Home release - The Godfather 50 years : in Blu-Ray 4k Ultra HD on March 23

By Mulder, 13 january 2022

"I am very proud of The Godfather, which represents the first third of my life's creations.. I'm happy that Mario Puzo's The Godfather, the epilogue: the death of Michael Corleone is part of this tribute for the 50 years of the saga because it brings together the author and my original version, for a perfect conclusion of our epic trilogy. It's also a pleasure to share this milestone with Paramount, along with the original fans and the new generation who are enjoying the film and those who will discover it.

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, rediscover Francis Ford Coppola's masterpiece The Godfather, winner of the Academy Award for Best Picture, among others. February 23 in Dolby Cinema and remastered 4K, in VOST only. All three installments of the saga have been meticulously restored under the director's direction and will be available in 4K Ultra HD for the first time in their history on March 23.

Francis Ford Coppola's masterful adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel traces the rise and fall of the Corleone family through its trilogy and is rightly considered one of the major cinematic works in the history of cinema. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of its release on March 24, 1972, Paramount and American Zoetrope, Francis Ford Coppola's production company, have undertaken a meticulous three-year restoration of the three parts of the saga.

All efforts have been gathered in order to present today the most beautiful of supports to the public who will be able to discover the film through a technology that has deeply evolved since the last restoration of the film historian Robert Harris in 2007. Using that earlier work as a prototype, the team worked over a thousand hours to restore each image to perfection, while preserving the original quality and look of the film.

"We felt honored to restore these films and were quite impressed at the same time," acknowledges Andrea Kalas, senior vice president of Paramount Archives. "We were at the forefront of seeing the high quality of the staging, music, costumes, sets, editing, writing, cinematography, that made the film famous. It was our duty to honor this exceptional work.

The restoration work has notably involved
- more than 300 elements were screened in order to restore the best definition for each of the images of the three films.
- more than 4000 hours of meticulous work to repair stains, tears and other impacts on the negatives.
- more than 1000 hours of work to correct the color by dynamic processes in the respect of the original version of the director and his chief operator Gordon Willis.
- In addition to the version validated by Walter Murch in 2007, in 5.1 audio, the original mono soundtrack of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II have been restored.
- All the work was done under the supervision of Francis Ford Coppola.

Recently restored and remastered in Dolby Vision, the three films in the historic trilogy will be released for the first time ever with HDR-10 in 4K Ultra HD Digital and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray. The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray set includes The Godfather, The Godfather II, and Coppola's recently re-released version of the final film in the trilogy, Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Epilogue: The Death of Michael Corleone. The box set includes bonus audio commentary by Coppola.

In addition to the 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray + Blu-Ray set, a limited collector's edition 4K Ultra HD + Blu-Ray will also be available and will include a collector's book with stunning photography, as well as collector's portraits. Both 4K Ultra HD + Blu-Ray sets include new bonus features, including an introduction to Coppola's Godfather, a featurette on the preservation process, photos by famed photographer Steve Schapiro, personal film footage, and a comparison of the new restoration with earlier versions of the films.

Full list of new bonus features included:
- Introduction to The Godfather by Francis Ford Coppola 
- Close the Loop: Preserve The Godfather - Paramount Pictures archivists detail the exciting restoration process with archival footage revealing how the picture and sound quality has been dramatically improved from the 1972 release of "The Godfather" to the present day. 
- The Corleones Through the Lens of Photographer Steve Schapiro- In this interview, photographer Steve Schapiro shares his valuable experience and memories as a witness to the making of this seminal film. The recorded commentary on the archival footage greatly enriches the story of the film's production. 
- The Godfather: Filming - An assortment of bonus footage shot backstage in 1971 offers a fresh look at the conception and making of The Godfather. Shot on location at the Norton Family Estate on Emerson Hill in Staten Island, this never-before-seen footage is revealed to the public for the first time. 
- Restoration comparisons: Before/after restoration, demonstrating the significant improvement in image quality.

Complete list of old bonuses included:
- The masterpiece that almost wasn't
- The Godfather universe
- Restoration - Revealing The Godfather
- At the end of the shooting
- The Godfather on the red carpet
- Four short films about The Godfather 
- The Godfather vs The Godfather II
- Cannoli
- Cult dialogues
- Clemenza
- Corleone Family Tree
- Organization of the crime
- The wedding photo album of Connie and Carlo
- Credits 2008
- Behind the scenes 
- Inside view
- Shooting locations
- Francis Ford Coppola's notebook
- The music of The Godfather 
- Nino Rota
- Carmine Coppola          
- Coppola & Puzo : the scenario
- Gordon Willis : the cinematography
- Godfather Storyboards
- Godfather II Storyboards
- The Godfather behind the scenes 1971

The newly restored and remastered versions of The Godfather, The Godfather II and Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Epilogue: The Death of Michael Corleone will also be available on Blu-ray with the new and previously released Bonus Features.

Synopsis:
In 1945 New York City, the Corleones are one of the five Mafia families. Don Vito Corleone, the "godfather" of this family, marries his daughter to a bookmaker. Sollozzo, "godfather" of the Tattaglia family, proposes to Don Vito an association in the drug trade, but he refuses. Sonny, one of his sons, is in favor of it. In order to deal with Sonny, Sollozzo tries to have Don Vito killed, but this one escapes from it. Michael, Sonny's younger brother, then seeks out those who ordered the attack and kills Sollozzo and the police chief in retaliation. Michael then leaves for Sicily, where he marries Apollonia, but she is murdered in his place. Back in New York, Michael marries Kay Adams and prepares to become his father's successor...

The Godfather
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola
Screenplay by Mario Puzo, Francis Ford Coppola
Based on The Godfather by Mario Puzo
Produced by Albert S. Ruddy
Starring Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard Castellano, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley
Richard Conte, Diane Keaton
Cinematography : Gordon Willis
Edited by William Reynolds, Peter Zinner
Music by Nino Rota
Production companies : Paramount Pictures, Alfran Productions
Distributed by Paramount Pictures
Release dates : March 14, 1972 (Loew's State Theatre), March 24, 1972 (United States)
Running time : 177 minutes

(Source : press release)