Golden Globe Awards

[Geezer]

I don't know why you think The Godfather glamorises being a criminal. Sure, Vito is seen to be a nice man to his children, but I'm pretty sure a lot of gangsters were/are the same. And sure, he isn't interested in drugs but he sure as hell is interested in robbery and murder. And watching the film and how it progresses, surely any sense of glorification is negated by what happens... that the life of a gangster is full of double-crossing, betrayal, violence, and death. And this is especially evident in the character of Michael, who starts by contrasting himself against his father and his father's life, who wants to live an honest life, but ultimately is driven into cold-blooded murder. I mean the film goes out of its way to portray that as a tragedy. So where's the glorification in that?

Because people will still watch the film and idolize its characters. People will think it is awesome to behave in such a way. Scarface is the worst case scenario of this, as Tony Montana is like a god to the fans of the film. The fact that people will look up to, and find these characters "cool," is what I have a problem with. It actually makes people believe that the violence and death aspect is something that is good. And the fact that Michael wanted to lead a good, honest life, but couldn't, and he himself became a criminal, and yet is still hailed as an icon, is where the glorification comes in. If he had succeeded in staying away from his family's life, and then been hailed for not leading this life of crime when the odds were so overwhelmingly towards him going down that road, overcoming the odds, so to speak, then that would be great. He would be the right kind of hero. But the fact that people watch the Godfather and come out of it thinking that the mob is cool, when as you said, they are very much into robbery and cold blooded murder, is what I have a problem with. Whether it plays out as a tragedy or not is irrelevant, people still view the characters as heros.

[numbersix]

But surely every film that deals with violence or negativity can be criticised for the same thing. Goodfellas for crime, Trainspotting for drugs. People may choose to ignore the context, but surely that's not the film's fault, when it's pretty obvious that none of them (including The Godfather) are condoning the actions taken, and show the actions of the protagonists to be flawed.

By your logic, all films dealing with crime or transgressive behavious should have the main character overcome them. But if that kept happening they'd be laughed at for being unrealistic and not attempting to understand why people end up in these situations.

[Geezer]

Certainly, 6, but I'm only talking about what I enjoy. Its not fun for me to watch people who lead such a miserable life of crime, and putting it on screen, for the masses to idolize, is what I call glorification. I know so many people that love the Godfather because they think these characters are so cool. Whether it was the point of the film or not, it still happens, and it still bugs me. I don't go to the movies for realism. If I wanted that, I'd watch the news.

[frendo]

Scarface is a funny example, because, unlike something like the Godfather, it is almost as far from glorification as you can get. He's not particularly handsome, his romantic relationship turns to shit, his buddy is hacked up with a chainsaw next to him, he kills everyone he is close to, and dies violently. But gangster rapper types STILL watch it and want to be Scarface, strictly because he had money. I think that example shows the stupidity of people, or a certain type of person, more than anything else.