For tonight’s main event, a pair of family movies that invest in and reflect upon lasting, spirit-sustaining values about family and community — Frank Capra‘s It’s A Wonderful Life (’46) vs. Francis Coppola‘s The Godfather (‘72)
The core message in Capra’s film at the end of the day: “Forget the thrill and risk of life…or, you know, don’t worry too much about it…forget the exotic climes and unfamiliar aromas and the adventure of struggle and experimentation…forget wandering around the streets of Paris or Hanoi or Venice late at night while smoking an unfiltered Gitane…forget all the faraway places…if you’re loved and treasured by your neighbors in your hometown, that’s all that matters.”
The basic Godfather conveyance is that however independently willful or curious or hungry for the nectar of life a young person might be…however strong this curiosity and longing may be, sooner or later that young person will recognize family as the most fundamental thing of all, and that down the road he/she will give his/her loyalty to it above all else.
One of the main reasons that The Godfather won the Best Picture Oscar is because of that final scene when Michael lies to Kaye about his complicity in the death of Carlo. Kaye can sense the lie, of course, and then Al Neri closes the door as she’s gazing into Michael’s office with everyone kissing his hand.
That’s the way it is (or certainly was) with a lot of marriages within a certain realm. That’s reality, and all that family jubilation and exhilaration in the finale of Capra’s film….well, it’s very nutritious
and fortifying but who really trusts it? It feels like a forced confection.