What's new

PHE Press Release: Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone (Blu-ray) (1 Viewer)

Ronald Epstein

Founder
Owner
Moderator
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 3, 1997
Messages
66,783
Real Name
Ronald Epstein
2020-09-30_13-18-33.png

Francis Ford Coppola’s

Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone

to Debut on Blu-ray™ and Digital December 8, 2020



Newly Restored, Brand-New Edit of The Godfather: Part III Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary



HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Just in time for the 30th anniversary of The Godfather: Part III, director/screenwriter Francis Ford Coppola has re-edited the final film in his epic Godfather trilogy. This new version, entitled Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone, achieves Coppola and screenwriter Puzo’s original vision for the finale, which has been meticulously restored for the finest presentation of the Corleone saga’s last chapter. Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone will debut on Blu-ray and Digital December 8, 2020 from Paramount Home Entertainment.



“‘Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone’ is an acknowledgement of Mario’s and my preferred title and our original intentions for what became ‘The Godfather: Part III,’” said Coppola. “For this version of the finale, I created a new beginning and ending, and rearranged some scenes, shots, and music cues. With these changes and the restored footage and sound, to me, it is a more appropriate conclusion to ‘The Godfather’ and ‘The Godfather: Part II’ and I’m thankful to Jim Gianopulos and Paramount for allowing me to revisit it.”



Coppola and his production company American Zoetrope worked from a 4K scan of the original negative to undertake a painstaking, frame-by-frame restoration of both the new Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone and the original The Godfather: Part III. In order to create the best presentation possible, Zoetrope and Paramount’s restoration team began by searching for over 50 original takes to replace lower resolution opticals in the original negative. This process took more than six months and involved sifting through 300 cartons of negative. American Zoetrope worked diligently to repair scratches, stains, and other anomalies that could not be addressed previously due to technology constraints, while enhancements were made to the original 5.1 audio mix.



The Blu-ray presentation will include the newly restored and re-edited film, an exclusive introduction by Coppola, and access to a Digital copy of the film.



Coppola’s masterful film adaptation of Puzo’s novel chronicles the rise and fall of the Corleone family and the saga is rightfully viewed as one of the greatest in cinematic history. The Godfather: Part III was nominated for seven Academy Awards®, including Best Picture and Best Director*. The film follows Michael Corleone (Al Pacino), now in his 60s, as he seeks to free his family from crime and find a suitable successor to his empire.




# # #





About Paramount Home Entertainment


Paramount Home Entertainment (PHE) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of ViacomCBS (NASDAQ: VIAC; VIACA), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. The PHE division oversees PPC’s home entertainment and transactional digital distribution activities worldwide. The division is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment content on behalf of Paramount Pictures, Paramount Animation, Paramount Television Studios, Paramount Players, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and CBS and applicable licensing and servicing of certain DreamWorks Animation titles. PHE additionally manages global licensing of studio content and transactional distribution across worldwide digital distribution platforms including online, mobile and portable devices and emerging technologies.





Mario Puzo’s THE GODFATHER, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone

Street Date: December 8, 2020

U.S. Rating: R for violence and language



*Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Andy Garcia), Best Cinematography (Gordon Willis), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Best Film Editing, and Best Music, Original Song, 1991



“ACADEMY AWARD” and “OSCAR” are the registered trademarks and service marks of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.


Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases

 
Last edited:

Jake Lipson

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2002
Messages
24,643
Real Name
Jake Lipson
So this is actually debuting exclusively by itself? That's a surprise.

Of course a standalone release is absolutely warranted for everyone who has the previous releases. Because I don't actually have any of the previous releases of the trilogy, I was hoping this would also come bundled into a new box set so that I could make one purchase with everything in it.
 

Josh Steinberg

Premium
Reviewer
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2003
Messages
26,385
Real Name
Josh Steinberg
I think I read an interview with Coppola that said it would be shorter. I can’t recall if I’m making this up or if it was stated but I think the new one is coming in around 160 minutes instead of the roughly 180 minutes that the version on the BD runs.
 

Ronald Epstein

Founder
Owner
Moderator
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 3, 1997
Messages
66,783
Real Name
Ronald Epstein
I have only seen this film once upon its initial VHS release (I believe).

I will probably buy this out of curiosity.

However, I am shocked that the other bigger Godfather films weren't announced at the same time. They are coming to 4k.

Perhaps put the spotlight on this single effort due to the massive reworking of it and then announce the other films shortly thereafter?

It would be pretty cool to have all the films available by Christmas 2020.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PMF

Bob Cashill

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2001
Messages
3,799
Real Name
Robert Cashill
I think I read an interview with Coppola that said it would be shorter. I can’t recall if I’m making this up or if it was stated but I think the new one is coming in around 160 minutes instead of the roughly 180 minutes that the version on the BD runs.
CODA runs 157 minutes, or five minutes shorter than what's out there now.
 

Bryan Tuck

Screenwriter
Joined
Jan 16, 2002
Messages
1,984
Real Name
Bryan Tuck
CODA runs 157 minutes, or five minutes shorter than what's out there now.

Well, "what's out there now" depends on whether you mean the theatrical version (162 minutes) or the standard home video version (170 minutes), which used to be called the "Final Director's Cut." :rolleyes::P
 

Jeffrey D

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Oct 15, 2018
Messages
5,221
Real Name
Jeffrey D Hanawalt
I have only seen this film once upon its initial VHS release (I believe).

I will probably buy this out of curiosity.

However, I am shocked that the other bigger Godfather films weren't announced at the same time. They are coming to 4k.

Perhaps put the spotlight on this single effort due to the massive reworking of it and then announce the other films shortly thereafter?

It would be pretty cool to have all the films available by Christmas 2020.
Wow- I didn’t know UHD releases are in the works. The first film is in my top 2 favorite films of all time, so I’ll likely bite.
This is likely wishful thinking, but it would be nice if Paramount includes the Q&A with Coppola and the stars from a few years ago (I hope it was filmed) along with the new remasters. This is likely the last physical media release of these films, so let us have everything included, please.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: PMF

Ronald Epstein

Founder
Owner
Moderator
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 3, 1997
Messages
66,783
Real Name
Ronald Epstein
Thank you for supporting HTF when you preorder using the link below. If you are using an adblocker you will not see link. As an Amazon Associate HTF earns from qualifying purchases

 
  • Like
Reactions: PMF

Lord Dalek

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Messages
7,107
Real Name
Joel Henderson
For the sake of information...

The Godfather Part III originally ran approximately 162 minutes in theaters. This version, to the best of my knowledge has never and will never be released on home video. The reason being that Coppola added 8 minutes to the film for its 1991 home video release. This is the so called "Final Director's Cut" and it was even reconstructed in 4K for the Coppola Restoration set. The Coda version runs 156. Therefore its not only five minutes shorter than what originally came out, but its FIFTEEN minutes shorter than what we've had on video for the better part of three decades. This will be interesting to watch.
 
  • Like
Reactions: PMF

Sam Favate

Premium
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2004
Messages
12,996
Real Name
Sam Favate
Hmmm... I get why they'd release this individually, but I was hoping for 4k, and for a box set of all the films. Actually, what I would really like is a massive box set that has all three films in 4k, with all the different versions of them - the Saga cuts, the original video release of III and Coda.
 

Ronald Epstein

Founder
Owner
Moderator
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jul 3, 1997
Messages
66,783
Real Name
Ronald Epstein
Hmmm... I get why they'd release this individually, but I was hoping for 4k, and for a box set of all the films. Actually, what I would really like is a massive box set that has all three films in 4k, with all the different versions of them - the Saga cuts, the original video release of III and Coda.

My thoughts are that since this is a special project taken on by Coppola, the studio wants to put it in its own spotlight for release.

Paramount's release strategy has been pretty alarming lately given 4k releases announced after an initial BD release. Whether this will join the upcoming 4k Godfather releases in the same format is pretty much unknown.

I don't have faith we will see the saga cuts as much as I have wanted them as well.
 

Lord Dalek

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Messages
7,107
Real Name
Joel Henderson
Considering what the man said in the other thread...

Robert A. Harris said:
The masters are 4k. An update would add HDR, which could be slightly beneficial to some sequences, and equally as detrimental to others. The film itself, as shot, does not have 4k resolution.

...I think'll survive with the SHD Blu-rays.
 

Josh Steinberg

Premium
Reviewer
Senior HTF Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2003
Messages
26,385
Real Name
Josh Steinberg
The mastering work for both the Novel For Television and Saga/Complete Epic versions in HD has already been done. Novel aired on AMC around 2012. Epic aired on HBO around 2017.

The issue is simply that they’re not Coppola’s preferred versions but that he also retains some control over those specific versions and has opted not to put them on disc alongside the theatrical versions. But I’d guess that they will continue to appear on cable and streaming platforms from time to time, so keep your DVRs at the ready :)
 

JoshZ

Senior HTF Member
Joined
May 26, 2012
Messages
2,295
Location
Boston
Real Name
Joshua Zyber
The Coda version runs 156. Therefore its not only five minutes shorter than what originally came out, but its FIFTEEN minutes shorter than what we've had on video for the better part of three decades.

How many minutes of screen time did Sofia originally have? Seems like a good place to start cutting. :)
 

Colin Jacobson

Senior HTF Member
Joined
Apr 19, 2000
Messages
13,328
What is wrong with her performance?

She couldn't act?

From my review:

" I’m sure Sofia tried her best, but she was stuck in a bad situation and lacked the skills to overcome the circumstances. She’s shown herself to be a talented filmmaker but that doesn’t somehow forgive her abysmal performance here. Her inability to convincingly portray any form of life, depth or emotion leaves a large hole in the film. "
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Sign up for our newsletter

and receive essential news, curated deals, and much more







You will only receive emails from us. We will never sell or distribute your email address to third party companies at any time.

Latest Articles

Forum statistics

Threads
357,056
Messages
5,129,724
Members
144,280
Latest member
blitz
Recent bookmarks
0
Top