That’s Coppola for you—producing commercially saleable classics like The Godfather so he can fund film like The Conversation. The latter is more engaging but wouldn’t survive repeat viewings. For those of you who haven’t read Mario Puzo’s novel, which is 446 pages long, it took both Godfather films to cover the entire story of Vito Corleone’s rise to power and Michael’s succession to his throne. Though it took only a few minutes to piss my siblings off. They retreated into their rooms while I settled to check out The Godfather II.

The Godfather Part II picks up with a lavish First Holy Communion party for Michael Corleone’s (Al Pacino) son. As with the all-important wedding scene in the first picture (where Michael’s sister, Connie married Carlo Rizzi), this gathering sets the stage for the rest of the film. People wait to see Michael in his home office, much as they did with the original Don in The Godfather; the baton has passed on. A running theme in the second part is Michael’s increasingly strained and troubled relationships with his wife Kay (Diane Keaton) and his older brother Fredo (John Cazale).

It also addresses the childhood and early adulthood of Vito Corleone (Robert De Niro) in flashback sequences. Forced to leave Italy, thanks to a series of unfortunate circumstances at the turn of the 20th century, young Vito moves to the United States, and Coppola astutely films his comeuppance. This is undoubtedly De Niro’s film. The actor has been in his share of terrific Mafia movies, from the stellar, modern classic Goodfellas to the under-appreciated A Bronx Tale, but this is his finest.