The American Dream Of ‘The Godfather’ At 50
The first character seen in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” is neither the title character, Don Vito Corleone (played to Oscar-winning perfection by Marlon Brando), his son and eventual successor Michael (Al Pacino, in his breakthrough role), nor, indeed, anyone from the brood at the story’s center. Instead, it is a decidedly secondary character, the undertaker Bonasera (Salvatore Corsitto), who also speaks the first line of dialogue, one of the most definitive opening thesis statements in the history of American cinema: “I believe in America.” This is not where the story of “The Godfather” – first told by Mario Puzo in his novel, then adapted to the screen by Puzo and Coppola – begins.