The Big Picture

Francis Ford Coppola’s unwavering vision and struggles with studio executives led to iconic scenes in
The Godfather
.
Marlon Brando’s casting as Don Vito Corleone challenged the studio’s resistance and won an Academy Award.
Coppola’s defiance in shooting Vito’s death scene, including constructing a makeshift set, highlights his fight for artistic vision.

Due to its troubled production, The Godfather should’ve never been the classic it is today. Writer-director Francis Ford Coppola and Paramount head Robert Evans butted heads over nearly every creative decision, with the director on the brink of being fired at all times due to his unwavering vision. History proved that Coppola was right all along, whether it came to castingMarlon Brando and Al Pacino or setting the story in a period setting. The studio was so opposed to Brando’s casting as Don Vito Corleone that it’s possible that they looked for any opportunity to reduce his screen time, which would explain their demand to cut Vito’s famous death scene from the script. Of course, this did not stop the rebellious Coppola from realizing his vision.

The Godfather (1972) Don Vito Corleone, head of a mafia family, decides to hand over his empire to his youngest son, Michael. However, his decision unintentionally puts the lives of his loved ones in grave danger.Release Date March 14, 1972 Director Francis Ford Coppola Runtime 175 minutes Main Genre Crime Writers Mario Puzo , Francis Ford Coppola Studio Paramount Pictures Tagline An offer you can’t refuse. Production Company Paramount Pictures, Alfran Productions Expand

The Troubled and Drama-Filled Production of ‘The Godfather’
Coppola’s struggles to realize his vision were unparalleled. The drama of The Godfather’s production was a never-ending spar between two stubborn forces in Coppola and Evans. The director was convinced that crew members were planted to sabotage the production and subsequently cause his firing. Acting like the Don, he later fired everyone who attempted to betray the family. According to Coppola, his job was secured only as a result of winning the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the Best Picture-winning Patton. Along with managing Coppola’s strong-headed vision, Paramount also had the real mafia on their tail, which threatened the film’s production in more ways than none. In the end, the studio and producer Al Ruddy agreed to one stipulation: the word “mafia” would be removed from the script.

The most intense discord between Coppola and executives was the casting of Marlon Brando. Once a trailblazing method actor who defined the 1950s with A Streetcar Named Desire and On the Waterfront, Brando was treated as box office poison by the early ’70s. He also developed the reputation of being eccentric and difficult to work with, and Evans wanted no part of his shenanigans. The ostentatious nature of the role, calling for heavy makeup and prosthetics and a distinct voice ripe for parody, only challenged the studio’s resistance further. Despite refusing to learn his lines, Brando, like his director, proved the naysayers wrong, winning an Academy Award for Best Actor (although he didn’t attend the ceremony due to political differences).

1:09 Related Marlon Brando Prevented a Promising Actor From Being in ‘The Godfather’ In a different world, it would’ve been Burt Reynolds, and not Al Pacino, who was starring as Michael Corleone.

Francis Ford Coppola Defied the Studio and Shot Vito Corleone’s Death

The Godfather, winning Best Picture at the 45th Academy Awards, is a series of iconic scenes after iconic scenes. One of the most moving scenes, the death of Vito Corleone in the tomato garden, was removed from the script, as Coppola recalled in an interview for the film’s 50th anniversary in 2022. Preceded by the Godfather’s death was a touching sequence where Vito plays with his grandson — stuffing an orange peel in his mouth and chasing the boy through the garden. Committed to shooting this cut scene, Coppola surreptitiously constructed a makeshift set posing as the tomato garden. This occurred during the production of another classic scene: the opening wedding. As soon as Coppola began setting up the cameras, his “nemesis,” as he described them, scolded him for trying to shoot this scene. The executive left to inform a higher-up at Paramount of Coppola’s disobedience, and during this grace period, Coppola, Brando, and the crew shot the scene under the wire. Coppola’s “nemesis” returned and halted production, but they managed to film and retain their footage.

In the CBS Sunday Morning interview, Coppola never revealed Paramount’s rationale behind cutting such a crucial scene out of the script. In the excellent commentary track of The Godfather’s DVD release, however, Coppola shares a tell-all story about the troubled production. According to the director, the studio believed the scene was unnecessary. Despite Vito being the central character and heart of the movie, they felt a more streamlined approach, cutting straight to the Don’s funeral, was more apt. Brando, who sensed the pressure Coppola was facing, aided his director by improvising the moment when he placed the orange peel over his teeth. The child actor was genuinely frightened by Brando’s new look, which was captured on the screen. Grateful for his good fortune during the editing process, Coppola was amazed that the scene appeared in the final cut. He credited Brando’s ingenuity for the success of the scene — a touching send-off to the noble crime boss. Because the individual is now deceased, the only thing Coppola didn’t disclose was the identity of the “nemesis” who badgered Coppola to cut scenes.

Francis Ford Coppola’s Struggle To Receive Final Cut on ‘The Godfather’
Image via Paramount Pictures

The length of a movie is a recurring point of contention in various bouts between a director and studio throughout history. Unsurprisingly, Robert Evans was dissatisfied with the lengthy runtime of the initial cut of The Godfather, as detailed in the commentary track. Coppola stipulated a deal that allowed him to edit the film in San Francisco, away from studio influence in Los Angeles. Evans threatened that if the final cut were over 2 hours and 15 minutes, the studio would take control of post-production. To his chagrin, Coppola condensed his crime epic down to 2 hours and 20 minutes. However, when Evans saw this cut, which only contained scenes related to the main plot, he was appalled by the lack of character moments and minor nuances. According to Coppola, this was merely a power play by Evans, who was dead-set on controlling post-production in Los Angeles.

Coppola was certainly not short on footage when editing The Godfather, which is evident by the number of deleted scenes available to watch in this compendium. Most of these scenes, which provided extraneous plot details and redundant character moments, were justifiably cut. However, one scene left on the cutting room floor, following Sonny (James Caan) informing his mother of her husband’s shooting and assuming the role of family boss, is a touching and poetic demonstration of the humanism at the heart of this gritty crime saga.

A valid explanation behind cutting the death of arguably the most vital character in the movie would be hard to come by. Despite having a major studio backing him, Francis Ford Coppola behaved like an indie director shooting guerrilla style to avoid creative restrictions from his bosses. Building a tomato garden and shooting the scene of Vito’s demise is Coppola’s boldest act of sly rebellion.

The Godfather is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.

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