Victor Nike

Choose a film or TV Drama in whichthe opening sequence successfully establishes key features of thetext- mood, setting, genre, character.

By referring to more than one keyfeature in the sequence, show how the film or programme makersachieve this success and go on to discuss the importance of thesequence to you appreciation of the text as a whole.




Francis FordCoppola's 'The Godfather' is generally thought to be a masterpiece ofthe film medium. Acclaimed internationally, the plot follows aSicilian-American Mafia family as it transfers leadership from theold Don Vito Corleone to his son Michael. The film's openingsequence- the wedding sequence- is extremely important in setting upcharacters, themes and sub-plots for the rest of the film and does agood job of doing so.




The very firstseconds of the film are a black screen with a dis-embodied, butdistinctly Italian, voice saying 'I believe in America'. This is animportant statement because it's an illogical one- if Bonasera'sdaughter has been beaten, by Americans, and denied justice, by thecourts, then why should he still believe in America? This is thequestion Coppola wanted people to ask- the Godfather was filmed atthe tail end of the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal. Thepublic's opinion of those in power was at an all time low and the'American Dream'- that any man may, through toil and enterprise,raise himself to riches- had been shown to be fallacious. This isreinforced by the numerous references to 'Vito having every judge inhis pocket' and the descent of Michael, just back from WW2,descending into life a crime- a common occurrence for the returningveterans of Vietnam.




The opening scenealso sets up many themes that surround the family. The room is smalland dark, contains old, heavy wooden furniture and filled with men.This implies that the Mafia is old in its ways- the hierarchy,exclusion of women and violence suggest it to be almost Mediaeval.Later in the film the implications of this become clear when theFamily suffers a crisis of leadership and begins to be pushed out bythe new, money rich market for drugs. This means reform is also amajor recurrence. This old order is thrown out piece by piece- Vitois removed, the Family changes its power-base to gambling and theyounger, more dynamic, and ruthless Michael is the Don. Despite thisshake-up, the general structure remains. This could be evidence ofCoppola believing that the system in America is flawed and thedifferences in who you vote for are minimal.




The most importantelement of the first scene and, possibly, the entire film is thecontrast between the Mafia Family and the outside world. At the startof the film Vito Corleone- the Family incarnate- is shown in a smalldark room surrounded by men and following a strict hierarchicalorder. Michael, on the other hand, is shown outside surrounded bymusic, dancing, children and with his girlfriend- Kay. His US Armyuniform singles him out as different from the black-suited men at theparty and his white, blonde girlfriend stands out against the darkhaired-olive skinned Italian women there. This establishes him as anoutsider and not part of the criminal wing of the Family.




Characters are thedriving force of the plot in 'The Godfather' and the opening scenesets up all of the main ones. The Don, shown in his inner sanctumworking on his daughter's wedding day, is shown as a traditionalistand a very powerful person. However he is also portrayed as caringand likeable- less that he is an evil man and more that his moralcode varies from mainstream societies. He refuses to murder the twomen who battered Bonasera's daughter because, he says, 'He is not amurderer'. He believes in revenge punishment though and sends twomen- specified as two careful men- to exact punishmentbefitting the crime without death. He is shown to care for his familyand others. He is anxious to see his youngest son- Michael- who hasjust returned from WW2 despite Michael rejecting tradition andturning away from the family. He is also shown stroking a kitten andsniffing flowers, suggesting an inner calm.

The hotly temperedand impulsive Santino (Sonny) is introduced in the opening scene intwo distinct ways. At first he is shown quietly by his father's sidein the inner sanctum, subservient and silent but closer to the seatof power than Michael. However, when outside and confronting thepolice photographers, he is quick to assume authority. His quicktemper is obvious, as is his lack of self control. When he hasfinished unleashing his rage on the camera, however, he is quick topay for the damage, suggesting he has an understanding of the law.This impulsiveness is continued when he takes a bridesmaid upstairsand has sex with her- an act which his wife is aware of but doesnothing about. This also emphasises a hypocrisy within the Don- heespouses family and loyalty but ignores his own son's infidelity.




Another importantfacet of the wedding scene are the genre markers present thathighlight both the conformity with the gangster genre and the aspectsthat differ from normal genre films. Gangster films generally containwell-dressed violent men, an emphasis on traditional family valuesand women as bit-characters used as sexual ornaments- all elementsthat 'The Godfather' contains. However the film is also shown todiffer from the established genre in its portrayal of morality andsetting. The Family's actions are never condemned outright- killingsare justified and drugs are shunned- but never glorified either. Theconsequences of killings are shown in grisly detail (although thekillings themselves may venture into the absurd). The 'Urban Jungle'is also shunned- although the film takes place in New York, theopening scene takes place in the Corleone compound which is leafy andspacious.




The two mainsub-plots of the film are set-up in this opening sequence and bothreveal a lot about the nature of the family. Johnny Fontaine is aSinatra stand-in who has connections to the family and requests thatthe Don use his might to get him a spot in a big-budget film.  TheDon acquiesces and sends his adopted son and consigliere to carry outthe job. This shows us that Don has a strong sense of family and willdo anything to help those he considers part of his inner circle. Therequest of Bonasera to kill the two boys who beat his daughterreveals his sense of justice and morality- very much a case of 'aneye for an eye'. Despite this ruthless view he refuses to kill thetwo men, for they never killed Bonasera's daughter. This view,twisted to mainstream Western media, is not shown unfavourably- it'ssimply a case of cultural dissonance, another recurring themethroughout the film.




In conclusion, theopening scene is a vitally important piece of the film that sets theaudience up for the rest of the plot and reveals much pertinentinfromation to the viewer. It draws us in to the lives of thecharacters and contextualises the rest of the film. It is verysuccessful at establishing key features of the film.