
Vito's partners, Clemenza and Tessio, agree to pay him, but Vito insists he can convince Fanucci to accept a smaller payment. His criminal conduct attracts the attention of Fanucci, who extorts him. Vito has two more sons, Fredo and Michael. He loses his job in a grocery store due to the interference of Don Fanucci his neighbor Clemenza invites Vito to take part in a burglary. In 1917, having settled in New York, he marries and has a son, whom he names Santino ("Sonny"), with his wife. Vito escapes on a ship to New York City, and is registered as " Vito Corleone" on Ellis Island. In 1901, the parents and brother of nine-year-old Vito Andolini are killed in Corleone, Sicily, after his father insults local Mafia chieftain Don Ciccio. The film intercuts between events some time after The Godfather and the early life of Vito Corleone.

Pacino won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor. Its six Oscar wins also included Best Director for Coppola, Best Supporting Actor for De Niro and Best Adapted Screenplay for Coppola and Puzo. The film was nominated for eleven Academy Awards at the 47th Academy Awards and became the first sequel to win for Best Picture. It grossed between $48–88 million worldwide on a $13 million budget. The Godfather Part II premiered in New York City on December 12, 1974, and was released in the United States on December 20, 1974, receiving divided reviews from critics but its reputation, however, improved rapidly and it soon became the subject of critical re-appraisal. Principal photography began in October 1973 and wrapped up in June 1974. Coppola, who was given more creative control over the film, had wanted to make both a sequel and a prequel to the film that would tell the story of the rise of Vito and the fall of Michael.

Partially based on Puzo's 1969 novel The Godfather, the film serves as both a sequel and a prequel to The Godfather, presenting parallel dramas: one picks up the 1958 story of Michael Corleone (Pacino), the new Don of the Corleone family, protecting the family business in the aftermath of an attempt on his life the prequel covers the journey of his father, Vito Corleone (De Niro), from his Sicilian childhood to the founding of his family enterprise in New York City.įollowing the success of the first film, Paramount Pictures began developing a follow-up to the film, with much of the same cast and crew returning.

It is the second installment in The Godfather trilogy. The Godfather Part II is a 1974 American epic crime film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola from the screenplay co-written with Mario Puzo, starring Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Talia Shire, Morgana King, John Cazale, Mariana Hill, and Lee Strasberg.
