OldBoy

I’m sure most know the seminal original turns 50 this year. Certainly 4Kers know with the new release. Any marathons planned?
I’ve had the “epic” version that aired on HBO in 2015. Yes, 7 years on dvr. Think I’m gonna give it a go. Then Coda…Certainly not in one sitting. But, what better time.

So you think it’s the greatest movie ever? Is Citizen Kane? Other? (Whole nother thread). Godfather, I know on many lists, but there’s so many lists. I’m going to reserve judgement until after this chronological version or whatever. Curious to see and wish it would be a physical release.

How do you feel about The Godfather (1972)?

Mondo Kane

Still my most favorite Best Picture Winner

d2cheer

I do like it but do not love it and would not ever call it the best of all time.

JayTL

My unpopular opinion is that it's better than 2. Greatest ever? No, I have some weird movies that I like more..only because I'd rather watch Pan's Labryinth or something instead.

rocket1312

Love it. Saw the 50th anniversary in the Dolby Cinema after already watching it at home the previous week. It was awesome. But not the greatest ever. Probably not even close. I'd be surprised if anyone votes yes.

PhantomStranger

No, it's not even the best Godfather movie. Godfather Part II is one of the five best films ever made. I've always wondered how history would have treated The Godfather if Coppola never makes Part II.

JayTL

Eh, if I can say Dawn of the Dead is the greatest movie ever, anyone can say Godfather is lmao

Count Dooku

The Godfather was both a great critical success and a box office blockbuster, winning Oscars for Best Picture and Actor, along with 3 supporting actor noms for Pacino, Duvall, and Caan. If #2 had not been made, #1 would have always been regarded as one of the greatest American movies ever made.

The Godfather II enhances the reputation of #1, and the pairing of the two films in most people's minds is what accounts for the saga's status as such an enormous film-making achievement.

However, let's be honest, as much praise as #2 deserves, the two stories in #2 would mean very little to audiences who were not familiar with the story from #1. So, to say #2 is a better film than #1 seems flawed since #2 is entirely standing on #1's shoulders.

Count Dooku

Except someone saying DOTD is the greatest movie ever is insane, and there is an actual argument for The Godfather being so named.

JayTL

Eh, in your opinion.

In mine, DOTD is the greatest movie of all times and Godfather isn't even top 25.

B5Erik

The greatest movie ever...






But The Godfather and The Godfather Part II are both Top 20, probably Top 10. Amazingly great movies.

Count Dooku

If your opinion of what the GOAT movie is is just your personal favorite, then you don't understand the concept of GOAT.

Kurt D

This. (I don't think Godfather is greatest of all time either, though it should be in the conversation.)
GOAT means broad-based, taking into account as possible the widest swath of critical opinion.

DOTD belongs in the "What's Your Greatest Film of All Time?" thread. (Mine is Alien.)

milo bloom

It’s good but I’ve never been compelled to own the best possible version on home video.

In the late 90s, when laserdisc had its resurgence, I found cheap copies of the green cover releases and then I’ve paid less than $5 for the first two DVD releases (garage sale and thrift store). I also have the saga on VHS from a thrift store.

The only thing I’d buy new at this point would be the saga version.

They're worthy films to be seen and archived but not something you can watch a lot.

TomOpus

Damn good movie but whether it's the best is purely subjective.

JayTL

Its all opinion. Alien is top 5-10 to me easy. I don't think citizen Kane is all it's cracked up to be. If the GOAT conversation isn't supposed to be subjective, then there's no conversation.

I'd rather watch Friday the 13th part 3 over Godfather. Do I think that makes it a better movie? No, just more enjoyable to me. So I know the difference.

Still think Dawn is better. (For the record, I like Scarface more than Godfather)

Count Dooku

It's subjective, but you have to understand what the subject is for there to be a conversation. And if you don't think Citizen Kane is "all it's cracked up to be," then I doubt you do.

Go ahead and make your case for DOTD in terms of mass appeal, historical importance, artistic merit --that doesn't always include the conditional "for a horror movie."

Kurt D

I don't think the GOAT conversation is subjective at all. If it is subjective, that's when there's no conversation at all, because all opinions are valid. Again, it's down to one word, 'the' vs 'your'.

Jay G.

You have it backwards. If GOAT was objective, there wouldn't be a conversation at all, because it'd be objectively clear and obvious what it was, thus no room for debate. It's the subjectivity of the determination that allows for debate and conversation.

Also, while "all opinions are valid" is in one sense true, not all arguments for a particular opinion are valid. If one is arguing for a particular film being or not being GOAT, those arguments can be examined and challenged.

Finally, there's a difference between critical consensus and objective truth. Just because the majority agree on something doesn't make it objective. Now, polls and awards can be used to make some objective measurement of critical consensus, but just because, say, 80% of respondents think one particular film is the GOAT doesn't mean it's objectively true. It's just the film that most people are going to agree on.

Ash Ketchum

I watched it on cable in 2019, the first time I've seen it this century. Here are my notes from that viewing:
I watched GODFATHER II also at that time and I remembered not liking it that much when it first came out and had similar problems with it this time also.
I remember seeing the network TV re-edit in the late '70s where they cut both films together and re-structured it to run chronologically and I remember liking that a lot, the only time I've seen that version.

Hazel Motes

There should have been a poll option for “one of the greatest ever.” Which it certainly is.

Kurt D

OBV it is somewhat objective, and one should be able to back that opinion up logically, but it has to be based on consensus reality or the question has no meaning.

Sigmund And The Seamonsters is the GOAT of TV as far as I'm concerned, but if I entered that into the discussion I'd be laughed out of the room.

Wolf359

Count Dooku

It's a matter of understanding what it means for a film to be considered GOAT. That designation has a meaning beyond being anyone's favorite, or even being the majority of the public's favorite. It encompasses ideas like artistic merit and historical significance, to name just two. Subjectivity certainly plays a role in the discussion, but there is also a more objective element concerning what it means for a film to even enter the conversation.

Forrest Gump, Pulp Fiction, and The Shawshank Redemption all came out in 1994. Gump was easily the most popular film of that year at the time. I'm willing to guess that Shawshank would win a 2022 public poll of favorite films of 1994. But the greatest film of 1994 is Pulp Fiction because greatness has a greater meaning than being the thing the most people like the most.

Jay G.

Well, "artistic merit" is, itself, subjective, and "historical significance" can be debated, but there's sometimes historically significant films that aren't very good. Like, Heaven's Gate is historically significant for causing Transamerica to sell off UA, but that doesn't really have an impact on whether it's a good film or not.

Likewise, there's the case of a film being "influential," to weigh its impact on the film industry, but the most influential film ever may not necessarily be the best from a quality standpoint.

And that's truly all that most people think of when they hear "greatest film": the quality of the film. Those other factors aren't a consideration unless you explicitly state that they are, and it's a bit inconsistent to do so unless you also rate all films "good" or "bad" based on all those factors.

And I have no idea what you mean by "what it means for a film to even enter the conversation," that just reads like gibberish. Any film can enter the conversation, as JayTL did with Dawn of the Dead. It's literally part of the conversation now.