I'd prefer not to wait that long. In fact, if they'd released this mini-series in one fell swoop...I'd have finished it a couple of weeks ago... all ten hours (or so) of it. And I'm not really one to do the binge. I get pretty restless after an hour or two of watching a show, and end up either not paying much attention or falling asleep.
But I find this to be a very compelling show. In brief, it's the story of the making of The Godfather, from Mario Puzo's wife telling him to write something that would make some money to (presumably) the premiere of the movie. The reviews aren't great: Rotten Tomatoes gave it a score of 48%, IMDb 8.5/10, and Metacritic 49%. Interesting, though, is that the average Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes is 95%, and I think that's pretty indicative of something or other--maybe that snooty film critics don't understand what entertainment is, for one thing.
At any rate, watching this series you have to wonder how The Godfather ever made it to the screen. It had very little going for it, and all kinds of things going against it, including the Mafia and the studio heads at Paramount. And that's one of the things that appeals to me about the series: I'm a sucker for the He Can't Win But He Is Going To Fight Anyway story. (Hello, Rocky!) I'm also a sucker for the story of a writer, and though this isn't precisely that...since that would imply a lot more emphasis on Mario Puzo than is present here...there is certainly some focus on him...and on Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the script and directed the movie. But the primary character here is Albert S. Ruddy (played by Miles Teller), the producer of The Godfather and ...assuming that this series is at least mostly true...the driving force behind the movie. In fact, it seems doubtful that the movie would have been made without him. (And oddly enough, it doesn't look like he did much of anything of note, either as a producer or as an actor--after The Godfather. I guess Eminem was right about the whole One Shot thing.)
Admittedly one of the appeals of the show is seeing various famous actors portrayed: Francis Ford Coppola, Frank Sinatra, Ali MacGraw, Al Pacino (played to perfection by Anthony Ippolito), Marlon Brando, Robert Redford, Talia Shire, James Caan, and Vic Damone. Some of them bear very little (if any) resemblance to the actors they portray, but still do a good job of evoking their spirit.
I'm anxious to get to the end of the series not only because I'm excited about it, but also because I have a burning desire to re-watch The Godfather now--something which I didn't think I'd ever want to do again. And The Godfather II. And maybe even The Godfather III, although, come to think of it, I don't think I've actually seen that one before. But I think I'll be seeing the movie(s) from a different perspective this time around, knowing something about what was going on behind the scenes. Come to think of it, I should probably just go ahead and read the book before I watch the movie, don't you think?
And of course these things keep widening out, so as I did a little internet walkabout I also found out that there's a thing called The Godfather Papers and Other Confessions by Mario Puzo which looks interesting...and a thing called The Godfather Notebook by Francis Ford Coppola that I'd like to stick in me. And before you know it, I've got a class on The Godfather. A pretty substantial class, too...I'd think worth at least a couple of credits. Come to think of it, I'd like to teach that class. We could bring in some music...maybe finish it all up with a nice Italian dinner....
P.S. The Godfather Papers and Other Confessions is available Out There, but not for cheap. However our friends at Internet Archive have a copy if you don't mind renting a room by the hour.
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