The Gift of the 'Godfather' Trilogy

"But until that day - accept this trilogy as a gift." In 2007 I received a special DVD collection as a Christmas gift- The Godfather Trilogy. This masterfully designed trilogy would quickly become one of the greatest presents to ever grace the space below my Christmas tree. Beautifully restored while retaining its original glory, this trilogy stands to this day as the pinnacle of cinema. No words can truly express the depths of my gratitude for receiving this collection.

The Trilogy set itself features all three films, a special features disc, and some concept art. The case looks great on any movie fan's shelf with black material decorated with gold letters. The visual quality is superb and expertly restored- making this the definitive version of the three films. Any fan of classic movies, crime films, or Francis Coppola's work will be overjoyed to receive this set as a gift.

"The Godfather" chronicles the start of Michael's downward spiral into his family's criminal world. Watching the first of the trilogy on Christmas night was made even sweeter by the fact that I finally owned my own copy. There was no ordering it from Netflix or praying it showed up on television one weekend. With this collection, you don't have to deal with the trimmed runtime, the edited sequences, or the dubbed profanity?

"The Godfather: Part II" was a bittersweet viewing. New Year's weekend brought with it a power outage in the very middle of the film that led to some fairly bleak hours. But that's another story, for another time. Despite the circumstances, seeing the un-butchered, intact second Godfather film in all its greatness was worth it. No commercial interruptions during key scenes, no laughable dubbing during volatile arguments, and top notch film restoration.

I'd be lying if I claimed "The Godfather: Part III" was miraculously improved by the transition to the DVD collection. While it's by no means a masterpiece, the enhanced DVD version of the Godfather conclusion is still a thrilling experience. Vincent is as fascinating as ever, Mary is as terrible as ever, and Michael's story is as tragic as ever.

Purchased as three standalone titles, the trio of Godfather films would be much pricier. Any potential buyer is much better off taking advantage of the collection. As an added benefit, the interviews and deleted footage that can be found on the special features disc is exclusive to this set and otherwise very difficult to come across. Fans of the trilogy will be fascinated by the behind the scenes features and what ended up on the cutting room floor. What movie fan wouldn't jump at the chance to own two of the greatest films ever produced and the passable third entry?