The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie

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The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie United States

Blu-ray + Digital Copy
Paramount Pictures | 1974 | 202 min | Rated R | Mar 22, 2022

The Godfather: Part II (Blu-ray Movie)

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Movie rating

9.2
 / 10

Blu-ray rating

Users0.0 of 50.0
Reviewer4.5 of 54.5
Overall4.5 of 54.5

Overview

The Godfather: Part II (1974)

Continuing saga of the Corleone family as they move to Nevada and make the casino business their major income source under the leadership of the increasingly paranoid and malevolent Michael, whose reign as the "Don" is juxtaposed against the parallel tale of his father's escape from Sicily as a young boy and his subsequent rise to power in New York's Lower East Side during the turn of the 20th century.

Starring: Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, John Cazale
Director: Francis Ford Coppola

Drama100%
Epic98%
Crime94%
Period79%

Specifications

  • Video

    Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
    Video resolution: 1080p
    Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
    Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1

  • Audio

    English: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
    English: Dolby Digital Mono
    French: Dolby Digital 5.1
    French: Dolby Digital Mono

  • Subtitles

    English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish

  • Discs

    Blu-ray Disc
    Single disc (1 BD)
    Digital copy

  • Packaging

    Slipcover in original pressing

  • Playback

    Region A (B, C untested)

Review

Rating summary

Movie5.0 of 55.0
Video5.0 of 55.0
Audio4.5 of 54.5
Extras1.5 of 51.5
Overall4.5 of 54.5

The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 2, 2022

Paramount has once again released Director Francis Ford Coppola's legendary sequel film 'The Godfather, Part II' to the Blu-ray format, this time celebrating the original film's 50th anniversary. This new Blu-ray has been remastered and is released concurrently alongside the UHD (which, at time of writing, is only available in a trilogy boxed set). This disc is available individually or as part of a three-film Blu-ray boxed set which also includes a remastered 'The Godfather' and the 2020 Blu-ray release of The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone.'


Telling two tales of the Corleone family, one featuring Michael's dealings as patriarch and the other showcasing Vito Corleone's (Robert De Niro) rise to power in New York as a young adult, The Godfather: Part II intertwines both stories, but Michael's is the primary tale, while Vito's is the more engaging. Michael's tale begins in a similar fashion to The Godfather, with him receiving guests in his office during a celebration of his son's first communion. Among those he meets are three of the most crucial characters in the film, including Johnny Ola (Dominic Chianese), an associate of the Miami-based Hyman Roth (Lee Starsberg), who is seeking a business opportunity with the Corleone family in revolution-torn Havana, Cuba; Frank Pentangeli (Michael V. Gazzo), a newly-minted "cappo" in the Corleone family who is seeking help in eliminating the Rosato Brothers, associates of Roth's; and Pat Geary (G.D. Spradlin), a corrupt U.S. Senator who despises Michael and the Italian mafia, and is trying to shake him down for a cut of the family's Las Vegas profits. Soon after, an attempt on Michael's life leads him to believe a mole exists inside his own inner-circle, and as he conducts business with Roth, he fleshes out the mole and exacts revenge on anyone who gets in his way. Meanwhile, told in flashbacks, Vito's story covers much of his youth and early adult life: beginning with childhood in Sicily, where he witnesses the murder of his family at the hands of Don Francesco (Giuseppe Sillato); his arrival to Ellis Island, New York, as a young boy with smallpox; his dealings with a corrupt, unforgiving neighborhood boss, Don Fanucci (Gaston Moschin); and his rise to prominence in the city as a man known for getting things done.

For a full film review, please click here.


The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality  5.0 of 5

Suffice it to say, this is an elegant Blu-ray presentation. While it cannot match the superiority of the UHD release, the 1080p/SDR Blu-ray does offer a healthy and perfectly watchable Blu-ray image that bests the old 2008 presentation. At that time that disc was released, it seemed there was little, or no, room to improve upon things, but 14 years have been very kind to the film, restoration processes, and the like, resulting in a better picture all around.

Color balance here is terrific. Even without the help of the UHD's Dolby Vision grading, there is no mistaking this picture's wonderful tones, from the earthy hues seen in the opening Italian funeral sequence on to browns and beigest and general feel of mild warmth to the flashback sequences, to the elegant depth and punch of the "modern day," as the film is set, scenes where clothes, cars, natural greens, and the like offer very impressive depth accuracy, and stability. The picture is shot warm and dark, like its predecessor, with outdoor scenes looing slightly blown out and interiors very deep and shadowy. Both hold to graceful color spectrum dominance, with the black levels in particular looking very good: rich, deep, and powerful without absorbing detail. Conversely, white balance is terrific, again not as crisp and authentic as the UHD can offer but approaching best case scenario for the Blu-ray format.

The filmic image boasts a wonderful grain structure. It may not be always consistent, but it is frequently light with only modest spikes in density. It lends to the picture a very natural filmic appearance, again short of the UHD's prestige but offering a very tactile, organic feel. Clarity is wonderful. Clothing is dense and detailed, faces are naturally complex and revealing, and environments are well defined and tack-sharp, whether around the Corleone home, old-timey New York City locations, or in exotic Cuban locales. No matter the lighting or the overall scene circumstance the picture doesn't miss a beat; with no real encode flaws or source splotches and signs of wear-and-tear, The Godfather, Part II could not look much better on Blu-ray.


The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality  4.5 of 5

For this release, as well as the UHD, Paramount has included both the legacy Dolby TrueHD 5.1 lossless soundtrack (please click here for a full review) and a newly remastered two channel mono track. This new track, presented in the Dolby Digital 2.0 configuration, is similar to that included with the UHD release of The Godfather. While it is obviously absent the fullness and greater immersive definition that the 5.1 track offers, the 2.0 mono track offers a good, basic listen. Musical clarity and definition satisfy, and spacing is never an issue. Most of the action-type content pushes to the middle but some gunplay and other elements do find some extension along the front. Dialogue is clear and holds to a nicely imaged front-center position.


The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras  1.5 of 5

Only one supplement, a Francis Ford Coppola commentary track, is included on this disc proper (please click here for a full review). The larger boxed set contains more content. (please click here for a breakdown of what's included). As it ships with the boxed set, a digital copy code is included with purchase. An individual slipcover is included with this release.


The Godfather: Part II Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation  4.5 of 5

As with The Godfather, this is a faultless presentation. The picture quality is simply outstanding. No new multichannel audio mix is included, but purists will enjoy the restored mono presentation, here in the lossy Dolby Digital encode. This release, either individually or as part of the larger boxed set, earns my highest recommendation.