Do you want to see ‘The Godfather, Part II’?

The Godfather, Part II (1974)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 9.2/10
Reviews Counted: 58
Fresh: 57 | Rotten: 1

Drawing on strong performances by Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, Francis Ford Coppola's continuation of Mario Puzo's Mafia saga set new standards for sequels that have yet to be matched or broken.

Average Rating: 7.3/10
Critic Reviews: 6
Fresh: 5 | Rotten: 1

Drawing on strong performances by Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, Francis Ford Coppola's continuation of Mario Puzo's Mafia saga set new standards for sequels that have yet to be matched or broken.

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Movie Info

Francis Ford Coppola's legendary continuation and sequel to his landmark 1972 film, The Godfather, parallels the young Vito Corleone's rise with his son Michael's spiritual fall, deepening The Godfather's depiction of the dark side of the American dream. In the early 1900s, the child Vito flees his Sicilian village for America after the local Mafia kills his family. Vito (Robert De Niro) struggles to make a living, legally or illegally, for his wife and growing brood in Little Italy, killing the

R, 3 hr. 20 min.

Mystery & Suspense, Drama

Directed By: Francis Ford Coppola

Written By: Francis Ford Coppola, Mario Puzo

In Theaters: Dec 20, 1974 Wide

On DVD: May 24, 2005

Paramount Pictures

The Godfather, Part II Trailer & Photos

Cast

Al Pacino
Michael Corleone
Robert Duvall
Tom Hagen
Diane Keaton
Kay Adams
Robert De Niro
Vito Corleone
John Cazale
Fredo Corleone
Lee Strasberg
Hyman Roth
Talia Shire
Connie
Danny Aiello
Tony Rosato
John Aprea
Young Tessio
Carmen Argenziano
Michael's Buttonman #2
Oreste Baldini
Vito Andolini as a boy
Kathleen Beller
Girl in "Senza Mamma"
Richard Bright
Al Neri
Carmine Caridi
Carmine Rosato
Dominic Chianese
Johnny Ola
Vincent Coppola
Street Vendor
Mario Cotone
Don Tommasino
Tom Dahlgren
Fred Corngeld
Francesca De Sapio
Young Mama Corleone
Troy Donahue
Merle Johnson
Peter Donat
Questadt
Michael Vincente Gazzo
Frankie Pentangeli
Marianna Hill
Deanna Corleone
Morgana King
Mama Corleone
Bruno Kirby
Young Clemenza
Gastone Moschin
Fanucci
Ignazio Pappalardo
Mosca
Tom Rosqui
Rocco Lampone
Gianni Russo
Carlo
Fay Spain
Marcia Roth
Joe Spinell
Willie Cicci
Harry Dean Stanton
FBI Man 1
Herkulis E. Strolia
Tahoe Band Leader
Amerigo Tot
Michael's Bodyguard
Leopoldo Trieste
Signor Roberto
Abe Vigoda
Tessio
Erica Yohn
Governess
William Bowers
Senate Committee Chairm...
James Caan
Sonny
Roman Coppola
Young Sonny Corleone (u...
Sofia Coppola
Child (uncredited)
Roger Corman
Senator #2
Phil Feldman
Senator #1
G.D. Spradlin
Senator Pat Geary
Joseph Della Sorte
Michael's Buttonman #1
Richard Watson
Custom Offical
Maria Carta
Vito's Mother
Nick Discenza
Bartender
Carmine Foresta
Policeman
Ezio Flagello
Impresario
Frank Sivero
Genco
Tere Livrano
Theresa Hagen
James Gounaris
Anthony Corleone
Giuseppe Sillato
Don Francesco
David Baker
FBI Agent
Bridget Fonda
Michael V. Gazzo

Critic Reviews for The Godfather, Part II

All Critics (58) | Top Critics (6) | Fresh (66) | Rotten (2) | DVD (33)

Not once does Pacino overtly ask for the audience's sympathy, but through a disciplined, suggestive performance he dominates the film.

February 20, 2009 Full Review Source: TIME Magazine

| Comment

TIME Magazine

Top Critic

The Paramount release has everything going for it.

February 19, 2008 Full Review Source: Variety

| Comment

A.D. Murphy

Variety

Top Critic

Francis Ford Coppola pulls it off in grand style.

December 13, 2006 Full Review Source: Chicago Reader

| Comment

Don Druker

Chicago Reader

Top Critic

The stunning text of The Godfather is replaced in Part II with prologues, epilogues, footnotes, and good intentions.

October 23, 2004 Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times

| Comments (6)

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Top Critic

It's a second movie made largely out of the bits and pieces of Mr. Puzo's novel that didn't fit into the first. It's a Frankenstein's monster stitched together from leftover parts. It talks. It moves in fits and starts but it has no mind of its own.

May 20, 2003 Full Review Source: New York Times

| Comments (140)

Vincent Canby

New York Times

Top Critic

Few sequels have expanded upon the original with the faithfulness and detail of this one.

January 1, 2000 Full Review Source: ReelViews

| Comment

James Berardinelli

ReelViews

Top Critic

From start to finish, this is filmmaking at its most immortal.

February 13, 2012 Full Review Source: Time Out Chicago

| Comment

Ben Kenigsberg

Time Out Chicago Source: Time Out Chicago

A rare sequel that is even better than the original 1972 The Godfather, largely due to the superb performances by De Niro (as the young Brando character), Pacino, who here assumes the lead, and the rest of the ensemble.

February 27, 2011 Full Review Source: EmanuelLevy.Com

| Comment

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com Source: EmanuelLevy.Com

Part II is brilliant, but not for kids.

January 1, 2011 Full Review Source: Common Sense Media

| Comments (12)

Afsheen Nomai

Common Sense Media

Often ranked as the greatest movie sequel ever produced, The Godfather: Part II follows Al Pacino's Michael Corleone as he teams up with gangster Hyman Roth (Lee Strasberg) in an effort to expand his empire into the lucrative world of gambling.

April 1, 2009 Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews

| Comment

David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Has an even broader scope than the original, but does not fail in its depiction of small, intimate moments and surprising emotional reveals.

October 10, 2008 Full Review Source: San Francisco Examiner

| Comment

Jeffrey M. Anderson

San Francisco Examiner

Although it runs a bit long, The Godfather: Part II is still an excellent film.

October 8, 2008 Full Review Source: 7M Pictures

| Comment

Kevin Carr

7M Pictures

While I'm sure profits were a big part of the conversation the Paramount suits had when deciding to green-light The Godfather Part II, but Coppola didn't go out and bastardize the franchise. Far from it.

October 6, 2008 Full Review Source: Movie Views

| Comment

Ryan Cracknell

Movie Views Source: Movie Views

Paramount gave Coppola more money and a freer hand in directing the sequel.... I guess they made him an offer he couldn't refuse. (Blu-ray Edition)

September 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis

| Comment

John J. Puccio

Movie Metropolis

...an epic landscape of events and an exquisite tapestry of characterizations.

September 17, 2008 Full Review Source: Movie Metropolis

| Comment

John J. Puccio

Movie Metropolis

It's not Shakespearean, but it's tragic.

March 8, 2008 Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews

| Comment

Dennis Schwartz

Ozus' World Movie Reviews

The greatest sequel ever made. Probably.

February 19, 2008 Full Review Source: Film4

| Comment

Film4

Shadows lurk throughout the movie, as they do over the Corleones' lives.

February 7, 2008 Full Review Source: Sun Publications (Chicago, IL)

| Comment

Josh Larsen

Sun Publications (Chicago, IL)

A mesmerizing sequel that explores the parallels in the life of father and son.

December 13, 2006 Full Review Source: Oscar Guy

| Comment

Wesley Lovell

Oscar Guy

A rare sequel to a great film that recaptures and expands upon the mastery of its predecessor.

November 12, 2006 Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star

| Comment

Phil Villarreal

Arizona Daily Star

O segundo ato da obra m�xima do Cinema.

July 28, 2006 Comment (1)

Pablo Villaca

Cinema em Cena

The performances, Gordon Willis' memorably gloomy camerawork, the stately pace and the sheer scale of the story's sweep render everything engrossing and so, well, plausible that our ideas of organised crime in America will forever be marked by this movie.

June 24, 2006 Full Review Source: Time Out

| Comment

Geoff Andrew

Time Out

More Critic Reviews

Audience Reviews for The Godfather, Part II

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Thirty-seven years after this came out, it is still one of the most thrilling movies out there. Al Pacino and Diane Keaton have to be the most unlikely couple ever cooked up by Hollywood, but their chemistry is real. The story lines never seem implausable and they succeed in making criminals sympathetic. The scenes

May 22, 2012

Bathsheba Monk

Super Reviewer

The sequel to Coppola's classic mafia crime story both continues the events around Michael Corleone and takes us back to his father's life story. Michael, wonderfully portrayed by Al Pacino, seems to get more ruthless, unsympathetic and paranoid while ruling his empire with an iron fist. He still has to fight the

June 13, 2006

Jens S.

Super Reviewer

The Godfather, Part II Quotes

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1. Michael Corleone: Fredo, you're nothing to me now. You're not a brother, you're not a friend. I don't want to know you or what you do. When you see our mother, I want to know a day in advance so I won't be there...
– Submitted by Chris C (12 days ago)
1. Hyman Roth: Micheal, we're bigger than U.S. Steel.
– Submitted by Matthew E (59 days ago)
1. Hyman Roth: This is the business we've chosen!
– Submitted by Zach B (2 months ago)
1. Michael Corleone: I knew it was you, Fredo. You broke my heart.
– Submitted by Michael C (4 months ago)
1. Michael Corleone: Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.
– Submitted by Patrick H (6 months ago)

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