Analyzing Evil: Michael Corleone From The Godfather 

What I always have found interesting is that Michael was a war hero. He received a medal for his bravery in WW2. But when he comes home they treat him as a young innocent sibling who isn't ready for tough lifestyle. Even when he is the one who survived hell of war and received a medal for it.

It's crazy how the studio didn't want pacino to the role, his performance is one of the best has ever seen in cinema history.

19:55 Hyman Roth was NEVER "sick and dying", it was all act to make him appear less threatening than he actually was. Hyman's whole MO was to put his enemies at ease by feigning illness to make his enemies think that he about to die of natural causes. If people thought he was dying of natural causes, what would be the need to plot an assassination on him? Even Michael picks up this tactic by Hyman where he's says something along this lines of "he's being dying of the same heart attack for 20 years".

I love Michael's death scene because it is the mirror opposite of his father Vito's. Both die in a countryside garden house, but whereas Vito passes away playing and laughing with his grandson, the future if a family he has managed to keep close despite his lifestyle, Michael dies broken and alone

Godfather I: Michael is too cheesey to be a gangsta Godfather II: Michael's too brutal to lead the family Godfather III: *JUST WHEN I THINK I'M OUT THEY PULL ME BACK IN*

I heard this analogy that I think sums up the mafia very well: The Godfather is how they wanted to be seen, gentleman criminals with a code of ethics they hold to, and Goodfellas is how they actually were, a bunch of goons hopped up on their own hype

I always thought the most important moment in the first movie is when Michael and the baker scare off the men coming for his dad. When the baker goes to light his cigarette and his hands is shaking, Michael's hand was steady. It's hard to say what exactly Michael is thinking, but that moment is when he really seems to change.

I never saw Michael as evil. He is just a tragic hero. He lost his soul trying to protect his family, and still ended up dying alone.

Michael at his most calm and ruthless is when he tells Carlo that he had to answer for Sonny. *"Don't be afraid, Carlo. Come on. Do you think I'd make my sister a widow?"*

One of the best character arcs ever put to cinema

Michael's evolution into the heartless Don is one of the most interesting things in cinematic history. He was a very calculated man, with a cool head for the most part. He was a man that was so broken, but knew he chose the life. Killing Fredo solidifies that he's evil imo even if he regretted it later. I do think he was naturally a good hearted family man but the mafia life corrupted his soul.

The only shortcoming the film has in regards to the original novel is author Mario Puzo's emphasis that the reason Vito Corleone- a dangerous mob boss -was treated with an unrealistic reverence by everyone was because he was such an outlier. He was a genuinely compassionate benefactor to honest, working class Italians, who didn't prey on his community and his own kind the way all the other New York crime families did. The #1 criticism of the Godfather's detractors has always been that it presents an overly glorified, unrealistic depiction of a mob boss. That it gives a false impression of the mafia being an enterprise with a certain amount of innate nobility. The novel points out that nothing could be further from the truth, and that this is why Vito is the protagonist. This is why he cultivated such an inflated reverence. His story is interesting simply because his personality is so out of place in the underworld. Puzo makes it clear that Vito is an anomaly, and that this is why he fostered such loyalty and respect among everyone who knew him. The other NYC crime families were every bit as authentically predatory and morally corrupt as their real life counterparts. But not Vito. No, Vito truly was unique amongst his contemporaries, and this is why the Corleones had such an unnatural air of majesty by everyone else around them.

When Michael took the life of his Brother Fredo, he was never the same. One of his most dark acts.

Watching Godfather 1 and 2, and then Scarface, really shows how flexible and talented of an actor Pacino is

How did Pacino not win the Oscar for part 2? The emotions he makes with his face alone should have given him that award.

I really loved that duality in The Godfather Part II, in how well the film’s structure showed the similarities and differences between both Michael’s and Vito’s rise to power, and in that Vito understanding the ambiguity and nuance to his evil, he never relinquished his humanity in order to become the provider his family needed. Whereas Michael descent in to darkness, betrayal and solitude was all driven by his sense of burden and responsibility to his family by ironically embracing who he believed his father was.

Michael Corleone and Scarface are two characters, that absolutely immortalized Al Pacino in the movie world.

I think it's also worth mentioning that Michael waited until their mother passed before he enacted his revenge on his brother. Even though it was a compromise between the director and the writer based on the writers unhappiness at the director's idea to have Michael order Fredo's death, to me really says something. He sat there with all that anger and resentment, and waited patiently. It was not a crime of passion or impulsive anger. It was a decision that he made, waited to enact, and stuck to when the time came. And I think that makes it even more impactful

Never thought of it til now, but since Michael was (as you say) a "law and order" person before the incident at the hospital, it may be reasonable to assume that seeing how a police captain (a person who is SUPPOSED to be a high moral authority) was so easily corrupted would cause him to abandon his previous beliefs and principles.

Michael's story is a tragic one. His fall, his solitary death, is Shakesperean.

As flawed as Part 3 is, the closing scene of Michael dying alone on the chair is the perfect send off for his character. Despite his attempts to atone, the sinkhole he’d built for himself was just too deep, and mirroring Don Ciccio, he’s left knowing he’s conjured nothing but pain and misery all his life

Vile Eye didn't pay attention. We all heard Michael renounce Satan and all his works at his little nephew's baptism.

With Friedo, I always thought it wasn't just jealousy and inexperience that made his character make mistakes, but that he was slightly slower mentally to connect the dots. They show Friedo having a fever as a baby, and that could of effected his cognitive reasoning

Michael’s transformation from a war hero to a lonely don shows how much the mafia life deeply scared his soul,and al Pacino portrays it perfectly truly solidifying this performance as one of the best in cinema.

Michael Corleone is one of the most cold and calculating characters ever put in cinema.. I only cried for him when he screamed for Fredo during his insulin shock.

Analyzing Evil is such a unique and interesting series...thanks for the videos

I've always seen Michael as someone who always had this within him. The book goes into more detail about how he always had the cold and ruthless nature from childhood, but developed a more kind-hearted persona later on, that he was convinced was who he was. He became a war hero, something which was revealed later to be a product of him sending a middle finger to his family rather than a genuine desire to fight for America. And when he came back he went another step further by getting with a girl who wasn't an Italian, to further separate himself from his family and the cycle of crime. Things change once his father was shot. Michael goes to the hospital to help, but truly becomes motivated once he's hit by the cop. The meaning behind his swolen face clearly represents Michael's prior mask of kind-heartedness and earnestness breaking, as we start seeing hints of the real Michael that he wasn't even aware of. Michael proposes to kill Solazzo and McClusky, adopting a colder and more ruthless persona, modeled after the "business, not personal" ideology his family went by. He, of course, struggles between his internal nature and what he's built up and therefore has issues in actually executing them, but he eventually manages to do it before fucking off to Italy. From there, it's quite peculiar how easily Michael seemed to have forgotten everything. In Italy, it seems that Michael borderline forgets about what he did and went through. He gets with another girl basically on first sight after manipulating and threatening her father and basically lives life as if nothing happened, only changing after she dies. Apallonia can be seen as the representation of a normal life for Michael. She is what Michael wants. The peacefulness. It's why the book shows so much attention to how much he adores her, and how much love he actually had for her. Her death devastates him, and makes him give into that cold and ruthless persona, which can be seen as his shadow. From her on out, he's a full-on slave to this persona and acts accordingly. We never see Michael truly open up or act differently. Even him getting back with Kay is just him projecting his desire for love onto her along with his need for validation that he's still the same Michael. He doesn't love her, at least not in the same way he loved Apallonia. The direction shows this perfectly. Part 2 fully actualizes the loss of Michael's soul as Michael contradicts all his past statements (business over personal matters, family over everything, etc.). But even then we never truly meet Michael Corleone until his fight with Kay. In his fight with Kay (the representation of his "innocense"), she spells out how much of a slave he is to the cycle of violence his family breeds and slaps him with the truth that she aborted their baby. She would rather abort their baby than risk perpetuating this cycle of crime that Michael is now trapped in and is trapping her in. Michael then cuts her off, fully shutting the door on her and severing his relationship with his past innocense, fully losing his soul. By this point, Michael has lost all his values. He clearly doesn't hold his family > all value as he willingly kills Fredo, nor does he value business > personal matters as he still goes for killing his enemies even when there's no possible way for them to threaten him to begin with. Michael has become nothing more than an empty shell of a man, fully aware of his lack of freedom from his heritage. I don't think The Godfather is a story about Michael changing from good to evil, but a story of Michael revealing his true character, not only to us and other characters, but also himself, and how he struggles to accept that.

It is funny how people look at the Godfather and claim these folks who murdered innocent men and women, bribed judges politicians, dealt drugs and were into all kinds of corruption. . .somehow were not "evil".

The problem with Fredo is this wasn't the first time. In the first movie he had made a similar deal with Moe Green against the family. He was given a second chance then. The life he chose rarely has second chances and never a third. Would it really have been wise for Michael to even just exile him? Besides the fact that he would very likely make the same mistake a third time, as he had already shown he wasn't likely to learn, but letting him live past the death of his mother would have been seen as weakness by the other families. No, Michael's mistake wasn't in having Fredo killed then, at that point it was unavoidable. No, Michael's mistake was in letting Fredo have any ability to make such a mistake after Moe Green. Fredo should have had zero power and always had someone with him to make sure he didn't make this kind of mistake. Fredo's downfall was his brother loved him too much to sideline him completely.

Vito once said: "Every man has a destiny.' After seeing how people live and die in his world, it seems more like a sentence than living.

Growing up in the automotive sales industry, I always found this man relatable as my family and loved ones thought I was inconsiderate and cold for always working 70 hour work weeks when in reality it was to give them the life they had and enjoyed. Such a shame many guys like that die alone all because their poor social skills and communication send an impression of cold arrogance to the ones closest to them that don’t understand until many years later all the sacrifices made.

I was disappointed that the woman murdered in the brothel was given so little mention as that was the probably the vilest of the killings done in Michael's interest. Not only had she done nothing against him or his family, she was making them money! There's also the irony of Al Neri being the iceman for the task as he was ejected from the NYPD for killing a pimp who had brutalized two of his girls, disfiguring one with a blade.

Michael could never develop the respect and loyalty from others as Vito did. This cost him to lose everything that was ever dear to him. He definitely is an example of someone that came to believe that ends justify the means. It’s a tragedy for sure

I love how in most movies/trilogies we have the main character redeeming themselves, they've learned from their past mistakes and works on being a better person. With Michael it's the complete opposite, a military man who believed in upholding law and wanted nothing to do with his father's shady business, as his character plays out he just get worst and worst more evil than he ever was in the first and never got the chance to redeem himself from his past life and ended up dying alone.

I cannot imagine how depressing it is to be a mafioso. What good is it to own everything and lose your soul?

I know everyone hates the third movie but the confession and Mary being killed were the saddest things I ever seen in a film

You’ve been picking some real bangers to talk about recently. I’m excited who you’re gonna talk about for the 50th episode blowout

6:08 I think Vito himself knew his business and actions were wrong but despite his actions he felt he was doing what he had to do to provide for his family and not get pushed around by more powerful people than himself like the people of Sicily including his dad, mother and brother had been by Don Ciccio who eventually killed all three leaving Vito the only surviving member of the Andolini family. Michael starts out wanting to be a then more modern 1940's and 50's American rather than the old fashioned Sicilian traditions his dad grew up with.

Michael Corleone is definitely one of the greatest cinema characters ever to grace the screen. A superb well written character. Al pacinos best performance of all time. 🙌

Speaking as an introvert i always feel sorry to Michael. He's a loner, always has been yet he was "forced" to be the head of most powerful family in NY.

I want to see Princess Azula from Avatar: the Last Airbender. Her fall from grace in the third season always intrigued me.

I recommend the book “Family Corleone” by Ed Falco, it is a prequel to the first Godfather. It is a perfect description of how Vito rose to head the most powerful family in New York.

The fact that he went into the Marine Corps is telling. As a Marine, you are a killer. One shot, one kill. Yet, you are also told and pushed into also being a good person to those who deserve it. Its also about respect by leading and not by just bullying. As a Marine myself, I have found most Marines are very, very kind and have huge hearts and are very protective of those less powerful.

Amazing video. ..The fact that Michael never wanted to be a part of that world, is what makes the story of The Godfather such a classic tragedy, such a powerful story

Anyone else waiting for the ultimate episode where he covers Tony Soprano? That whole show is full of interesting character studies.

I think Godfather 2’s ending is probably one of the best made scenes in cinema

This is such an amazing analysis of not only Michael's Evil traits, but of the Godfather series in general. Very well done.

One of the most incredible things about Michael is his explosive rage,you really get to FEEL that like I remember that I had to close my eyes like "oh shit here it comes" it's so real like if we were there or something,Al Pacino performances is absolutely out of this world of amazing,he was born to make Michael Corleone's character role.

00:13 That unsafe baby's crib was the most chilling part of this video.

I see some parallels with Michael and Walter White, in that they had initially good intentions, but when they could have left those means behind, their pride did not allow them to, and they end up spiralling further and further into a dark and evil world, only for it to punish them constantly.

"To transfer his family business from a criminal empire to a corporate one" What's the difference?

I like the very simple but very necessary disclaimer at the beginning: the mafia as an organization is evil. I feel among fans of the genre that's a message that's often lost in the glamour and personalities portrayed but the actions are still horrific and the ability to look at these loveable characters through a critical lens is important for self reflection.

Definitely need to do Tony Soprano soon, for the upcoming Saints of Newark film. Keep up the great work regardless though.

Michael Corleone went from being the one who didn’t want to be a part of the family business to being a far darker man than his father and far more evil

The worried, nervous look on Solozzo's face when Michael was shooting him that death glare is quite satisfying

This might go nowhere, but I love the dichotomy of the Godfather trilogy and Scarface. Al's portrayal of both characters, a war veteran turned Don and an immigrant turned to Kingpin is phenomenal. To me it ultimately says that once you are in the LIFE, you can never leave the LIFE.

Michael Corleone was a sin eater, the evil he committed was always to protect his family. He was truly remorseful and it ate away at him his entire life.

30:23 The real horrific thing was Sofia Coppola's acting though. Mary should have sounded like she was choking on blood when she said "Dad." Not like she was calmly asking Michael if she could go out with her boyfriend that night.

Godfather: Michael sells his soul to the Devil to preserve the families criminal empire. Godfather 2: The Devil fulfills his end of the bargain by giving the Corleone's unprecedented wealth and power. Godfather 3: The Devil comes to collect payment with interest.

Michael's distant and cold personality stems from having to fill in for his father, which is what he wanted to avoid entirely. He never wanted this role and despises it but knows that his family legacy would've been destroyed had he not reluctantly stepped up.

I would love to see Al Swearengen from the DEADWOOD series. Ian McShane's performance belongs in the company of the best ever and his character arc is phenomenal. There's no book to precede the series like a lot of this channel's installments but there is actual history; which could make for interesting material. The entire notion behind "amalgamation and capital" shaping the years leading into the 20th century for the US could be explored and how it can be seen as highly prevalent to today's times.

Will we ever get a Falling Down analysis? The ending comments of yours really reminded me of D Fens and what befell him throughout the movie.

Brilliant analysis. Your assessment of Michael and the world he's born into is so layered...as is his character. Michael Corleone is one of the most complex characters ever to be portrayed in film. Al Pacino's performance is extraordinary, and all three films are perfection in showing the evolution of his character. Your dissection of each of the phases of Michael and his descent into his evil side is outstanding. Thank you for this.

As Mike told his father in the garden: "I'm not a pezzonovante" One evil I saw with GF, among many, was when the 5 families were together and they decided to distribute drugs only in the black/hispanic communities, cause as one of the bosses said "they're animals anyway. So let them lose their souls". And the godfather said, "I'm willing to do whatever" to bring peace. His tacit approval did more harm to a community than any bookmaking , extortion and whorehouses could ever do. As for Fredo, the godfather said in the garden with micheal, "Fredo...ah, Fredo, Freddo.." and the famous chair scene with Fredo and Mike, saying "That's the way pop wanted", Fredo, "It's not the way I wanted!!" Mike said to Tom, "You can take your wife, children and your mistress". Mike trusted no one

He called the senator situation a murderous blunder? I always thought Michael set that murder up to get the senator to do what he wanted. That was another evil thing he done. There’s no way that wasn’t a set up. Tom even says to Geary that he was lucky it was one of their places

Just have to say, along with your great analysis I like how you sync up your intro greeting with the character/ first person we see speak. It’s just a small detail to point out but a highlight to me haha.

Pretty sure the issue with the gaming license didn't "resolve itself." Al Neri is literally lurking around the room, wiping off his hands. This was the actual first truly "evil" murder Michael is responsible for.

The tragedy of Michael Corleone is a compelling and realistic story of a good man's fall into becoming a monster.

My favorite character. Michael - Pacino’s perfection. Why do I not feel Michael is evil - he did what was necessary.

One could argue that doing what Michael Corleone did while KNOWING on every level it was evil, makes him WORSE than a psychopathic murderer who is missing that empathic element entirely. Keeping Fredo close, letting his son become close to him, knowing all the while he was going to murder him. THAT is truly malevolent in a man who KNOWS and empathicly feels in a normal way the cost of such an action. More by far than even a Ted bundy type who's crimes are far worse in every brutal objective measure but who doesn't have the empathy to FEEL the human cost, while still intellectually and legally knowing right from wrong and thus still legally responsible for his God awful actions.

There comes a time when the jewels cease to sparkle, when the gold loses its luster, when the throne room becomes a prison and all that is left is a fathers love for his child.

The conflict with Fredo has echoes and consequences that come back to hurt Michael later. Denial is real. You can convince yourself that being cruel to someone was right for so many reasons and you can do it for a long time, but eventually , if you have a conscious, it will break through and get to you. The choice to kill Fredo cripples Michael in the 3rd movie, it affects his health and his decisions, as he is trying to go back and be the good person he was before he killed Solozzo. The saddest part of Michael, though, is that he never figured out that he destroyed himself.

The vilest part of _The Godfather_ trilogy is excluding Robert Duvall as consigliere, and replacing him with George Hamilton.

There's one extra murder that really hit me. The prostitute that was with Senator Geary in Godfather II. That was coldhearted and despicable as hell, as it was just a girl working to survive, that had no one to take care of her, or even ask about her whereabouts (as Tom precisely said). Obviously, the murder was directly committed by Al Neri, with directions by Tom Hagen (it changed my view of that character, that had seem so respectable until that point, or even Al Neri, that had always been so respectful of his own familiy). But I really doubt that it was done without Michael's knowledge, or even direct approval. To me, that's the most despicable murder in all three movies. At least Fredo had committed a grave mistake, and was foolish and risked the family's lives. But that girl in the motel... she had done nothing. Nothing at all. That was purely evil.

Michael sat in a darkened room, on his own, plotting. That was always his destiny and where he seems most at home despite his obvious paranoia, depression and even madness.

One of my favorite themes in the first movie is Michael’s procession from courting Appolonia to Kay. How it outlines his transformation from young man who goes through the steps to please others in order to be accepted, to a cold hearted pragmatist who turns a marriage proposal into a business transaction.

Its crazy how I can watch one of these videos without knowing literally anything about the media being discussed and still enjoy and understand it

The analyzing of Clay Morrow for sons of anarchy is my biggest suggestion right now

When Michael's daughter dies his reaction is classic. The sream without sound is some professional acting. As well as the stroke he have as he keeps saying his brothers name it's like he never forgave himself for having him killed. Wow The Godfather is a Classic movie .

Absolutely perfectly done. Best breakdown I’ve ever seen. Thank you.

From an optimistic dreamer to a soulless killer

Great character from 2 amazing movies, glad you made this one. It’s such a tragedy considering the Don had the most hope for Michael

Superb mate, thank you. One of my favourite characters that I can personality relate to so much. Love the books and films! My favorites

I have been analyzing this for so long and you put it into words and action, bravo!

I honestly almost cried during this analysis even after having seen the trilogy countless times starting from my childhood to today. Great job @TheVileEye. I have a suggestion for a future episode also. I vote for The Baron from Into the Badlands. Thanks for the awesome content✌🏾

What an epic narrative you’ve presented. I always got the general picture of Michael’s tragedy but this character analysation is just down-write colossal in its weight and complexity. I must say the morally complex characters are always the most interesting to deep-dive into. This is one of your best essays yet! Keep up the incredible quality work man.

What an outstanding essay. You are spot on with every single aspect of your hypnosis and touched on some ideas that I hadn't thought about. This further reminds me why watching these films is like watching a beautiful painting come to life.

I love how you articulate on why you should not excuse evil acts no matter what the case is because so many people do. You said it perfectly in the beginning of the video

Michael Corleone is one of fiction’s most tragic characters. Awesome analysis.

One who says precious little, listens much, and catches on to every detail. Sounds like a good traits

This is a weird one because a lot of people see this as a comedy but I’d love you to do a video on the Truman show as I see it as a psychological horror. Maybe you could do an analysing evil on the wife, director or the best friend.

Thank you for this great analysis of my favorite movie character of all time, The character development of Michael Corleone is still unmatched in cinema.

Anyway, here are some suggestions… Elijah Price AKA Mr Glass from the Unbreakable trilogy Azula from Avatar: The Last Airbender Lorne Malvo from Fargo And Seth Brundle from The Fly

I love how smooth Michael was by the end of part 1 through part 2. And, I felt that pain when his daughter was killed. Such great acting in part 1-2. He's probably my favorite gangsta. I really like this video. I don't remember much of part 3. You make me want to go back and look at The Godfather movies again. Good job. ✌🏼

He was amazing in this movie..A class actor.

I always enjoyed you’re videos and now you helped me finish a final paper, thank you

My all time favorite movie/trilogy…with easily one of the best character arcs ever written, in my opinion.

His wife's death ended any desire to be a law-abiding citizen his cold deminer to protect from that loss ever touching him again he then wanted to control the family's lives because he saw their free chooses could lead to their deaths or injury.

I love your analysis of Michael and his decisions, well done with this video.

At the end of the day mob life is generally not worth it. Being a teacher, having family and retiring in peace with family intact and no enemies is much better and more fulfilling.