‘Godfather Part III’: The movie Stephen King called “opulent” but “boring”
Once upon a time, authors had the same clout that actors and filmmakers do today, with the likes of George Orwell and F. Scott Fitzgerald being visionaries of their time that prompted further artistic inspiration further down the line. Stephen King was, and still is, a similar mastermind, bringing an embarrassment of literary riches to life where they have since made their way to the big and small screen.
Remaining an inspiration to so many filmmakers, writers, and general creatives, King changed popular literature in the late 20th century thanks to his terrifying novels that extracted the fear and anxiety that resided just beneath the surface of domestic life. With books like It, Carrie and The Shining, he would influence the likes of Andrés Muschietti, Brian De Palma and Stanley Kubrick, forever changing the visual arts.
Yet, as a major creative influence, King is also not shy about criticising people and projects he believes to be inferior, leading to countless debates even regarding his own movies. His dislike of Kubrick’s The Shining is well known; for example, he once stated: “I think The Shining is a beautiful film, and it looks terrific, and as I’ve said before, it’s like a big, beautiful Cadillac with no engine inside it”.
His criticism extends past his own ideas and projects, too, once being very vocal about his dislike for Francis Ford Coppola’s second Godfather sequel.
Speaking about The Godfather Part III, which was largely criticised as being inferior to the previous instalments, King once stated in a fiery opinion piece for Entertainment Weekly: “Many years later, Coppola spent at least a thousand times what he spent on Dementia 13 to make the last of the Godfather movies. The film is opulent, incoherent, and boring. The Godfather Part III is a movie that doesn’t matter”.
Objectively the worst of The Godfather trilogy, King is certainly not alone in his assessment, with the third film in the series often being considered one of the most disappointing movies of all time. Starring Al Pacino, Diane Keaton and the director’s daughter and soon-to-be filmmaker Sofia Coppola, The Godfather Part III attempted to bring the franchise full circle, telling the story of the son of Don Vito Corleone, who was now also looking to hand over the family title.
Take a look at the trailer for the movie below and give the third instalment a chance; after all, even though King doesn’t like it, plenty of others believe it’s in need of a revaluation.
