Not unlike many of the auteurs of the New Hollywood of the 1970s and beyond, Francis Ford Coppolas moviemaking mantra often came down to What would Hitchcock do?

The way in which Coppola shot the sequence detailing Virgil Sollozzos (Al Lettieri) death inThe Godfatherbears no exception to this rule. In thisillustrative video analysis by Glass Distortion, The Godfather: Sollozzos Death Script to Screen Analysis, Coppolas voice-over narration of the scene explains: Hitchcock was such a master about manipulating information for the audienceusually telling you things so that you were equipped to enjoy what you were seeing. Rather than withholding information, he would give you information.

Watching the text from Coppola and Mario Puzos screenplay pop up over eachshot, the function of the information given on-screen in this sceneparticularly Michael Corleones (Al Pacino) abrupt, emphatic shift from speaking Italian to speaking English, and his ignoring of his associate Peter Clemenzas (Richard S. Castellano) instructions on what to do to whack Sollozzois made clear.

The scenes awkward missteps, jarring sound mix andsense of frozen time and space, Coppola explains, all serve the films character development, defining Michaels cool, calm execution of the duties his newly adopted mob lifestyle has thrusted upon him. After all, this scene depicts not only the death of two of Michaels adversaries, but also the death of his innocence as a civilian.The tension betweenthe former self that Michael is shedding and the new self that he is transforming into in this violent baptism of sorts is the emotional core around which Coppolas shot and script design is structured.

As the scene starts, Coppola stresses that Rushing this would ruin it. Otherwise, the scenecant be ruined. The directorsstatement doesnt simplydemonstrate his confidence in both his performers and the aforementioned formal elements. Rather, his assertion reminds moviemakers of the peace of mind thats achieved when a scenes moving parts are designed to work in synchronicity. By designing the scenes intensity to be dependent upon well-executed pacing, Coppola was able to cast its final, bloody conclusion against the off-kilter presence of his extras in the background. This approach creates a dissonance between the relaxed, oblivious restaurant patrons and the mile-a-minute heart rate of Michaels character as he kills Sollozzo and Captain Mark McCluskey (Sterling Hayden).

Watch the video anddecide for yourself how you might be able to use this Hitchcockian method to design a pivotal moment of your film.MM

Go here to see the original:
Anatomy of a Whacking: Learn To Milk Unbearable Tension With This Godfather Script-to-Screen Breakdown (Video) - MovieMaker Magazine