Michael Corleone’s death in Francis Ford Coppola’sThe Godfathersaga highlights the most important difference between Al Pacino’s character and his onscreen father, Marlon Brando’s Vito Corleone.TheGodfathermoviesfollow Michael Corleone from the moment he enters the mafia as a young man to his sad demise as a wrinkled veteran of the crime business. These events span three separate movies, butThe Godfathershould really be considered a two-part story with an epilogue dubbedThe Death of Michael Corleone.
That thread of continuity across the entire trilogy creates an ongoing narrative where the “Godfather” title passes from father to son when Michael replaces Vito as theCorleone family’s don. Still,The Godfather’s story is as much about life and death as it is crime and violence. The tale begins with Vito in his prime, then Brando’s character dies and life continues with Pacino’s Michael steering the ship. Michael dying inThe Godfather Part III’s endingcreates a cycle of life, death, and continuation, but it also shows one crucial way in which he and Vito are nothing alike.
Michael Corleone’s Death Is Different To Vito’s - Michael Is Alone
Two Very Different Endings For The Two Godfathers
The GodfatherandThe Godfather Part IIIdraw very deliberate parallels between the deaths of Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone. When Vito dies inThe Godfather, he is outside in a garden setting, relaxing as a retired man. The sun is out, and Vito plays with his grandson while snacking on an ominous orange. Michael’s final minutes inThe Godfather PartIIImirror Vito’s almost perfectly. Al Pacino’s character is retired, relaxing outside in a garden, the sun is shining, and oranges are nearby. Both scenes portray their ex-dons as harmless old men enjoying the simplicity and stillness of nature.
Vito collapsing as an old man while playing with his grandson is one of the nicer ways he could have spent those dying seconds.
The crucial difference is thatMichael dies alone. Vito collapses while chasing his beloved grandson - a symbol of succession and rebirth from one generation ofThe Godfather’s Corleone familyto the next. More importantly, the presence of family makes Vito’s death more comforting, as he passes away beside a young boy he adores and who adores him in return. This is the only aspect of Vito’s final sceneThe Godfather Part IIIdoes not give Michael. Pacino’s character has no family or friends close by as he passes, and the presence of dogs dancing around Michael’s lifeless body accentuates that loneliness.
The Godfather’s Ending Explained (What Happens and What It All Means)
The Godfather contains one of the most classic, dramatic finales in cinematic history. But how does the ending play out, and what does it mean?
Despite Vito and Michael dying in very similar circumstances, therefore, one death becomes infinitely more tragic than the other. Vito collapsing as an old man while playing with his grandson is one of the nicer ways he could have spent those dying seconds, especially given his brutal line of work. The sight of Michael abandoned by children, grandchildren, lovers, and friends makes his ending inherently sadder.
Why Michael Corleone Dies Alone But Vito Corleone Doesn’t
Michael’s Death Can Be Interpreted As A Victory Or A Failure
Both men commit terrible sins and both men lose children to mafia violence, which raises the question of whyThe Godfathergrants Vito Corleone a somewhat merciful death and Michael is sentenced to loneliness and pain. That Michael is undeniably the colder of the two dons might be the reason. As ruthless and hardened as Vito can be, he maintains a relatively cuddly family man exterior. Despite having more blood on his hands than the local butcher,Vito exudes an approachable warmthand outwardly shows love for his family. This warmth is arguably what prevents Vito from dying alone.
Despite a far more tragic passing, Michael achieves what Vito never could.
Michael, on the other hand, takes on a more steely persona after inheriting the family business. Michael struggles to maintain his marriage to Kay, is less naturally paternal than Vito, and regularly puts business before family. Infamously,The Godfather Part IIsees Michael order the assassination of Fredo, his own brother, in retaliation for a betrayal, whereas Vito would likely have been more willing to forgive. Ultimately, this distinction can explain why one don dies alone, yet the other does not.
From another angle,Michael dying alone can also be viewed as a selfless act of kindnesstowards his family. Vito only dies playing with his grandson because he manages to keep his children close to the family business. In doing so, Sonny and Fredo both get murdered and Michael becomes a shadow of his happy younger self. Vito might succeed in maintaining his family and avoids dying alone, but that same closeness also dooms three of his four children, as well as his granddaughter Mary.
10 Best Characters In The Godfather Trilogy, Ranked
From Michael Corleone to his father Vito, The Godfather trilogy is filled with some of the most captivating characters in cinema history.
Michael fails to keep his family together and loses Mary to a botched assassination attempt, but the Corleone boss succeeds in getting his son, Anthony, and Kay away from the mafia life. By accepting a lonelier death, Michael bargains for the protection of his remaining family members. Curiously, this is what Vito always wanted for Michael. In Coppola’soriginalThe Godfathermovie, Vito expresses dismay when his youngest son is forced to take over the Corleone family, wishing instead that Michael had been able to live a normal life. Despite a far more tragic passing, Michael achieves what Vito never could.
How The Godfather Part III’s Alternative Cut Changes Michael’s Death
The Death Of Michael Corleone Cuts The Death Of Michael Corleone
Released in 2020,The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleoneis Francis Ford Coppola’s reworked version ofThe Godfather Part III, and axing Michael’s death is one of the cut’s biggest changes. The aforementioned scene where Michael collapses in his garden is dropped entirely, and the trilogy’s final note becomes Al Pacino’s reaction to Mary dying on the opera house stairs.
The devastation of losing Mary, both upon Michael and the wider Corleone family, would still mean a lonely demise.
It’s a fascinating contradiction thatThe Godfather Codaadds the “Death of Michael Corleone” subtitle then cuts Michael’s actual death scene. The result is that Michael’s “death” becomes metaphorical rather than literal - the moment Mary dies, not the moment he slumps off his chair. The audience is then left to decide for itself what Michael’s actual final moments look like.
Even so,The Godfather Codadoes nothing to suggest Michael’s last days would be any happier than shown in the original cut. Coppola’s alternative edit positions Mary being killed as the moment Michael Corleone dies inside - the collapse of his entire world. If Michael goes on to die a peaceful death surrounded by Anthony, Kay, Connie, Vincent, and his other family members, it would dilute the idea of Mary’s death killing Michael on a spiritual level.
The Godfather Codahas an 86% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes compared to the original cut’s 67%.
In all likelihood, then,The Godfather Codachangeslittle by refusing to show Michael Corleone physically taking his final breaths. The devastation of losing Mary, both upon Michael and the wider Corleone family, would still mean a lonely demise as a broken man with no one by his side. To lose that depressing aspect of Michael’s future would risk underminingThe Godfather’s overarching message that the path of criminality and violence led to the Corleone family’s patriarch losing everything he ever loved.
The Godfather
The Godfatheris one of the most iconic and influential film franchises in cinematic history. Based on Mario Puzo’s 1969 novel of the same name, the series chronicles the rise and fall of the powerful Corleone crime family. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the franchise consists of three films that explore the complex dynamics of organized crime, loyalty, and family. The films are celebrated for their outstanding performances, direction, and thematic depth, especially regarding power, betrayal, and morality within the Mafia world. The first two films, in particular, are widely regarded as some of the greatest films ever made.
