Shot by Shot Analysis of The Godfather (1972)
Michael Corleone is the youngest child of Vito Corleone, Don of the Corleone crime family, one of the most influential Italian mafia families in New York City. He was always considered a “civilian” when it came to the family business, however, when his father’s life becomes the target of other mafia families, Michael takes it upon himself to protect his father.
In this sequence from Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 film, The Godfather, sound techniques such as the repetition of the sound of a train, sound levels, and sound bridging, along with camera techniques such as panning, shot-reverse-shot, and the close up are used to create the uneasy, anxious mood of this critical scene. This scene is a turning point in the film, therefore, it was necessary for both Coppola and Gordon Willis, the cinematographer, to utilize these various sound and camera techniques in order to emphasize the significance of the scene.
Virgil Sollozzo, a representative of another mafia family, orders the assassination of Vito Corleone because he refuses to support their drug business. In this scene, Michael Corleone has arranged to meet with both Sollozzo and the corrupt policeman, Captain McClusky, who supports Sollozzo. They meet at a small Italian restaurant, where the Corleone family has planted a gun that Michael will use to kill both Sollozzo and McClusky. In this ten-shot sequence, starting at 1:27:22 and ending at 1:29:17, we see the build up to the killing of these two men and the one-hundred-eighty degree turn that Michael Corleone makes in regards to his involvement in the family business.
In the first shot, Michael walks away from Sollozzo and McClusky at the table and exits the scene, walking toward the bathroom where the gun is planted above an old-fashioned toilet. About three seconds into this first shot, the sound of a train is introduced for the first time. This non-diegetic sound catches the viewer off guard, creating an uneasy mood and environment. A sound bridge connects the first and second shot with the sound of the train. In this second shot, Corleone enters the bathroom and is frantically searching with his eyes for this hiding place where he can find the weapon. As he is walking through the bathroom on his mission, the sound of the train gets louder as if it is approaching and getting closer as the tension of the plot builds. This feeling of danger instilled in the viewer by the idea that a train is coming at them and approaching faster and faster goes hand-in-hand with the level of anxiety that is rising within Michael. The camera pans to the right as Michael walks toward the toilet where the gun is hidden. This pan takes us on this mission with Michael and allows us to discover and approach the hiding place of the weapon as Michael does. Michael begins to frantically search for the gun when we cut to the third shot of Sollozzo and McClusky at the table in the main part of the restaurant. The difference in sound from this second shot to the third and then to the fourth is very drastic. While Michael is searching for the weapon in the second shot, we hear the toilet running, the clanking and banging of him digging around where the gun is hidden and the overall noise within the room is almost overwhelming. When we cut to the third shot, it is practically silent with the two men sitting at the table, eating. There is almost no noise at all here as compared to the second shot. In this third shot, McClusky looks toward the bathroom as if wondering what is taking Michael so long. This drastic change in sound level and the actions of McClusky add to the stress of the situation because the viewer knows what is happening on the other side of that wall. McClusky’s supposed concern leads the viewer back into the bathroom for the fourth shot so that we can rejoin the search for the gun. Again, the noise level instantly picks back up when we are in the bathroom and this quick and drastic change in the level of sound increases anxiety. Finally, Michael finds the gun and pulls it out of its hiding place with caution, studying it. The moment he grasps the gun, the train starts back up, reminding us of the pressure and stress that Michael is feeling. This anxiety begins to build again because now that the gun is in his possession, the plan to kill for the mafia and end his life as a “civilian” is becoming a reality. A reality that he never dreamt he would experience.
Now that Michael has the gun, we cut quickly to the fifth shot, which is practically identical to the third. This time, however, the noise level in the room seems to be a little louder even though the sound of the train stopped. Once again, McClusky directs his gaze toward the restroom, waiting for the door to open and for Michael to reenter the room. The sixth shot shows Michael walking toward the door to exit the bathroom. The camera pans to the left as he exits the stall and approaches the door, while the train starts up again and quickly becomes louder and louder. As was the case earlier, the use of the pan here allows us to take every step with Michael without any pauses or hesitations- the viewer is completely in his shoes and feeling his emotions. Just before he reaches the door, he stops to collect himself and the train becomes overwhelming. It seems as though it couldn’t come any closer. Once he has calmed down a bit, Michael exits the bathroom and the train fades out.
The three shots that follow utilize the shot-reverse-shot technique with the seventh shot being an over the shoulder over Michael’s shoulder with the two men at the table in front of him, the eighth being a close-up of Michael’s face, and the ninth starting with another over the shoulder facing the men at the table. Still during the ninth shot, Michael walks toward the table to rejoin his enemies and the camera pans ever so slightly left to subtly emphasize the focus on Michael and his actions. We then cut to the tenth shot, which starts with a close-up of Michael taking his seat. Once he is seated, Sollozzo begins speaking to him, however the viewer does not pay attention to this because Michael is clearly preoccupied. His body language reflects his nervousness and discomfort, which is further emphasized when the camera begins to zoom in on his face and we can see that he is gulping and shaking slightly. He is deep in thought, wondering when the opportune moment to carry out the plan is! Now the sound of the train starts back up. The level of sound increases slowly at first, but as we zoom in closer and the anxiety builds, the train starts roaring and it spirals out of control until it is the loudest and feels the closest that it has been. The mood is chaotic and stressful until finally, Michael’s expression goes from nervous to a look of determination and certainty. Based on this last shot, we know that Michael decides to follow through with his plan and does in fact shoot Sollozzo and McClusky.
All of these factors of sound and cinematography collectively produce the dramatic lead up to the climax of the plot. That is, Michael following through with the plan. The shots that follow play out the actual killing of Sollozzo and McClusky, which the viewer anticipated based on the constant build-up of anxiety with each shot.
While the camera techniques contributed to this rising level of stress for our protagonist, they undoubtedly play a secondary role to the use of sound in this sequence. Graeme Turner discusses sound as a signifying practice on page 83 of his work, Film as Social Practice IV by stating, “music swelling at the point of a romantic clinch is not manipulation but recourse to even more direct means of communicating with the audience.” Although Coppola doesn’t use music in this shot sequence, this statement is not only true of music. Any source of sound can serve as a means of emphasizing the mood and the emotions involved in a scene. This quote speaks directly to the use of sound in this ten-shot-sequence. The repetition of the sound of the train relates to this idea of speaking directly to the emotions of the audience beyond what is possible using dialogue and diegetic sound alone. By using a sound with an unseen, or external source, the audience is caught off guard. The repetition of this sound allows the audience to associate the emotion of anxiety or stress with the sound of the train approaching. Just as Turner discusses music “swelling” at the climax of a romance, the use of the sound of the train here is directly related to the intensity of the plot at that moment.
The way in which Coppola utilized both sound and camera techniques in this ten-shot –sequence from The Godfather successfully magnifies the anxiety of the situation. Further, by pulling the audience in and involving their emotions, the significance of the scene is accurately portrayed. The repeated sound of the train correlated with the anxiety of the plot, along with sound bridging and the level of volume allowed the viewer to become more emotionally invested in each shot, which is necessary for a scene as significant as this one.
The Godfather. Dir. Francis Ford Coppola. Paramount Pictures, 1972.
Turner, Graeme. Film as Social Practice. Fourth Edition. London: Routledge, 1988. 83.
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