The Godfather

What’s it about?

The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty passes control of his secret empire on to his hesitant son.

The facts 

• Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
• Starring Marlon Brando (A Streetcar Named Desire), Al Pacino (Scarface), James Caan (Misery), Robert Duvall (Apocalypse Now), Diane Keaton (Annie Hall)
• English, Italian, and Latin language 
• Runtime: 166 minutes

Why did it get this rating? 

This film was classified by Te Mana Whakaatu, Classification Office. You can find out more about classification process and ratings here.

Violence

The Godfather contains violence that appear gory and detailed. Characters stab, shoot, bite, and strangle each other, causing injury and sometimes death, with some blood shown.

The film contains a newspaper montage sequence depicting articles and photos of real-life killings of gangsters and mobsters. Although they are quite brief and not very important to the plot, the idea that they are real events, rather than fake pictures for the film, might be disturbing for some.

Other violent moments in the film include:

• We see a man stabbed and strangled for 18 seconds, with a trickle of blood on his hand, before the scene cuts
• A man and woman are gunned down by machine guns in their bed, the scene is brief but bloody
• A car is blown up with an innocent woman inside. There is no gore, but pieces of clothing and a leg can be seen, and the scene is quite shocking.
• A man dies of a heart attack

Domestic violence

After a woman breaks some of the plates in her house while being mad at her husband, he whips her with a belt a couple times and eventually beats her up offscreen. We cannot see anything but her screaming and crying can be heard. This may be upsetting for viewers affected by domestic violence.

Content that may disturb

The film maintains a very dark and depressing tone, especially during the second half. Although most characters are criminals and no characters are morally good, some deaths may still be emotionally intense for some viewers.

Sex scenes and nudity

The film contains one scene where the wife is topless during her wedding night, showing her breasts and nipples for a few seconds. There is no other nudity in the film.

There is one brief sex scene, where thrusting can clearly be seen.

There are a few sexual references which some younger viewers may not understand.

Offensive language

Some offensive words, such as “f*ck you” and “f*ggot” are spoken in Italian, with English translation.

The N-word is used once in the film.

Animal abuse

A man wakes up to find a severed and bloody horse head in his bed. He screams in horror as the bed is completely soaked with blood. This scene may shock some viewers, especially given a real horse’s head was used .

Drug references

Some of the movie’s plot revolves around drug dealing, however, no actual drug use or acitivy is shown.

The issue of child drug use is briefly discussed.

When content stays with you: 

We all have our boundaries, and it’s completely okay if something you’ve watched is weighing on your mind. If certain content lingers with you, especially the depictions of domestic violence, consider having a chat with your loved ones to debrief about what you’ve just seen, or please reach out to any of the following helplines for support.  

• 1737
• Safe to talk
• Lifeline
• Youthline

Further information 

• Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau?
• Brain development – how it works, why it matters