progression/development and suspense are lost on him.

 

[Nouw]

I thought Jaws was a really good movie that constantly kept me entertained.

Bingo! Slow paced movies aren't your thing, the Godfather is supposed to be fantastic because of the characters not the shoot-outs.
[sub]Don't watch Moon then >.>[/sub]

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

You don't like Alien, Jaws, The Godfather or Scarface?

Four of the agreed greatest films of all time?

Honestly, and without word of criticism, I think you really need to calm down and learn to appreciate something beautiful/terrifying unfolding.

The Godfather itself is a masterpiece of art, direction, metaphor, ...I could fill a whole page on the good things about it. It's simply a beautifully made film where there's not a second could be snipped.

If you find it boring, I humbly suggest that you cut down on whatever is giving you ADHD. Or at least leave films until you've enough time to enjoy them.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

Op should go watch some Michael Bay shakey-cam explosion fests, clearly character progression/development and suspense are lost on him.

No, they're really not. I just happen to find the first Alien film boring for a large section of the beginning, and I happen to find Jaws just...well, boring in general.

Doesn't mean I hate character-driven stuff, I just found those films, along with the Godfather and Scarface, to be boring.

Also doesn't mean I love Michael Bay's shakey-cam explosion fests. I do like the Transformers films, yes. I like The Island too. So what? I like all different kinds of films. Don't make assumptions that I'm a short-attention-spanned hyperactive little idiot that can't watch a film for more than 5 minutes unless someone's killed or something explodes.

And forgive me for this, but The Godfather wasn't suspenseful for me. People say the opening is suspenseful, but it's just not in my eyes. It's not that 2 people talking CAN'T make me feel suspense (The opening of Inglourious Basterds was the most tense scene I've ever watched in any film), the Godfather just didn't do it for me.

 

[Rayne870]

First off, let me just construct my little flame-proof shield around myself here...there we go, nice and safe.

Now then, the question is pretty much in the title. Everybody I've spoken to, and every review I've seen, praises the living fuck out of the Godfather for every single aspect of it. Nobody can seem to find anything wrong with it at all.

But I've found one problem with it: It's BORING!

I can handle boredom in films no problem. Hell, if I can sit through 'Alien' and 'Jaws' without going mad and having to entertain myself I can sit through anything. But sitting through 'the Godfather' I was going insane with boredom. It can't just be me to find this film duller than watching a giant sack of potatoes roll around in the back of a truck.

Admittedly I only saw this film last night, so one could argue that I'm "of the wrong generation to understand it" or some shit like that. But even people of my own age range and attitude seem all too willing to lovingly tongue-bathe the balls of this film, and I just don't get it.

I mean...any other film that spend the first half an hour just showing guys talking in a room, then cutting to a wedding, would be considered bullshit boring and slow-as-fuck in its setup of the plot, but somehow this film gets glorious praise for this slow-as-fuck unfolding.

P.S: This criticism kind of goes for 'Scarface' too. That's not given SUCH a perfect score all the time, but it's still loved and adored by almost everyone while it makes me want to kill myself with boredom.

I have a feeling this is going to turn out like my 'anti-Beetles' thread with people just claiming it's "influence" as a defence for it being boring as hell, but I reckon I'm entitled to criticise any film that I can't stand but my boyfriend would willingly pass up sex just to watch. (Yes, he actually did. I was pissed off.)

I can't figure that one out either, especially since it lacks Steve McQueen and the car chase from Bullit

 

[ReservoirAngel]

You don't like Alien, Jaws, The Godfather or Scarface?

Four of the agreed greatest films of all time?

...

If you find it boring, I humbly suggest that you cut down on whatever is giving you ADHD. Or at least leave films until you've enough time to enjoy them.

I never said I didn't like Alien. I like Alien greatly, I just find the opening of it to be quite boring. Jaws, the Godfather and Scarface, I'll admit to not really liking.

And I haven't got ADHD, nor am I hyper in any way. I don't need insanity and explosions to find things interesting, I just personally DIDN'T find Jaws, Scarface or the Godfather to be THAT interesting. Maybe I'm just impatient, I don't know. I just got bored watching them. Unfortunately I had to watch Jaws about 17 times, so that might have eroded my interest in the suspense of it, since I can't remember the first time I saw it. Maybe when I first saw it I found it amazing and captivating, but when you've seen a film 17 times and broken down and analysed it, the magic tends to be sucked out.

 

[frago roc]

Op should go watch some Michael Bay shakey-cam explosion fests, clearly character progression/development and suspense are lost on him.

No, they're really not. I just happen to find the first Alien film boring for a large section of the beginning, and I happen to find Jaws just...well, boring in general.

Doesn't mean I hate character-driven stuff, I just found those films, along with the Godfather and Scarface, to be boring.

Also doesn't mean I love Michael Bay's shakey-cam explosion fests. I do like the Transformers films, yes. I like The Island too. So what? I like all different kinds of films. Don't make assumptions that I'm a short-attention-spanned hyperactive little idiot that can't watch a film for more than 5 minutes unless someone's killed or something explodes.

And forgive me for this, but The Godfather wasn't suspenseful for me. People say the opening is suspenseful, but it's just not in my eyes. It's not that 2 people talking CAN'T make me feel suspense (The opening of Inglourious Basterds was the most tense scene I've ever watched in any film), the Godfather just didn't do it for me.

I'm not a movie buff, and I never claim to be, but I know a good character story and you struck down two the of greatest character films (Godfather and Scarface) without so much as a mention to any of the great scenes in them.

As for the suspense comment that was made about jaws and alien.

 

[Ladette]

Not everyone likes the same things. Some people just don't like certain movies/games/books/etc. Subjective subjetcs are subjective. Just because a lot of people like something doesn't mean everyone has to.

I didn't get into The Godfather, I was bored to tears by Citizen Kane, and The Shawshank Redemption didn't really work for me either. It's not that I can't appreciate slower paced movies, Seven Samurai is one of my five favorite films, I just didn't find the subject matter of the above films compelling enough to compensate for the slow pace.

 

[manaman]

Hi Tarkovsky, my name is... apparently still Nameless. I enjoy swimming naked, long walks on the beach, sharing a blanket outside under a full moon with that special someone, and candleit dinners.

Wanna fuck?

I don't think my girlfriend would appreciate that. She gets a little touchy about the whole idea of sleeping around.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

... I just find the opening of it to be quite boring. Jaws, the Godfather and Scarface, I'll admit to not really liking.

So equally you wouldn't like The Wizard of Oz, Citizen Kane, Casablanca, Battleship Potemkin, The Seven Samurai, Gone with the Wind, The Shawshank Redemption, Rebecca, Vertigo, Psycho, Breathless, The Grapes of Wrath, 2001, Wall-E, Dr. Strangelove, It's a Wonderful Life, The Maltese Falcon because of the "fuck long boring bits"?

I'm being deadly serious here when I ask what your favourite film is, and are you ever planning to go into network programming, because that terrifies me.