The Godfather, Part II The Godfather Part II (1974) Starring: Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro

The Godfather, Part II The Godfather Part II (1974) Starring: Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro

The Godfather, Part II The Godfather Part II (1974) Starring: Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro

The Godfather Part II is a 1974 American gangster film directed by Francis Ford Coppola from a script co-written with Mario Puzo. The film is both a sequel and a prequel to The Godfather, chronicling the story of the Corleone family following the events of the first film while also depicting the rise to power of the young Vito Corleone before the events of the first film. The film stars Al Pacino, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Michael V. Gazzo and Lee Strasberg.

The Godfather Part II was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and won six, including Best Picture[2] and Best Supporting Actor for Robert De Niro, and has been selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry.

Principal cast

* Al Pacino as Michael Corleone
* Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen
* Robert De Niro as Vito Corleone
* Diane Keaton as Kay Adams-Corleone
* John Cazale as Fredo Corleone
* Talia Shire as Connie Corleone
* Lee Strasberg as Hyman Roth
* Michael V. Gazzo as Frankie Pentangeli
* Morgana King as Carmela Corleone
* G. D. Spradlin as Senator Pat Geary
* Richard Bright as Al Neri
* Marianna Hill as Deanna Corleone
* Gastone Moschin as Don Fanucci
* Troy Donahue as Merle Johnson
* Dominic Chianese as Johnny Ola
* Joe Spinell as Willi Cicci
* Bruno Kirby as Young Peter Clemenza
* Frank Sivero as Young Genco Abbandando
* James Caan as Sonny Corleone (cameo)
* Abe Vigoda as Salvatore Tessio (cameo)
* Gianni Russo as Carlo Rizzi (cameo)
* Giuseppe Sillato as Don Francesco Ciccio
* Roman Coppola as Young Santino Corleone
* John Megna as Young Hyman Roth
* Julian Voloshin as Sam Roth
* Larry Guardino as Vito's uncle
* Danny Aiello as Tony Rosato
* John Aprea as Young Sal Tessio
* Leopoldo Trieste as Signor Roberto (landlord)
* Salvatore Poe as Vincenzo Pentangeli


Between The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, Coppola directed The Conversation, which was released in 1974 and was also nominated for Best Picture. This resulted in Coppola being the second director in Hollywood history to have two films released in the same year nominated for Best Picture. (The first was Alfred Hitchcock in 1941 with Foreign Correspondent and Rebecca, which won. This achievement was matched by Herbert Ross in 1977 with The Goodbye Girl and The Turning Point and again with Steven Soderbergh in 2000, when the films Erin Brockovich and Traffic were both nominated for Best Picture.)

The film was the first sequel to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

American Film Institute recognition

* 1998 AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies #32
* 2003 AFI's 100 Years…100 Heroes and Villains:
o Michael Corleone — Villain #11
* 2005 AFI's 100 Years…100 Movie Quotes:
o "Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer," #58
o "I'm going to make him an offer he can't refuse." #2
* 2007 AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) #32
* 2008 AFI's 10 Top 10 #3 Gangster film