The Church Scene
Godfather Coda cuts a brief scene in which Michael Corleone receives an honor (the Order of Saint Sebastian) from Gilday while flashing back to Fredo’s death, which helps establish that he’s haunted by his hypocrisy.
Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) receives the fictional Order of Saint Sebastian in Godfather III.
The Balcony Scene
Coppola has talked at length about his pained response to criticisms of his daughter, Sofia Coppola, in the film. She stepped in to play Michael Corleone’s daughter, Kay, after Winona Ryder became ill. Her line readings were stilted in places, most notably a scene on a New York City balcony in which Mary confronts Michael about whether he’s just using her as a prop in the family’s new foundation.
In Godfather Coda, Francis Ford Coppola cuts the opening lines of the scene, in which Sofia Coppola’s line readings seem notably off.
Sofia Coppola emerged from the criticism just fine, she told The New York Times. “It taught me that as a creative person, you have to put your work out there… It toughens you up. I know it’s a cliché, but it can make you stronger.”
Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) and daughter Mary Corleone (Sofia Coppola) after a discussion.
The Title
This one’s obvious, but it was important to Coppola, who said he and The Godfather author Mario Puzo wanted The Godfather III to be called Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone all along and that he finally got his way 30 years after the original’s release. Paramount also fought with Coppola way back in 1974 about whether he could call The Godfather Part II by that name, or whether it would make audiences think the film was a retread.
The key players in Godfather: Coda.
The Dance Flashbacks
In the original cut of the film, Michael flashes back after the opera scene to his dance with his daughter Mary; his dance with his first wife, Apollonia (Simonetta Stefanelli); and his dance with his second wife, Kay (Diane Keaton). The new version cuts the dances with his former wives to focus on his dance with Mary.
A dance between Michael and Kay Corleone (Diane Keaton).
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