(Francis Ford Coppola, US 1972, 175 min.)

Coppola’s breakthrough film as a director is the epic narrative of the near demise and reemergence to power of the Corleone Mafia clan. The film features stellar performances by a cast including Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, and Marlon Brando as family patriarch Vito Corleone. A compelling story on its own terms, The Godfather is also a powerful metaphor for the ruthless nature of American big business.