The Friday Link for 3/4/22

It doesn't surprise me when someone I know has never seen a "classic" movie.  I had a friend who shocked me about 10 years ago when he admitted he had NEVER seen the Star Wars movies, any of them. I was stunned, but he said most of his friends never watched any of them either, or had only seen one.  The more I thought about it the more his point made some sense.  

I've often talked about how popular culture skews perception into thinking EVERYONE is watching, listening or participating in something.  Actually it's pretty far from he truth.  The Super Bowl aired a few weeks back and the total audience was a little over 112 million viewers, but that doesn't factor in bars and parties.  Probably 150 to 160 million people watched the game, in a country of 330 million-ish. That means half the country didn't watch the biggest cultural event of the year, and had no interest in doing so. 

Last week I had a friend post they were watching The Godfather for the first time. I was surprised they hadn't seen it, but I once again filtered my reaction through the magnifying glass of "popularity."  Not only has most of the country not seen The Godfather, my guess is this is one of those movies where the gender imbalance is at the most extreme.  Most guys I know have seen it, but most women I know have not.

It is a classic all time great movie.  I highly encourage you watch it, and The Godfather Part II; equally as good.

Godfather scenes for you this week on the Friday Link, starting with the horse head scene.

Warning, this has a pretty gruesome ending to it, but remember it's all fake.  If you not a fan of blood, skip this one and move onto the next one.

This scene is so important to establish the nature in how the Corleone family conducts their business. 

Another scene which establishes a lot of how the mafia operates is this simple scene.  The interaction between Marlon Brando and a wildly young James Caan is amazing and so natural. 

I wish I could post the entire film, but you can't.  Here is another classic scene.  Michael takes control of the family by agreeing to take care of business. 

One last clip, but once again a warning that it get's pretty brutal in the end. Also, this clip will show you a lot of how the first Godfather ends, so if you want to see the movie without knowing the end, don't watch this clip and enjoy the whole film.

Michael's son gets baptized and business is taken care of.

Have a great weekend.  Things are getting better in Minnesota, but still get vaccinated and please wear a mask!