One of my all time favorites.

Better Late Then Never

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Blistering performances.

Propaganda from the Mafia, in this sense it might be viewed as a dark comedy. It gets countless details wrong, especially every scene where the Sicilians are drinking coffee, incorrectly. One can forgive the mixed cast, it is after all, an acting exercise. However, that this gangster, this author could present such lies, denial, and drama as a substitute for truth is in fact a moral crime, an extension of the guilty mind making dirty lies. Who can even believe this story? Edward Almos is always a pleasure to watch, so there is that. Otherwise, to whatever extent this is in fact a "true" story, it is pathetic. And, I live in Sicily. Sicily does not even have a "j" in their alphabet. I have never, and you never will meet a Sicilian named Joe. The facts, props, names, history and reality have been changed, I would assume, to protect the otherwise empty nonsense of this film.

You could say I'm biased a) because my grandparents were Sicilian and b) because I love the genre. I also have a screenplay about my grandparents' story, and I see sections my own script magnificently produced in many scenes of this movie.Some comments are negative because they claim the movie "glorifies" criminals. Personally, I don't agree with that view. In any event, regardless of the value judgments one might pass, this movie is full of merit for many reasons.It is a wonderful time piece, taking us from Sicily of the early 1900s to the US of the 1990s. The sets are wonderful, the wardrobe outstanding. And the actors are excellent, except for the man playing Joe Masseria, who I think overacted a bit. Although, perhaps that's what Masseria was like.The script, the critical element that truly makes (or breaks) a film, IMO is also very good. In addition to telling the story it has to tell, it includes a bonus. And that is small tidbits of "universal wisdom," if you will.The importance of one's word. The movie evokes a time when that meant a great deal, in contrast to current times.The importance of never forgetting those who have lent you a hand in the past, and expressing gratitude for it by returning the favor when the opportunity arises.Maxims such as "When it's your life that's on the line, you can only trust yourself".Perhaps a 10 is a tad too generous, but I'd give it no less than a 9.The reason it gets a 10 is as kudos for having produced a great script. Great scripts of all genres need to be produced, and not the garbage that keeps getting cranked out. The saying goes, "you can have a bad movie with a good script, but you can't have a good movie with a bad script." In this case, we have a great script and great production, which equals a great movie.

I found parts of this movie rather slow, especially the first part; the second part seemed to go a lot faster, but it's not totally clear to me as to why one part was faster than the other. I somehow managed to find it enjoyable. The acting was good, the writing was good (yet vulgar). There was also another good side to it: it was easier to understand than say, the Godfather movies. You knew who was on whose side, etc. All in all, the movie wasn't half-bad.

The true life story of an American mobster. If you're a fan of "The Godfather," then this film might be worth watching as it's alleged that Mario Puzo borrowed from Joseph Bonanno's life story. You can see many similarities from "being chased out of Sicily," to "the extravagant wedding," to "the confrontation of the local made man who's collecting with the up-and-coming godfather," etc. Other than that...fudgetaboutit! Told through the cliché flashback, Martin Landau's voice-over narration is excruciating. Director Michel Poulette should have taken notes on how Coppola handled flash-backs in "GF2." Not that the story is all bad--just long! It reads more like a documentary. Then what about this whole issue that these men are "bound by honor," yet the Bonanno's sell out to create this Hollywood tale? Peter Bonanno said he wanted Hollywood to show the truth instead of a fictionalized Mafia movie. Excuse me? What about "Casino?" or "Goodfellas?" or "Gotti?" or...you get the idea. Looks to me like these ex-Mafia gents aren't greasing the politicians anymore, but instead Hollywood producers to make themselves appear like American icons. Fud-get-about-it!!