Yes Nels is right he wanted more money. He saw other characters such as Diane Keaton get a great deal more whilst Duvall who was instrumental to the earlier epics felt insulted as much as anything else.
I read and heard on the entertainment news places that Duvall was upset because, though he got money, and had money...had his ego hurt or what appears happens to the money and power individuals...he wanted more money. they do not see the value of being in this great series because of some dollars. I understand that Duvall was ust being himself, quick temper, etc. Whatever. I would have worked with Pacino, and the great story for nothing if I had Duvalls money.
Abe Vigoda lived in my neighborhood towards the end of his life, and he couldn't have been a more down to Earth, gregarious guy. He was always so great to my kids and wife and I'm lucky enough to have known him for at least a little while. The last time I had seen him, he was going to stay with his daughter as there was a pretty big blizzard coming. He headed to Jersey and he passed away there. I was glad that he was at least with his loved ones, and not cooped up in the apartment in Riverdale during a blizzard. RIP.
Practically no one did at the time. Michael was intentionally appearing weak and incompetent so his enemies would view him as harmless, and it gave him the element of surprise when he did decide to take everyone out all in one day. That's why it's interesting, you can't really blame Tessio he was put in an impossible situation. As he saw it, it was either join Barzini in his takeover of the Corleone family, or be killed along with all the other Corleone leadership. He was just doing what he thought gave him the best chances of survival at the time
I always believed the killing of Tessio on the same day as the four Dons of rival families, gave the Corleone's the opportunity to say to police investigators that their family was not behind the killing of the Dons, as their own family had someone in leadership killed as well- -Sal Tessio. The location of his body in Barzini territory makes that story more creditable.
Michael has seen action in WWII, Pacific Theater. People seem to forget he’d likely seen more death fighting the Japanese than any of the thugs in NYC. Thats probably why he was colder than his enemies thought.
Yeah it always bothered me how Sonny and the other capos laughed at Michael when he suggested he would kill McCluskey and Sollozzo. Like wtf, this man is a decorated WWII veteran. He has seen the worst savagery and probably witnessed one massacre after another in the Pacific theater. That's 100x more action than any Mafia goon in NYC will ever see. Yet they think they're better killers than Michael LOL
I remember Richard Pryor had a joke that Tessio was begging in the car still trying to use nostalgia to get him out..."hey Willie.....remeber when I taught you to drive"
They actually did a version of this Richard Pryor gag on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, complete with Abe Vigoda and Robert Duvall! Hilarious, if you can find it!
The last scene with Tessio is a very intense moment and a climax in the movie. He talks to Tom and then accepts his fate and is escorted to the car to be killed. This is a very powerful moment.
One of the best deleted scenes is when Clemenza makes Paulie wait in the car, so he can go call Sonny in the Restaurant. He never calls Sonny, just sits down and has a big bowl of pasta, while Paulie is sitting in the car for over an hour.
@@stemc1971 The gunsmith and the kid are named Coppola too. The kid playing the flute is supposed to be Francis Coppola's father, Carmine (the real Carmine Coppola was a musician; he's the guy playing piano in the montage scene after Michael kills Sollozzo and McClusky). Cool way for the director to make a cameo of sorts.
@@averymurray4722 stress and disappointment. He didn't want to do it and like he said in the book, Tom tried to talk Michael out of it so I guess they wanted to show his reluctance in the movie.
Yes, Tom Hagen loosened his tie for the same reason Michael loosened his after telling Tom, "you're out Tom", because after a stressful encounter you want to relieve any restrictions to breathing easier!
In a great movie, not everything needs to be shown. A great director let's the audience use their imagination for what is happening or what is going to happen. We all know that when Tessio gets surrounded, his life is going to be over.
David Chase was a master of that in the Sopranos. He despised giving the viewers what they wanted. Hence, we see many subplots left open-ended and of course the big one at the very end.
Abe Vigoda died in Woodland Park, NJ in 2016. He was at his daughters home at that time, only a few blocks away from where my brother lives. RIP Tessio
Actually it went down like this. He was tied to a chair and made to watch The View. He was able to endure it for almost three hours, but that was all he could take. He begged please shoot me. I can't take another episode. Agreeing that this was more than anyone should have to endure his executioner put him out of his misery.
Actually clemensa was smather,his loyalty and love for the corleones paid off.there is a lesson here,you got to be loyal to somebody or something.you got to stick to somebody, otherwise you are lost.
@@CarlosReyes-sk1zs I don't think it was ever truly about being smarter when it came to Tessio and Clemenza. It was about showing their true colors. Tessio showed that when things got too tough for him he would turn on the family. Clemenza showed that he would stick by the family no matter what. Clemenza saw Michael as a nephew and that's most likely why he could never betray him or the family. Tessio however didn't have that same attachment to Michael and it cost him his life.
I met Abe Vigoda in NYC in 2002. What an absolute sweetheart of a man. He talked to my students and I about his life in acting. He also loved a good joke and would deadpan with the best of them. He was also very active on Facebook before he passed. I always thought he was Italian, but he was actually Jewish. He had that Capo look to him. Just proves that Italians can play a Jew and a Jew can play an Italian.
Tessio after setting up mike Coleone to be killed almost certainly would have been iced by Barzini. He could not totally trust someone who owed everything to the Coleone family.
Exactly. If Tessio could turn on a family that was good to him for 35 years then he could turn on anyone. Barzini definitely would have had Tessio taken out just to be on the safe side.
The underestimating of Michael, I’ve always said was a huge mistake that everyone who did so regretted deeply later. They also thought, here’s this college kid who doesn’t know anything about the “business”, when in reality he knew more about it than he let on, including how to lead, and kill. You see they look at his education and even his service in the US Marine Corps as nothing of value, when in reality it prepared him for the job of Don far better than many who had dedicated their lives to the “business”. Michael had gone to Dartmouth and later enlisted the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, serving as an enlisted man and fighting in the Pacific and later in Europe. He earned a battle field commission, a Silver Star and the Navy Cross, both high awards for bravery in combat. He learns to lead men in real combat and also learns organizational skills. He’s no dummy or fancy pants lay about. When he returns he is already hooked on the “action dope” adrenaline and finds himself wanting to do something for his family. Obviously because Don Vito is attacked and almost killed, but also because he needs the action. He acts very subdued and nonchalant about it, until he gets beaten up by the corrupt police Captain, who he later on kills along with that piece of garbage who made the hit on his father. Unlike the battlefield, where he knows who the enemy is, here he has to be smarter and learn more about his friends and family and of course his enemies. He’s a quick study because you have to be like that in times of war. There’s no time to let your guard down because when you do that’s it, it may be the last time. He realizes that every time someone try’s to make a move against him later on and this toughens him up and he becomes more brutal and calculating with time. And this brings me to what I believe may have happened to Tessio. I believe that Michael, although angered by his betrayal, still likes Tessio because of his skills, even as a traitor he sees in him what he had been, and as a warrior he appreciates him for that. He had learned a few things from him, and like his enemies on the battlefield, he had a certain respect for those he would fight against. I think that Michael would’ve given Tessio the more “honorable” out by maybe letting him kill himself, as the Japanese officers who lost battles would do. Or at the very least have him shot while standing and facing his killer. That would have been a more dignified way to go out. Michael would have cared only because he now sees that not only is he loosing men, he’s loosing loyalty and respect from his troops. This strengthens his resolve and ends up making him even more vicious in the end. Just my opinion.
@@causeeffect7624 that’s true too. I had forgotten about her. That small amount of time with her and then to be robbed of her was definitely another defining moment in his life, making him even tougher on those who would do him wrong.
Nice analysis. Knowing what we do about the Pacific and European theatres, I always found it funny how Sonny underestimated his brother’s ability to be ruthless. In reality he was probably harder than anyone else in the Mob at that time.
The time in Sicily was instructive for Michael as he learned the nature of these old time gangsters and how they think. He learned not to trust anyone but the closest of family members, his father. Everyone else was up for grabs. He learned this the hard way as one of his bodyguards betrays him and his first wife is killed with a car bomb meant for him. From then on, Michael knows how to think and act like a gangster but with the experience of a soldier and the smarts of a college educated man. He is a formidable enemy but the old time Mafiosos can't see it. Their mistake and it costs them everything.
Wobbles slightly is still a sign of Tessio's tremendous inner fortitude. He knows he is a dead man, yet still he accepts it rather gracefully. In his mind, he's played his hand and lost the game. I can just hear him- "It was business, no hard feelings"
Great review like always but you missed one little thing... Tessio was so trusted and loved in the Corleone family that he was the one to drive Michael away to the ship after he killed the Turk and police captain... goes to show he had Michael’s life in his hands... Also I think Michael had him shot in the face because he was going to have Michael assassinated and Michael was not supposed to see it coming...Michael wanted him to see it coming
Tessio driving Micheal to the boat also explains how Micheal was found in Italy, too.Tessio did the calculations: the old man Vito will croak, Fredo's useless fncking dumb Fredo, Sonny's gone, Tessio gets the family and all the kickup wealth that accrues to the head. Sayonara, Mikey. It's just business.
@@liamwatson6789 That’s exactly what I was thinking...Sonny really was killing it as a war time Don... like the book said Sonny wanted to take out all of the families in one stroke...It took Don Vito and Michael To really put it together
An execution shot to the back of the head might have seemed like a mercy to an insightful detective and draw suspicion back on the Corleone family. A shot to the front of the head was the proud act of an opponent who wanted Tessio to know he'd been beaten. Without knowing of Tessio's betrayal, any outside observer would have assumed it was a Barzini capo who did the deed, eliminating a Corleone capo.
So, you see the front doors of the car close. Then the frame cuts to Hagen. You hear four bangs, two of which are the car doors closing, and two are the muffled gunshots. At least that's how I interpret it
In Part 2, I always love the scene when Frankie says..."There's Willie Cici!"......I have no reason for liking it, I just do. Frankie 5 Angels was such a great character.
It was exactly the kind of stuff people who know each other and who rag on each other a lot and work with each a lot would say; it feels like that's what made part 2 so powerful; everything was between the lines.
I have always felt that since Michael knew that Tessio was smart and that his choice to betray Michael was "just business", Michael would in turn order that Tessio's death would be quick, clean and painless--assuming that Tessio was smart enough recognize that he had lost and that he should therefore not resist.
In my view, Tom loosening his collar was just a way to show how he was not happy with Tessio being killed. I never thought it pointed to the method of execution. If Tom had no problems at all, he would have just walked inside without pausing to loosen his collar.
Tom Hagen was more or less the 'clean pair of hands' when Vito was alive. He knew things happened, but he was never involved in the organisation of these events. Later in the movie, he crosses over to the dark side to become more of a Sicilian-like brother to Michael than just being the brother who is the family lawyer.
Tom is smiling when Tessio is surrounded. He does not look like he disapproves. I think he goes inside and takes one last look at Tessio being driven away - probably reflecting.
@@AudieHolland I just looked at the scene again. It is hard to say. I can't interpret that smile. If it is fake - it would still have a meaning. Since you think it is fake I presume will state what that meaning is. Yes Tom is not happy with Tessio being killed - I agree with you there - but that does not mean he thinks Mike should have spared him.
I always liked Abe Vigoda. He did an interview for TV Guide while working on Barney Miller. He talked about how, after The Godfather, highway patrolmen would pull him over, sure they'd seen his mug on a wanted poster. After he stared playing Det. Fish, he'd still get pulled over but the patrolmen always wanted to congratulate him on such a good performance as a cop. Somewhere on UA-cam is a video of his 90-somethingth birthday party. Hal Linden and a supporting actor from Vigoda's spin-off "Fish" came by to celebrate with him. Vigoda had a grin from ear to ear and a sparkle in his eyes. I didn't see The Godfather until after Barney Miller was on the air. I guess that made me warm to Tessio right away. I always wanted him to have more lines. The few he did have were delivered so well. I've always been impressed by the quiet acceptance of his fate. He rolled the dice and got snake eyes.
Critical thinking on Michael's part strategic thinking on Barzini's part. Barcini only thought one way Michael's way was to think of what his enemies are thinking. He learned that from his daddy. Michael was always ahead of them. It's a dangerous business you have to know and practice critical thinking
Frankie 5 Angels is the Uncle we wish we had. Willie Cici is a Man's man. Who drinks water out of a garden hose at a wedding? Frankie 5 Angels. Who holds the hose for him? Willie Cici. Times were better then.
I'd have preferred a scene in which Tessio is brought into a room and sat down in a chair with a table in front of him, upon which there is a cigarette, a lighter, a shot glass of his favorite whiskey and a pistol with one bullet. He knows what he needs to do.
@@wjatube There difference is he volunteered because he was in a position where he couldn’t be killed so he volunteered to kill himself in exchange for taking care of his family. If he was a free man that option would not have been on the table.
Too romantic a narrative. I always saw Willie Chicci pushing the button on Tessio: a quick execution for his past loyalty with Tessio’s remains left, like Paulie Gatto for easy discovery as a message for the other Families-as well as the ultimate punishment for treason: the loss of Tessio’s reputation as a smart operator. Just a job for Cicci, a fitting end for double-crosser.
Exactly. Why would they go out of their way to try to make things super special? Tessio was taken out swiftly via gun. Two shots to the head. Simple. No need for anything else.
The Corleone’s really misjudged Clemenza and that really doesn’t sit well with me because Clemenza was shown as being a truly supportive person within the family and the connections he had with him caring for Michael and his family
@@seansmith7462 Clemenza and Fredo are two different entities completely, Clemenza was a street guy through and through. He took initiative when he needed, teaching Michael how to shoot what to expect and what to do when leaving the scene, Fredo literally didn’t have the instincts in him
@@joeyc8622 another reason why it didn’t sit well with me, Tessio was more calculated and wanted more Clemenza was actually the counter of holding his keep and his spot and going through what he needed to
Out of all the deaths in this trilogy, poor Tessio’s was the saddest. He was such a loyal man and Michael treated him with little dignity towards the end. The man was begging Michael to allow him to defend himself as Barzini was attacking him hard. Michael smuggly said “NO!” A man like that is someone you keep close and helps you run your game. He should have had Tessio involved with the Baptism hits from the begining. Tessio would then find relief thinking, “Maybe this kid isn’t such a newbie after all.” Then that would assure him that retaliation was coming and to sit back and enjoy the show rather than have to give in to Barzini. Then Michael goes off to Vegas and Tessio becomes the big boss with Clemenza in NYC. The man had little to no choice or hope of surviving with Michael. Tessio was the only one in the end who was worthy of being sparred from death. Fredo was more of a liability than he was.
@@poconoboss Tessio was smarter than Clemenza. Tessio could make a deal with an enemy. Clemenza never would. Remember, Clemenza was ready to murder a cop over a stolen rug. It's also why Vito kept Clemenza close to him but let Tessio pretty much run independently in Brooklyn. Michael knew that one of his capos was going to turn against him and he bet correctly on Tessio. Clemenza would have gone down fighting to the last man in his regime for the Corleones. But not Tessio, he would have made a deal to keep his men from dying "for nothing". It's also why Michael secretly rebuilt Sonny's regime under Rocco. Tessio would have out-generaled Clemenenza in a street war, especially with Barzini's help. So Michael had an entire regime in reserve, ready to deploy with a phone call to Rocco. Was really brilliant the way Michael and Vito put the pieces in place on the board to spring their final trap.
Even Don Vito asked them to trust Michael and wait as how they always trusted him. Tessio sealed his own fate for not trusting and for being inpatient. Perhaps he was to smart for his own good.
By not knowing how Tessio was murdered and leaving it to a person's imagination is a good way but also knowing how he was murdered what's not that bad either so either way it's still a good movie
Tessio doesn't exactly give himself up. His last act before getting into the car is reaching for the gun under his jacket. Willy Cicci sees this, intercepts Tessio, and takes the gun from Tessio. The question is, was Tessio going to hand the gun over or try to shoot his way out of his predicament?
When he reaches for it, it wasn't super fast like he was going to do something. I never interpreted that as a way to shoot his way out of the situation.
With the real costra nostra (pre rico) everything was a chess game. They calmly took their fate when they made a wrong move. Look at lefty Ruggerio. You get sent fa.
There was no point in shooting his way out since he knew full well that there were too many Corleone henchmen around him and he would have been cut down immediately and even if he did miraculously manage to do so and escape Michael would have found him soon enough and killed him anyway perhaps with an even more tortuous death. At least by not resisting here his death would have been almost immediate and painless...a gunshot to the head.
Bro , that death description is hilarious when imagined .The gun must have been an Obrez Mosin-Nagant and Tessio's corpse acted like it was governed by G-Mod Ragdoll physics .
Along with "I'm gonna make him an offer that he can't refuse", another great line to come out of this movie is: "Can't do it, Sally". This was used in a highly under-rated gem called "Free Enterprise" in 1998.
Yes, that was deep; as I think on it now, they couldn't let the foster brother be a war time consig was because he didn't have an established blood line to follow up on the history of secrets within the families that are kept even if your children decide not to be a part of the main sequence, I hope I didn't lose anyone lol!
I liked The Godfather Returns. It was well written and plot driven as well. Tessio went down as he was supposed to. Only his past loyalty to the Family gave him such a quick death. Abe Vigoda was a legend.
Wow, what an amazing presentation. Not only was your analysis specific and detailed, I really enjoyed your reading of the text. Your dramatic inclination and excellent phrasing made it quite enjoyable to listen to. Thanks for sharing. Keep up the excellent work. Be well.
Loved the way Barzini got his in the end. 2 slugs in the back as he ran away. Once Al Neri (dressed like a cop) whacked the bodyguard and driver he had nothing to worry about as Barzini had just exited the courthouse and wouldn't have been armed.
The film was certainly shot that way several scenes showing how Clemenza cared for Michael. Teaching him how to shoot someone and walk out the door and that they were proud of him for being a was hero, how to cook for 40 people, telling him to tell Kate he loves her, being honest with the Don on what he things will happen with Michael in charge.
I always thought the actor who played Clemenza was too young for the role. He looks 20+ years younger than Don Corleone, yet they were contemporaries. Or, the makeup people could have aged him some.
I believe Tessio was executed quickly by being shot in the back of the head once or twice. Considering what Carlo did was worse and he was strangled which is a longer process then two gunshots.
I was a kid from the 90s, and saw the Godfather saga till I was already a full adult... when I saw him, I couldn't help to scream "GRANDPA FROM 'LOOK WHO'S TALKING'!!!!"
I think it was a case of Michael "offering" the hit to Rocco. Like Frank Pentangelli, he was being given the chance for an "honorable" death. Rocco failed in his job as chief of security when the attempt on Michael's life took place in Tahoe.
@@thomasthomas2418 Rocco was told to keep the would be assassins alive by Michael. When they end up dead in the ditch Michael would wonder if Rocco had them killed to keep a secret. When Rocco kills Roth it is similar to Jack Ruby’s killing of Oswald.
Tessio was not killed on camera. When he was led away, you see him get into the car with 4 soldiers. When the camera pans back to Tom Hayden, you hear three car doors slam that some have mistaken for gun shots. As the story goes, he was taken back to his club and killed there. I could swear that I read somewhere that it was in Abe Vijodas contract that he wasn't to be killed on camera. But I could be wrong.
I didn't see the godfather for the first time until 2013-14 in my late 40's, so it was pretty hard to stomach watching the funny detective from Barney Miller getting wacked out in the best movie ever made lol!
I agree with some of the other posters here who always thought Tessio just took a couple shots to the brain. Nothing in the face and his body would be found before decomposition set in so there could be an open casket. Paulie was shot through the face as a sign of contempt. Paulie might have been mean enough to make a garrote attack difficult.
It is one of the great movie “what if”s - if Richard S. Castellano had agreed contract terms, Older Clemenza *would* have appeared in Godfather II, and would have been one of the people that betrayed Michael. Unfortunately they had to rewrite the story with a new character, Pentangeli, which lessened the betrayal. Seeing young Clemenza working with young Vito, and then stabbing Michael in the back in the later sections would have been a much more powerful story.
We should be grateful that the character Pentangeli was created and that the actor playing him was hired. In hindsight, noone else could have performed in the role as Frank Pentangeli.
If you look at the car Tessio is driven away in, you’ll see people getting in the left front, right front, and left rear doors. No one gets in the right rear door. Yet, you hear what sounds like four car doors being closed. You’re hearing three car doors, and one suppressed pistol shot.
I seem to recall that when Tessio was moved into the car, there was a closed-caption text "(gunshot)" that meant he was shot as soon as he was seated in the car. Probably a muffled shot with the gun barrel compressed directly against his heart. His grave was probably already dug somewhere out in the middle of the woods; they drove directly there and buried his body.
that was some millennial noob who never saw the film screwing up the closed captions. (s)he confused the sound of the car doors closing with gunshots. also, it's too dangerous to fire a gun in such a confined space because the chance of collateral damage is so high. and that is firing it once let alone four times. when you watch the scene none of the men who put Tessio in the car pull a weapon and all four of the "gunshots" sound the same. the sounds are the car doors being shut
Um wow I never heard of this novel…. I read the two ‘fill-in’ novels by Mark Winegarden and assumed they were the only other source material apart from Mario Puzo’s books and the films.
I mean, they gave Carlo a clean death for having Sonny killed, I doubt the Corleones would be brutal with almost a family member when it was strictly business.
@@josedanielcallejassandoval2964 I agree, I assume Tessio's death was quick and mostly painless - the six guys were simply with him so that he doesn't try to escape and mostly in case someone loyal from Tessio's crew tried to help him.
The point made at 5:11 was what let me know immediately. Before I even watched this video, I said "But Vito warned Michael that his traitor would come to him to try to make a deal." Well analyzed and good catch on the foreshadowing.
Watching TGF, you'll almost always see a hit coming as a visual foreshadow. Luca Brasi walked into the barroom where he was to die. The camera pans to look through the glass in the door and upon it was etched some swimming fishes.
The FBI saved him and he went into a witness protection program with a new identity as Sergeant Fish. Tessio didn’t sleep with the fishes after all...🤣🤣
When Tessio is made to sit in the back seat of the car, the camera focuses on Tom Hayden, but if you listen closely you hear two things, the car doors close , silence and then a bunch of slamms that sound like muffled gunshots from inside the car.
Those aren’t muffled gun shots. That’s the sounds are the rest of the car doors closing. They wouldn’t shoot him there and certainly not in their own car.
The hit and respect shown towards Tessio reminds me of the respect that Sammy the bull had toward Johnny keys Simone. Simone knew it was coming and Sammy gave him a quick painless death and I suspect Michael would have granted Tessio the same thing.
Call the things by their name he was a traitor, after being all his life with the Corleone he sold them for power and money. He was already well off and he wanted more so he sold off the companions of his Whole life. These acto are common in the political world where certain types of people flourish.
He didn't actually do it for power and money, according to me. He just thought Michael was weak and that everyone in the Corleone family would be killed by their rivals and that's why he betrayed him to try to save himself. Maybe a part of him do it for power and money but it wasn't his primary concern. Just my opinion.
Less is More... By this time in the film there has been enough killings, and seeing how Tessio is "taken care of" isn't adding anything to the story... And leaving his execution out allows us - and future followers - to speculate/narrate how "the deed was done" if "done" at all!!!
Thats such a good point u made about there were enough killings by this point, it would have been violence overload to show his death, might have diminished the greatness of this film
As he's sitting in the back of the car surrounded by goons heading towards his fate. Sal thinks back to when he was 15 years old, and his sweet uncle geno offering him a job as junior salesman in his shoe store. "Just think salvador, with hard work soon you'll be running the place and when I'm gone it'll all be yours" Young salvador struggled mightily to suppress his laughter, he failed, he had way bigger plans for his life than working in a piddly shit shoe store. All these years later he remembered the hurt look on his uncle geno's face like it was yesterday. He wondered where he'd be if he accepted his uncle's offer, certainly not a few minutes from a 22. caliber behind the ear. Maybe he'll get to see uncle geno in heaven and make proper amends, this thought caused him to burst out laughing. "Me in heaven!"
As we've seen it Michael gave Tessio a pass. He got a new identity and became a police detective ironically named Fish. Since Al Neri was a former cop who apparently still had contacts in the force got Tessio a second chance.
He was one of Vito Corleone's original caporegimes. It was a failed power play; there was no personal animosity involved. Presumably, it would have been quick, and painless.
I like to think Tessio was given a mercifully quick (and perhaps quasi dignified) execution given his previous history as a Capo in the Corleone family. He knew when the gig was up and he accepted his pending fate like a man with no whining and no begging.
I agree. But I don't think sentimentality has anything to do with it. Like Kings and nobles centuries ago, they generally would be as moderate as possible, knowing that someday, they might be in the same position. Napolean was sent into exile for killing 100s of thousands. "Different spanks for different ranks" -Military adage
You could interpret it as a sign of respect that the old guards death wasn’t shown in the movie as well, all we really knew or seen of Tessio in the movie was the jolly old man seen at Connie’s wedding and the soft spoken mobster that describes the “box and the chain thing”, we don’t really know of his ruthless and cunning nature as described in the books, not to mention the honourable reaction to his treachery becoming uncovered. So actually witnessing him be killed despite his betrayal would’ve been pretty tough because he wasn’t the type of traitor to be killed with indifference.
Nah he wouldn't have turned if Sonny was still alive. Barzini wouldn't have been able to take his territory if Sonny was still alive thus no reason for Tessio to turn. He only turned because he didn't think he had a choice.
Hello Cineranter I knew or discovered that Tessio wasn't happy with the godfather and I saw it instantly when the godfather asked him to be friends to Mike and he gave him a salutary with the left hand and that's an indication of someone who doesn't like you unless you are a left handed person.
2nd comment, after watching the video. A sad end for Sal Tessio. I really enjoyed, his character, in "The Godfather." It still is kind of surprising, that he sided with Barzini. It was Tessio's doubt and fear of the future, that, led, to his undoing. But he's still a cool character. If he had a different opinion of Micheal, he possibly, could have split off and formed his own family. Great video!!
Definitely would rather know. All the intricacies & small details are what make The Godfather trilogy as great as it is. I can say without hesitation that sometimes they are harder to decipher than what would be ideal. So I appreciate the explanation & love your videos. Respect.✊🏼
Fascinating. As Tom Hagan watches them take Tessio away, I always supposed that Tom unbuttoned his top shirt button to loosen his tie, in preparation for when he would later give the signal to Clemenza to go ahead and garrote Carlo.
@@alonenjersey I don't regret now, going by the YT comments on those fan fiction books, not buying Winegardner's contributions. He won a competition then gets carried away like some idiot writing Star Wars expanded universe pulp. A laughey jokey Hagen?? Gimme a break.
@@Kelly14UK Being a HUGE fan of the Godfather Saga, I decided to read Winegardner's book. The only good thing I got from reading it was finding out that Pete Celmenza did die of a heart attack as mentioned in GodFather Part II.
*Why Robert Duvall was not in The Godfather: Part III:*
ua-cam.com/video/ymWhO6TiKFs/v-deo.html
He wanted more money.
@@neellss james Cahn got the same $ from part II as he did from Part I. from the flashback!
Yes Nels is right he wanted more money. He saw other characters such as Diane Keaton get a great deal more whilst Duvall who was instrumental to the earlier epics felt insulted as much as anything else.
Because Tom became chief counsel for Jeffrey Epstein
I read and heard on the entertainment news places that Duvall was upset because, though he got money, and had money...had his ego hurt or what appears happens to the money and power individuals...he wanted more money. they do not see the value of being in this great series because of some dollars. I understand that Duvall was ust being himself, quick temper, etc. Whatever. I would have worked with Pacino, and the great story for nothing if I had Duvalls money.
Abe Vigoda lived in my neighborhood towards the end of his life, and he couldn't have been a more down to Earth, gregarious guy. He was always so great to my kids and wife and I'm lucky enough to have known him for at least a little while. The last time I had seen him, he was going to stay with his daughter as there was a pretty big blizzard coming. He headed to Jersey and he passed away there. I was glad that he was at least with his loved ones, and not cooped up in the apartment in Riverdale during a blizzard. RIP.
Wonderful story and memories for you to have.
I had no idea he lived in the Bronx. He always radiated a salt of the earth aura.
My friend was very good friends with Abe Vigoda's daughter Carol. She lived in NJ and took good care of her dad
@@hamerplayer1229stop the 🧢.
Jk I don't think your lying
Dr. Ruth Westheimer and Willie Mays also have apartments in Riverdale.
Tessio may have "liked" Michael, but he obviously didn't respect him.
You don’t love me well that breaks my heart but you don’t gotta love me but you will respect me Tony Soprano
@@jfontanez1838 love that line
It was business.
It wasn't personal .It is just the workplace where your closest colleagues stab you in the back
Practically no one did at the time. Michael was intentionally appearing weak and incompetent so his enemies would view him as harmless, and it gave him the element of surprise when he did decide to take everyone out all in one day.
That's why it's interesting, you can't really blame Tessio he was put in an impossible situation. As he saw it, it was either join Barzini in his takeover of the Corleone family, or be killed along with all the other Corleone leadership. He was just doing what he thought gave him the best chances of survival at the time
Tessio didn’t die. He switched sides to become a cop in the 12th precinct under Barney Miller. As Michael said what Tessio did was the smart move.
You made me laugh. Thank you
@@petermartin7811 you’re welcome!
Then he retired and worked the frys at Goodburger.
🤣🤣you showed some age , 🤣🤣🤣
@@jimmyelam9809 haha yes!
I always believed the killing of Tessio on the same day as the four Dons of rival families, gave the Corleone's the opportunity to say to police investigators that their family was not behind the killing of the Dons, as their own family had someone in leadership killed as well- -Sal Tessio.
The location of his body in Barzini territory makes that story more creditable.
Exactly...
That's how it works in as much as it coincides.
Good point sir!
Good call!
Yep. Both Uncle Sal and Carlo the cuckhold brother in law.
Agreed.
I will tell Michael, it was only business and you always liked him.😂
Michael has seen action in WWII, Pacific Theater. People seem to forget he’d likely seen more death fighting the Japanese than any of the thugs in NYC. Thats probably why he was colder than his enemies thought.
Good point.
Yeah that is where the war is the most ugly, where men truely fight like savages to survive
Yeah it always bothered me how Sonny and the other capos laughed at Michael when he suggested he would kill McCluskey and Sollozzo.
Like wtf, this man is a decorated WWII veteran. He has seen the worst savagery and probably witnessed one massacre after another in the Pacific theater. That's 100x more action than any Mafia goon in NYC will ever see. Yet they think they're better killers than Michael LOL
No doubt of that. If you fought in the Pacific you were no stranger to death and ruthlessness.
Michael was also a college grad and new how to play the long game. Plus he was a natural leader from the war.
I remember Richard Pryor had a joke that Tessio was begging in the car still trying to use nostalgia to get him out..."hey Willie.....remeber when I taught you to drive"
Pryor is a funny guy.
🤣🤣🤣
And then Pryor shows the hit men shaking their heads...... nope!
They actually did a version of this Richard Pryor gag on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, complete with Abe Vigoda and Robert Duvall! Hilarious, if you can find it!
ua-cam.com/video/pCLzW56T3ts/v-deo.html Here it is.
The last scene with Tessio is a very intense moment and a climax in the movie. He talks to Tom and then accepts his fate and is escorted to the car to be killed. This is a very powerful moment.
I see
Except in this case it was personal, not business.
No need to go beyond this as far as Tessio's fate.
Tension now sleeps with the Teslas
Dude, spoilers
One of the best deleted scenes is when Clemenza makes Paulie wait in the car, so he can go call Sonny in the Restaurant. He never calls Sonny, just sits down and has a big bowl of pasta, while Paulie is sitting in the car for over an hour.
Paulie setup the old man, that stroonz. I dont wanna see him again!
Thats a great scene. My favourite deleted scene is when young Vito, Clamenza and Tessio go to the gunsmith and the little kid starts playing the flute
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 ....Oh paulie you wont see him again
@@stemc1971 The gunsmith and the kid are named Coppola too. The kid playing the flute is supposed to be Francis Coppola's father, Carmine (the real Carmine Coppola was a musician; he's the guy playing piano in the montage scene after Michael kills Sollozzo and McClusky). Cool way for the director to make a cameo of sorts.
@@stemc1971 Coppola ran with that juxtaposition a couple times where he plays civilization and culture against cruelty. clever.
I always assumed they just shot tessio quick and clean
Right behind one of his big ears!
"...for old times sake."
Can’t do it, Sally
@@henryc1000 lol
@@PaulGreen11 right but they couldn't do it
Tom loosened his tie because he was stressed about having to get rid of Tessio.
One can see the look of stress on Tom's face when Tessio was led away.
@@averymurray4722 stress and disappointment. He didn't want to do it and like he said in the book, Tom tried to talk Michael out of it so I guess they wanted to show his reluctance in the movie.
Also because he knew the "old days" were over and nothing would ever be the same again.
Yes, Tom Hagen loosened his tie for the same reason Michael loosened his after telling Tom, "you're out Tom", because after a stressful encounter you want to relieve any restrictions to breathing easier!
I always just took it as Tom can dump the charade that he was actually going to a meeting and can get out of his suit.
In a great movie, not everything needs to be shown. A great director let's the audience use their imagination for what is happening or what is going to happen. We all know that when Tessio gets surrounded, his life is going to be over.
David Chase was a master of that in the Sopranos. He despised giving the viewers what they wanted. Hence, we see many subplots left open-ended and of course the big one at the very end.
@@wjatube. The Soprano's was the biggest bunch of caccati. Besides. They were not Sicilians.
Aaron Sarfati. Ciu e'i bongiornu. Cumu si? Iddi icciu Tessio. Piaciri, piaciri. Diu Va Benedicu.
and a great commenter knows that "lets" does not need an apostrophe
They sure as hell were not taking him to the Champaign Room for a lap dance.
This movie needs year’s of observation it really is timeless
Abe Vigoda died in Woodland Park, NJ in 2016. He was at his daughters home at that time, only a few blocks away from where my brother lives. RIP Tessio
RIP
Tessio was killed quickly and clean with a shot behind the ear! FOR OLD TIMES SAKE!
It's just business .
Tessio was drowned and slept with the fish only to be reincarnated as Detective Phil Fish on Barney Miller.
Actually it went down like this. He was tied to a chair and made to watch The View. He was able to endure it for almost three hours, but that was all he could take. He begged please shoot me. I can't take another episode. Agreeing that this was more than anyone should have to endure his executioner put him out of his misery.
I call The View, "The Hen House".
Cruel, cruel, cruel!!
Lol
You need to be more realistic. No one could endure three hours. No one.
Must have been the Meighan McCain good-bye episode.
Tom, can you get me off the hook? For old times sake? Probably Abe Vigoda's most famous line he'll be remembered for.
It's just business .
Tessio never had the makings of getting off the hook for old time's sake.
He was AKA "Fish."
It was a smart move. Tessio was always smarter!
Obviously he wasn't smarter because he's dead.
Actually clemensa was smather,his loyalty and love for the corleones paid off.there is a lesson here,you got to be loyal to somebody or something.you got to stick to somebody, otherwise you are lost.
@@CarlosReyes-sk1zs I don't think it was ever truly about being smarter when it came to Tessio and Clemenza. It was about showing their true colors. Tessio showed that when things got too tough for him he would turn on the family. Clemenza showed that he would stick by the family no matter what. Clemenza saw Michael as a nephew and that's most likely why he could never betray him or the family. Tessio however didn't have that same attachment to Michael and it cost him his life.
@@PokemonTrainerVince thats true,thats why i always liked clemensa.
@@CarlosReyes-sk1zs Clemenza was my favorite.
I met Abe Vigoda in NYC in 2002. What an absolute sweetheart of a man. He talked to my students and I about his life in acting. He also loved a good joke and would deadpan with the best of them. He was also very active on Facebook before he passed. I always thought he was Italian, but he was actually Jewish. He had that Capo look to him. Just proves that Italians can play a Jew and a Jew can play an Italian.
Just like a Greek can play a turk and vice versa...... 😂😂😂😂😂
Tessio after setting up mike Coleone to be killed almost certainly would have been iced by Barzini. He could not totally trust someone who owed everything to the Coleone family.
Exactly. If Tessio could turn on a family that was good to him for 35 years then he could turn on anyone. Barzini definitely would have had Tessio taken out just to be on the safe side.
@@PokemonTrainerVince you mean the family turned on him after 35 years
@@Mo.Sherin Tessio betrayed Michael who was the don, therefore he betrayed the family. Just like Fredo did in part 2.
@@PokemonTrainerVince and why did he do that? Do you know the answer
Barzini would need someone to be able to run the Corleone family enterprise like a crew and that would be Tessio.
The underestimating of Michael, I’ve always said was a huge mistake that everyone who did so regretted deeply later. They also thought, here’s this college kid who doesn’t know anything about the “business”, when in reality he knew more about it than he let on, including how to lead, and kill. You see they look at his education and even his service in the US Marine Corps as nothing of value, when in reality it prepared him for the job of Don far better than many who had dedicated their lives to the “business”. Michael had gone to Dartmouth and later enlisted the day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, serving as an enlisted man and fighting in the Pacific and later in Europe. He earned a battle field commission, a Silver Star and the Navy Cross, both high awards for bravery in combat. He learns to lead men in real combat and also learns organizational skills. He’s no dummy or fancy pants lay about. When he returns he is already hooked on the “action dope” adrenaline and finds himself wanting to do something for his family. Obviously because Don Vito is attacked and almost killed, but also because he needs the action. He acts very subdued and nonchalant about it, until he gets beaten up by the corrupt police Captain, who he later on kills along with that piece of garbage who made the hit on his father. Unlike the battlefield, where he knows who the enemy is, here he has to be smarter and learn more about his friends and family and of course his enemies. He’s a quick study because you have to be like that in times of war. There’s no time to let your guard down because when you do that’s it, it may be the last time. He realizes that every time someone try’s to make a move against him later on and this toughens him up and he becomes more brutal and calculating with time. And this brings me to what I believe may have happened to Tessio. I believe that Michael, although angered by his betrayal, still likes Tessio because of his skills, even as a traitor he sees in him what he had been, and as a warrior he appreciates him for that. He had learned a few things from him, and like his enemies on the battlefield, he had a certain respect for those he would fight against. I think that Michael would’ve given Tessio the more “honorable” out by maybe letting him kill himself, as the Japanese officers who lost battles would do. Or at the very least have him shot while standing and facing his killer. That would have been a more dignified way to go out. Michael would have cared only because he now sees that not only is he loosing men, he’s loosing loyalty and respect from his troops. This strengthens his resolve and ends up making him even more vicious in the end. Just my opinion.
They also killed his beloved wife. They woke the beast in him!
@@causeeffect7624 that’s true too. I had forgotten about her. That small amount of time with her and then to be robbed of her was definitely another defining moment in his life, making him even tougher on those who would do him wrong.
Nice analysis. Knowing what we do about the Pacific and European theatres, I always found it funny how Sonny underestimated his brother’s ability to be ruthless. In reality he was probably harder than anyone else in the Mob at that time.
He was taught a lot by Vito. If not for that he likely would have been iced.
The time in Sicily was instructive for Michael as he learned the nature of these old time gangsters and how they think. He learned not to trust anyone but the closest of family members, his father. Everyone else was up for grabs. He learned this the hard way as one of his bodyguards betrays him and his first wife is killed with a car bomb meant for him. From then on, Michael knows how to think and act like a gangster but with the experience of a soldier and the smarts of a college educated man. He is a formidable enemy but the old time Mafiosos can't see it. Their mistake and it costs them everything.
Has anyone else noticed when Tessio realizes he has been found out he wobbles slightly. Such is the brilliance of this film.
Wobbles slightly is still a sign of Tessio's tremendous inner fortitude. He knows he is a dead man, yet still he accepts it rather gracefully. In his mind, he's played his hand and lost the game. I can just hear him- "It was business, no hard feelings"
That's the brilliance of an actor's choice. The brilliance of Abe Vigoda
@@fletch4813 Underrated for sure. Plus I've heard he was modest and humble in life; something more modern actors/actresses would do well to emulate
That's from the novel which states there was a moment of physical weakness and then he recovered and I think Abe Vigoda did that perfectly.
Great review like always but you missed one little thing... Tessio was so trusted and loved in the Corleone family that he was the one to drive Michael away to the ship after he killed the Turk and police captain... goes to show he had Michael’s life in his hands... Also I think Michael had him shot in the face because he was going to have Michael assassinated and Michael was not supposed to see it coming...Michael wanted him to see it coming
Tessio driving Micheal to the boat also explains how Micheal was found in Italy, too.Tessio did the calculations: the old man Vito will croak, Fredo's useless fncking dumb Fredo, Sonny's gone, Tessio gets the family and all the kickup wealth that accrues to the head. Sayonara, Mikey. It's just business.
He got it in the Front .Sombody who Loved and was Perfect for him.There is no More in Life.Respect.
@@farmalmta if that was the case Tessio could’ve just handed them over that night
@@WarTheory too risky. Chances of sonny finding out perhaps?
@@liamwatson6789 That’s exactly what I was thinking...Sonny really was killing it as a war time Don... like the book said Sonny wanted to take out all of the families in one stroke...It took Don Vito and Michael To really put it together
An execution shot to the back of the head might have seemed like a mercy to an insightful detective and draw suspicion back on the Corleone family. A shot to the front of the head was the proud act of an opponent who wanted Tessio to know he'd been beaten. Without knowing of Tessio's betrayal, any outside observer would have assumed it was a Barzini capo who did the deed, eliminating a Corleone capo.
True
I often wondered how did Tessio die. Poor Tessio, I always liked him.
Can't do it Sally
So, you see the front doors of the car close. Then the frame cuts to Hagen. You hear four bangs, two of which are the car doors closing, and two are the muffled gunshots.
At least that's how I interpret it
It was just business
He was garrotted. Garrotted so badly that he was almost decapitated.
It's not personal, Givan. It's strictly business.
In Part 2, I always love the scene when Frankie says..."There's Willie Cici!"......I have no reason for liking it, I just do. Frankie 5 Angels was such a great character.
It was exactly the kind of stuff people who know each other and who rag on each other a lot and work with each a lot would say; it feels like that's what made part 2 so powerful; everything was between the lines.
I've always love the name WILLIE CICCI
Both are under rated actors.
The actor Willie Cicci died tragically
Joe Spinelli
I have always felt that since Michael knew that Tessio was smart and that his choice to betray Michael was "just business", Michael would in turn order that Tessio's death would be quick, clean and painless--assuming that Tessio was smart enough recognize that he had lost and that he should therefore not resist.
In my view, Tom loosening his collar was just a way to show how he was not happy with Tessio being killed.
I never thought it pointed to the method of execution.
If Tom had no problems at all, he would have just walked inside without pausing to loosen his collar.
In my wiew, Tom loosening his collar was just a way to breath better because it was so tight
Tom Hagen was more or less the 'clean pair of hands' when Vito was alive. He knew things happened, but he was never involved in the organisation of these events.
Later in the movie, he crosses over to the dark side to become more of a Sicilian-like brother to Michael than just being the brother who is the family lawyer.
Tom is smiling when Tessio is surrounded. He does not look like he disapproves. I think he goes inside and takes one last look at Tessio being driven away - probably reflecting.
@@LPCLASSICAL If you think that's a genuine smile! I fear for your interaction with other humans.
@@AudieHolland I just looked at the scene again. It is hard to say. I can't interpret that smile. If it is fake - it would still have a meaning. Since you think it is fake I presume will state what that meaning is. Yes Tom is not happy with Tessio being killed - I agree with you there - but that does not mean he thinks Mike should have spared him.
Tessio being captured is one of my favourite scenes...Even the great Richard Prior mentioned it in one of his comedy routines!
Richard Pryor was close friends with Marlon Brando
I always liked Abe Vigoda. He did an interview for TV Guide while working on Barney Miller. He talked about how, after The Godfather, highway patrolmen would pull him over, sure they'd seen his mug on a wanted poster. After he stared playing Det. Fish, he'd still get pulled over but the patrolmen always wanted to congratulate him on such a good performance as a cop.
Somewhere on UA-cam is a video of his 90-somethingth birthday party. Hal Linden and a supporting actor from Vigoda's spin-off "Fish" came by to celebrate with him. Vigoda had a grin from ear to ear and a sparkle in his eyes.
I didn't see The Godfather until after Barney Miller was on the air. I guess that made me warm to Tessio right away. I always wanted him to have more lines. The few he did have were delivered so well. I've always been impressed by the quiet acceptance of his fate. He rolled the dice and got snake eyes.
Critical thinking on Michael's part strategic thinking on Barzini's part. Barcini only thought one way Michael's way was to think of what his enemies are thinking. He learned that from his daddy. Michael was always ahead of them. It's a dangerous business you have to know and practice critical thinking
Well, if they were really practicing critical thinking they wouldn't be murderers.
More like playing chess...
I think his death would be faster and I doubt Neery would taunt him. If they were going to make someone shake, it would have been fucking Carlo
Yeah, it was never personal with Tessio and they understood that.
Given Tessio’s long history with the Corleone family I think his betrayal is worse the Carlo. He got what he had coming!
Frankie 5 Angels is the Uncle we wish we had. Willie Cici is a Man's man. Who drinks water out of a garden hose at a wedding? Frankie 5 Angels. Who holds the hose for him? Willie Cici. Times were better then.
What an excellent observation. Funny comment on that observation too. Salute.
I'd have preferred a scene in which Tessio is brought into a room and sat down in a chair with a table in front of him, upon which there is a cigarette, a lighter, a shot glass of his favorite whiskey and a pistol with one bullet. He knows what he needs to do.
That is not how the mafia works.
@@119Agent It's essentially what happened to Pentangeli who even had his family cared for.
@@wjatube There difference is he volunteered because he was in a position where he couldn’t be killed so he volunteered to kill himself in exchange for taking care of his family. If he was a free man that option would not have been on the table.
That's German, not Sicilian (and not Nazi either).
@@119Agent both men were trapped albeit in different ways.
I really love this channel! Particularly the Godfather vids.
Too romantic a narrative.
I always saw Willie Chicci pushing the button on Tessio: a quick execution for his past loyalty with Tessio’s remains left, like Paulie Gatto for easy discovery as a message for the other Families-as well as the ultimate punishment for treason: the loss of Tessio’s reputation as a smart operator. Just a job for Cicci, a fitting end for double-crosser.
"Cicc', a porta!"
He opens the door for Pantangeli and closes it for Tessio.
@@genevetere Pretty glib, Gino!
Exactly. Why would they go out of their way to try to make things super special? Tessio was taken out swiftly via gun. Two shots to the head. Simple. No need for anything else.
It's a smart move Tessio was always smarter
The Corleone’s really misjudged Clemenza and that really doesn’t sit well with me because Clemenza was shown as being a truly supportive person within the family and the connections he had with him caring for Michael and his family
Clemenza wasnt that bright, the Corleone's respected intelligence. Fredo was stupid and they didn't respect him
Clemens a was also Sonny’s baptismal Godfather…
@@seansmith7462 Clemenza and Fredo are two different entities completely, Clemenza was a street guy through and through. He took initiative when he needed, teaching Michael how to shoot what to expect and what to do when leaving the scene, Fredo literally didn’t have the instincts in him
@@joeyc8622 another reason why it didn’t sit well with me, Tessio was more calculated and wanted more Clemenza was actually the counter of holding his keep and his spot and going through what he needed to
@@vintage_sole4065 clemenza was street tough but he still wasn't bright. That's the comparison between the two
Out of all the deaths in this trilogy, poor Tessio’s was the saddest. He was such a loyal man and Michael treated him with little dignity towards the end. The man was begging Michael to allow him to defend himself as Barzini was attacking him hard. Michael smuggly said “NO!” A man like that is someone you keep close and helps you run your game. He should have had Tessio involved with the Baptism hits from the begining. Tessio would then find relief thinking, “Maybe this kid isn’t such a newbie after all.” Then that would assure him that retaliation was coming and to sit back and enjoy the show rather than have to give in to Barzini. Then Michael goes off to Vegas and Tessio becomes the big boss with Clemenza in NYC. The man had little to no choice or hope of surviving with Michael. Tessio was the only one in the end who was worthy of being sparred from death. Fredo was more of a liability than he was.
Michael kept telling him, he had a plan and it will all be settled in the end, to just have patience and faith in him. He did not, thus he died.
@@poconoboss Tessio was smarter than Clemenza. Tessio could make a deal with an enemy. Clemenza never would. Remember, Clemenza was ready to murder a cop over a stolen rug. It's also why Vito kept Clemenza close to him but let Tessio pretty much run independently in Brooklyn. Michael knew that one of his capos was going to turn against him and he bet correctly on Tessio. Clemenza would have gone down fighting to the last man in his regime for the Corleones. But not Tessio, he would have made a deal to keep his men from dying "for nothing". It's also why Michael secretly rebuilt Sonny's regime under Rocco. Tessio would have out-generaled Clemenenza in a street war, especially with Barzini's help. So Michael had an entire regime in reserve, ready to deploy with a phone call to Rocco. Was really brilliant the way Michael and Vito put the pieces in place on the board to spring their final trap.
Even Don Vito asked them to trust Michael and wait as how they always trusted him. Tessio sealed his own fate for not trusting and for being inpatient. Perhaps he was to smart for his own good.
By not knowing how Tessio was murdered and leaving it to a person's imagination is a good way but also knowing how he was murdered what's not that bad either so either way it's still a good movie
Tessio doesn't exactly give himself up. His last act before getting into the car is reaching for the gun under his jacket. Willy Cicci sees this, intercepts Tessio, and takes the gun from Tessio. The question is, was Tessio going to hand the gun over or try to shoot his way out of his predicament?
Judging on how honorably he went out he was most likely gonna hand it over
When he reaches for it, it wasn't super fast like he was going to do something. I never interpreted that as a way to shoot his way out of the situation.
he probably was going to kill himself.
With the real costra nostra (pre rico) everything was a chess game. They calmly took their fate when they made a wrong move. Look at lefty Ruggerio. You get sent fa.
There was no point in shooting his way out since he knew full well that there were too many Corleone henchmen around him and he would have been cut down immediately and even if he did miraculously manage to do so and escape Michael would have found him soon enough and killed him anyway perhaps with an even more tortuous death. At least by not resisting here his death would have been almost immediate and painless...a gunshot to the head.
Bro , that death description is hilarious when imagined .The gun must have been an Obrez Mosin-Nagant and Tessio's corpse acted like it was governed by G-Mod Ragdoll physics .
Along with "I'm gonna make him an offer that he can't refuse", another great line to come out of this movie is: "Can't do it, Sally". This was used in a highly under-rated gem called "Free Enterprise" in 1998.
Yes, that was deep; as I think on it now, they couldn't let the foster brother be a war time consig was because he didn't have an established blood line to follow up on the history of secrets within the families that are kept even if your children decide not to be a part of the main sequence, I hope I didn't lose anyone lol!
Where's the other great line?
@@TL2354 It's "offer" not "deal" - the OP was a little out of line
@@TL2354 If you can't find the answer to your question, read and re-read the post until you get the answer.
@@NaughtyVampireGod Yes, I fixed it, thanks.
I liked The Godfather Returns. It was well written and plot driven as well. Tessio went down as he was supposed to. Only his past loyalty to the Family gave him such a quick death. Abe Vigoda was a legend.
Wow, what an amazing presentation. Not only was your analysis specific and detailed, I really enjoyed your reading of the text. Your dramatic inclination and excellent phrasing made it quite enjoyable to listen to. Thanks for sharing. Keep up the excellent work. Be well.
Thank you for your kind words
Loved the way Barzini got his in the end. 2 slugs in the back as he ran away. Once Al Neri (dressed like a cop) whacked the bodyguard and driver he had nothing to worry about as Barzini had just exited the courthouse and wouldn't have been armed.
Al Neri was a cop, who got kicked off the force.
I honestly dont see Clamenza betraying the family
The film was certainly shot that way several scenes showing how Clemenza cared for Michael. Teaching him how to shoot someone and walk out the door and that they were proud of him for being a was hero, how to cook for 40 people, telling him to tell Kate he loves her, being honest with the Don on what he things will happen with Michael in charge.
@@119Agent Clemenza was just too loveable and loyal to be a traitor.
I always thought the actor who played Clemenza was too young for the role. He looks 20+ years younger than Don Corleone, yet they were contemporaries. Or, the makeup people could have aged him some.
@@gheller2261 he was definitely a younger actor but I always thought he was supposed to be of or so even though the actor was 39.
He was going to betray the family though. That was the plan for Godfather 2 but the actor wasn't available.
I believe Tessio was executed quickly by being shot in the back of the head once or twice. Considering what Carlo did was worse and he was strangled which is a longer process then two gunshots.
Yes, but what caliber? 😀
Shot in the back?? By Buford Tannen?? Over a matter of eighty dollars??
I was a kid from the 90s, and saw the Godfather saga till I was already a full adult... when I saw him, I couldn't help to scream "GRANDPA FROM 'LOOK WHO'S TALKING'!!!!"
Yet another terrific video. Great work!
The next video should be about how Michael convinced Rocco to sacrifice himself to get Roth.
I think it was a case of Michael "offering" the hit to Rocco.
Like Frank Pentangelli, he was being given the chance for an "honorable" death.
Rocco failed in his job as chief of security when the attempt on Michael's life took place in Tahoe.
@@thomasthomas2418 Rocco was told to keep the would be assassins alive by Michael. When they end up dead in the ditch Michael would wonder if Rocco had them killed to keep a secret. When Rocco kills Roth it is similar to Jack Ruby’s killing of Oswald.
good one.
Tessio was not killed on camera. When he was led away, you see him get into the car with 4 soldiers. When the camera pans back to Tom Hayden, you hear three car doors slam that some have mistaken for gun shots. As the story goes, he was taken back to his club and killed there.
I could swear that I read somewhere that it was in Abe Vijodas contract that he wasn't to be killed on camera. But I could be wrong.
What makes you say back to his club to be killed. Tessio had at least 50 shooters in his crew……that would seem a bit dangerous
I didn't see the godfather for the first time until 2013-14 in my late 40's, so it was pretty hard to stomach watching the funny detective from Barney Miller getting wacked out in the best movie ever made lol!
I agree with some of the other posters here who always thought Tessio just took a couple shots to the brain. Nothing in the face and his body would be found before decomposition set in so there could be an open casket. Paulie was shot through the face as a sign of contempt. Paulie might have been mean enough to make a garrote attack difficult.
It is one of the great movie “what if”s - if Richard S. Castellano had agreed contract terms, Older Clemenza *would* have appeared in Godfather II, and would have been one of the people that betrayed Michael. Unfortunately they had to rewrite the story with a new character, Pentangeli, which lessened the betrayal. Seeing young Clemenza working with young Vito, and then stabbing Michael in the back in the later sections would have been a much more powerful story.
agreed
True, but there was no greater betrayal than Fredo, Michael's own brother setting him up to be killed by Hyman Roth.
We should be grateful that the character Pentangeli was created and that the actor playing him was hired.
In hindsight, noone else could have performed in the role as Frank Pentangeli.
@@TheJetstream10 Technically Fredo didn't set Michael up. Fredo was just that stupid, and Roth took advantage of it to execute the attack
I’ve never heard ‘euphoria’ pronounced as such before, but still a good read overall. *Thank you*
I was thinking the same thing, lol
Michael felt bad about having to kill Tessio. When he was a boy, Tessio was like an uncle to him.
"Mike. Can you get me off the hook...for old times sake?"
If you look at the car Tessio is driven away in, you’ll see people getting in the left front, right front, and left rear doors. No one gets in the right rear door. Yet, you hear what sounds like four car doors being closed. You’re hearing three car doors, and one suppressed pistol shot.
i now understood why you repeat the same infos in every video, to make them individual videos and not connected to each other. that's great man
I seem to recall that when Tessio was moved into the car, there was a closed-caption text "(gunshot)" that meant he was shot as soon as he was seated in the car.
Probably a muffled shot with the gun barrel compressed directly against his heart.
His grave was probably already dug somewhere out in the middle of the woods; they drove directly there and buried his body.
that was some millennial noob who never saw the film screwing up the closed captions. (s)he confused the sound of the car doors closing with gunshots. also, it's too dangerous to fire a gun in such a confined space because the chance of collateral damage is so high. and that is firing it once let alone four times. when you watch the scene none of the men who put Tessio in the car pull a weapon and all four of the "gunshots" sound the same. the sounds are the car doors being shut
Leave the gun, take the cannolis
why get blood in the car? I always imagined him being driven to the woods - shot and buried there.
Excellent analysis. One technical note: Vito Andolini’s TWO Brothers were killed by the mafia chief in Sicily along with his mother and father.
The novel Family Corleone said Tessio was brought to one of his auto repair garages in Brooklyn and brutally beaten by a whole crew.
Um wow I never heard of this novel…. I read the two ‘fill-in’ novels by Mark Winegarden and assumed they were the only other source material apart from Mario Puzo’s books and the films.
@Mon-El Unless they all wanted to say "goodbye" to Tessio as well having worked with him for years.
I mean, they gave Carlo a clean death for having Sonny killed, I doubt the Corleones would be brutal with almost a family member when it was strictly business.
@@josedanielcallejassandoval2964 I agree, I assume Tessio's death was quick and mostly painless - the six guys were simply with him so that he doesn't try to escape and mostly in case someone loyal from Tessio's crew tried to help him.
The point made at 5:11 was what let me know immediately. Before I even watched this video, I said "But Vito warned Michael that his traitor would come to him to try to make a deal." Well analyzed and good catch on the foreshadowing.
Watching TGF, you'll almost always see a hit coming as a visual foreshadow. Luca Brasi walked into the barroom where he was to die. The camera pans to look through the glass in the door and upon it was etched some swimming fishes.
The FBI saved him and he went into a witness protection program with a new identity as Sergeant Fish. Tessio didn’t sleep with the fishes after all...🤣🤣
lol. I love it.
He had to suffer from Yemana's bad coffee. A fate worse than death.
He did sell pizza later after Micharl's death.
He slept with Mrs. Fish!
Tessio wasn't reaching for a gun. He was just trying to button or tidy up his suit lol.
When he asks can you get me off the hook. I knew what was up.
When Tessio is made to sit in the back seat of the car, the camera focuses on Tom Hayden, but if you listen closely you hear two things, the car doors close , silence and then a bunch of slamms that sound like muffled gunshots from inside the car.
Those aren’t muffled gun shots. That’s the sounds are the rest of the car doors closing. They wouldn’t shoot him there and certainly not in their own car.
Been waiting for this one! You don't disappoint! Awesome video.
The hit and respect shown towards Tessio reminds me of the respect that Sammy the bull had toward Johnny keys Simone. Simone knew it was coming and Sammy gave him a quick painless death and I suspect Michael would have granted Tessio the same thing.
I love neris joke of not shooting the messenger, and him not having a gun no fear, knowing he was fully protected.
They buried him...on a hill...surrounded by pine cones
Really? Awwww…. F Off and get on the bus Janice.
Call the things by their name he was a traitor, after being all his life with the Corleone he sold them for power and money. He was already well off and he wanted more so he sold off the companions of his Whole life.
These acto are common in the political world where certain types of people flourish.
It'just business .
He didn't actually do it for power and money, according to me. He just thought Michael was weak and that everyone in the Corleone family would be killed by their rivals and that's why he betrayed him to try to save himself. Maybe a part of him do it for power and money but it wasn't his primary concern. Just my opinion.
Less is More... By this time in the film there has been enough killings, and seeing how Tessio is "taken care of" isn't adding anything to the story... And leaving his execution out allows us - and future followers - to speculate/narrate how "the deed was done" if "done" at all!!!
Thats such a good point u made about there were enough killings by this point, it would have been violence overload to show his death, might have diminished the greatness of this film
The best of your videos that I have seen thus far. I have a Godfather question that has harassed me for years...
I’m glad the book and the movie never revealed how he died. Sometimes it’s best to leave it to the imagination…
As he's sitting in the back of the car surrounded by goons heading towards his fate. Sal thinks back to when he was 15 years old, and his sweet uncle geno offering him a job as junior salesman in his shoe store. "Just think salvador, with hard work soon you'll be running the place and when I'm gone it'll all be yours" Young salvador struggled mightily to suppress his laughter, he failed, he had way bigger plans for his life than working in a piddly shit shoe store. All these years later he remembered the hurt look on his uncle geno's face like it was yesterday. He wondered where he'd be if he accepted his uncle's offer, certainly not a few minutes from a 22. caliber behind the ear. Maybe he'll get to see uncle geno in heaven and make proper amends, this thought caused him to burst out laughing. "Me in heaven!"
As we've seen it Michael gave Tessio a pass. He got a new identity and became a police detective ironically named Fish. Since Al Neri was a former cop who apparently still had contacts in the force got Tessio a second chance.
He was one of Vito Corleone's original caporegimes. It was a failed power play; there was no personal animosity involved. Presumably, it would have been quick, and painless.
I like to think Tessio was given a mercifully quick (and perhaps quasi dignified) execution given his previous history as a Capo in the Corleone family. He knew when the gig was up and he accepted his pending fate like a man with no whining and no begging.
I agree.
I agree. But I don't think sentimentality has anything to do with it. Like Kings and nobles centuries ago, they generally would be as moderate as possible, knowing that someday, they might be in the same position. Napolean was sent into exile for killing 100s of thousands.
"Different spanks for different ranks"
-Military adage
I agree, after all, he was one of the big 3 to start the family.
Looking back at the meeting when Clemeza stated "I hate that godd@*n Barzini". Leads me to believe Clemeza wouldn't want to work with/under Barzini.
The fact that a piece of Tessio's skull hit Neri in the face makes me laugh
"Can you get me off the hook for old time's sake?" is one of my favorite movie lines.
You could interpret it as a sign of respect that the old guards death wasn’t shown in the movie as well, all we really knew or seen of Tessio in the movie was the jolly old man seen at Connie’s wedding and the soft spoken mobster that describes the “box and the chain thing”, we don’t really know of his ruthless and cunning nature as described in the books, not to mention the honourable reaction to his treachery becoming uncovered. So actually witnessing him be killed despite his betrayal would’ve been pretty tough because he wasn’t the type of traitor to be killed with indifference.
I don't put much into sequels not written by the original author. We never knew in the movie, we don't need to know now.
I think Tessio would have tried the exact same thing if Sonny had lived to take over after Vito’s death.
Tessio Believed Someone with let bit more Experience/Clout should led the Family not a Newer Generation that were Handed it.
It probably would have worked against Sonny. Especially if Solazzo had been successful in killing Vito.
Nah he wouldn't have turned if Sonny was still alive. Barzini wouldn't have been able to take his territory if Sonny was still alive thus no reason for Tessio to turn. He only turned because he didn't think he had a choice.
Ha! Using scenes of the dane from millers crossing talking about the hit...priceless
He wasn’t killed . Rumours were he somehow escaped , changed his identity . And cooks French fries for some fast food joint called Good Burger
Hello Cineranter
I knew or discovered that Tessio wasn't happy with the godfather and I saw it instantly when the godfather asked him to be friends to Mike and he gave him a salutary with the left hand and that's an indication of someone who doesn't like you unless you are a left handed person.
I actually hope to see how they would have handled this knowing the past. Thank you for letting us know!
I like the scene when Clamenza runs ( at a pinch ) up the stairs, opens the lift and blasts
Those Fuqs Made it Personal When they Betray Don Corleone over DOPE.
2nd comment, after watching the video. A sad end for Sal Tessio. I really enjoyed, his character, in "The Godfather." It still is kind of surprising, that he sided with Barzini. It was Tessio's doubt and fear of the future, that, led, to his undoing. But he's still a cool character. If he had a different opinion of Micheal, he possibly, could have split off and formed his own family. Great video!!
Thanks
Definitely would rather know. All the intricacies & small details are what make The Godfather trilogy as great as it is. I can say without hesitation that sometimes they are harder to decipher than what would be ideal. So I appreciate the explanation & love your videos. Respect.✊🏼
Thanks very much
Fascinating. As Tom Hagan watches them take Tessio away, I always supposed that Tom unbuttoned his top shirt button to loosen his tie, in preparation for when he would later give the signal to Clemenza to go ahead and garrote Carlo.
I think that's exactly what Tom is doing.
this channel ROCKS!
I don't know, there was something always "Fish-y" about Tessio.
Thanks for another interesting video
The Godfather, if it’s not by Mario Puzo, it’s just fan fiction!
I think Winegardner jumped the shark a bit by giving Fredo his own talk show on tv.
@@Kelly14UK Good point.
@@alonenjersey I don't regret now, going by the YT comments on those fan fiction books, not buying Winegardner's contributions. He won a competition then gets carried away like some idiot writing Star Wars expanded universe pulp. A laughey jokey Hagen?? Gimme a break.
@@Kelly14UK Being a HUGE fan of the Godfather Saga, I decided to read Winegardner's book. The only good thing I got from reading it was finding out that Pete Celmenza did die of a heart attack as mentioned in GodFather Part II.
exactly