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Matthew Goode looks to be doing a marvelous Bob Evans! They should do a sequel with the same principal cast about the making of The Cotton Club. The rise and fall.

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra



I just finished watching this, and I liked it, but it was largely because I am a fan of the book and the movie.


The one big downside of the series is the general lack of tension. Any problems, which the characters encounter, get resolved quickly.


Pacino's casting was brilliant. Loved Goode as Evans. But the best part was the bromance between Puzo and Coppola.


And if anyone would have told me Dr. Karev would play Brando I would have laughed my butt off, but Chambers actually does a decent job.


Matthew Goode looks to be doing a marvelous Bob Evans! They should do a sequel with the same principal cast about the making of The Cotton Club. The rise and fall.


Watching this next. Evans seemed like a fascinating character.



I was pretty interested in this, but I read some reviews that said it was fairly slow and very padded, and padded shows really bug me. Things that are 10 hours when they could be 8 or even 6.



I just started watching this yesterday so I am 2 hours in. Matt Good is instantly recognizable as Robert Evans. MIles Teller has grown into a very sexy guy. The bromance Between Puzo and Coppola is maybe a little too cutesy. All in all I am really enjoying this and looking forward to the rest of it in the coming days.



I was pretty interested in this, but I read some reviews that said it was fairly slow and very padded, and padded shows really bug me. Things that are 10 hours when they could be 8 or even 6.
I am on episode five of ten and enjoying it. It probably is padded a bit, but I am enjoying it all the same.



This looked very interesting to me and I was planning on starting to watch it in a couple of weeks, but it's not really getting the reception I thought it would. I still plan to watch it though. I really like Miles Teller.



I was pretty interested in this, but I read some reviews that said it was fairly slow and very padded, and padded shows really bug me. Things that are 10 hours when they could be 8 or even 6.

Yes, it is.
This could easily have been couple of episodes shorter, without cutting any characters or plotlines. In fact I would have instead liked to know if they had any problems while shooting in Italy. That part was rushed.


Most of the last episode was a waste, and felt indulgent.


The other issue I had was -


WARNING: spoilers below

The change in few character's behaviour was mostly sudden. I understand this is a limited series, but it felt weird.


Francoise Glazer went from being one of the coolest, strong, independent female characters to a needy person, in a flash.


What really cured Evans? I mean he thanks Al who pays him a visit, but it didn't seem to help. There was no trigger.





But fans of the movie and the book will overlook these things and enjoy this.





I did finish the series last week and very much enjoyed it. I'd say it drags a little in the middle with some of the romantic relationship subplot with Ruddy & Françoise and then the mob stuff it got a little repetitive. But once the movie-within-the-movie started filming it picked back up and I found it all very satisfying.

I get what you are saying about some of the character turns toward the end, including Colin Hanks' executive, but that is the problem with a composite character like that, that he has to represent several stories and types rolled into one. But I went with it.

Very well cast. I hope Matthew Goode wins every award he is up for.



I loved it, but I would have ended it with the mob guys getting their own viewing and skipped the last episode.


Mathew Goode was great. I loved watching him chew up the scenery as Bob Evans being dumped by Ali McGraw.
Juno Temple's character Bettye was great and kept it from being a complete sausage fest. Nice to know she was based on a real Hollywood character.



I'm 3 episodes in, but I almost bailed after the first episode due to the amateurish dialogue, plus Miles Teller looking like he'd rather be anywhere else than in his role as Ruddy. He got a little better later, but I still think that either his dialogue is poor, or that he's questionable casting.

The story itself is tantalizing. We've all read The Godfather and have seen the film, but I'm not sure how much of the story re the mob trying to kill the movie was accurate. I do recall the Italian-American Civil Rights League, evidently started by Joe Columbo to deny the existence of the Mafia, which most people thought was pretty funny. And there was a huge rally at Columbus Circle in NYC.

At first the dialogue was ladened with obvious reminders that the movie was about The Godfather.Eventually it got a little less advertisement-like. Matthew Goode does an interesting portrayal of studio exec Robert Evans, but he seems too geeky in a role that writers couldn't decide whether to make him crazy or threatening. In videos I've seen of Evans, he himself seems more like a Mafia character.

I do like Juno Temple in her role as Ruddy's secretary, Bettye McCartt. She does a near flawless American accent. She was about the only thing I liked in the series Ted Lasso. Re the Puzo/Copolla relationship: I doubt that in real life the pair acted together like Laurel and Hardy..

So far my take is that the series is mediocre, but that it's still watchable due to the material.





Have to admit that I really enjoyed the opening episode of this fascinating, if slightly fictionalized look at the people, places, and events that led to the creation of the 1972 Oscar winner for Best Picture, The Godfather. Even if the events presented in this opening episode are cold, hard fact, they still come off as rather cliched and convenient for the sake of entertainment. It just seemed convenient that Mario Puzo's previous book went nowhere and that he owed $5000 to the mob at the time he was persuaded to write the book. It seemed convenient that a former computer programmer named Albert Ruddy (loved the reminder that Ruddy was one of the creative forces behind the CBS sitcom Hogan's Heroes) had the opportunity to produce The Godfather just dropped in his lap by the insufferably arrogant Robert Evans. And, of course, we're told that no studio wanted to touch the product, even though Paramount paid Puzo $15000 for the rights after reading the first 15 pages of the novel. Needless to say, the real wiseguys were not thrilled with the book or the prospect of it becoming a movie. I did like the little peeks into the primary characters' personal lives. Loved Robert Evans telling Arthur Hiller he couldn't direct Love Story unless his girlfriend at the time, Ali MacGraw, played the lead. Loved Mrs. Puzo warning Ruddy to make sure Mario eats right while he's working on the screenplay. Not sure what it had to do with the story at hand, but I also enjoyed when Ruddy flies to Mexico to talk Robert Redford into doing Big Fauss and Little Halsey and when Frank Sinatra bullies Puzo at a crowded restaurant. As for the performances, I am actually finding Mile Teller a little one note as Ruddy, but I loved Paul Gallo as Mario Puzo, Juno Temple as Ruddy's streetwise assistant Betty, Dan Fogler as Francis Ford Copolla, but if the truth be told, Matthew Goode is quietly walking off with this thing with his flashy, theatrical performance as Robert Evans. As a factual accounting of how The Godfather got to the screen, I don't know, but as pure entertainment, episode one hit a bullseye.



I'm 3 episodes in, but I almost bailed after the first episode due to the amateurish dialogue, plus Miles Teller looking like he'd rather be anywhere else than in his role as Ruddy. He got a little better later, but I still think that either his dialogue is poor, or that he's questionable casting.

The story itself is tantalizing. We've all read The Godfather and have seen the film, but I'm not sure how much of the story re the mob trying to kill the movie was accurate. I do recall the Italian-American Civil Rights League, evidently started by Joe Columbo to deny the existence of the Mafia, which most people thought was pretty funny. And there was a huge rally at Columbus Circle in NYC.

At first the dialogue was ladened with obvious reminders that the movie was about The Godfather.Eventually it got a little less advertisement-like. Matthew Goode does an interesting portrayal of studio exec Robert Evans, but he seems too geeky in a role that writers couldn't decide whether to make him crazy or threatening. In videos I've seen of Evans, he himself seems more like a Mafia character.

I do like Juno Temple in her role as Ruddy's secretary, Bettye McCartt. She does a near flawless American accent. She was about the only thing I liked in the series Ted Lasso. Re the Puzo/Copolla relationship: I doubt that in real life the pair acted together like Laurel and Hardy..

So far my take is that the series is mediocre, but that it's still watchable due to the material.
I just watched the first episode and I agree with a lot of what you've said here. A lot of the events presented here seemed made up for entertainment value. I also agree that Miles Teller was kind of blah in the first episode, but I LOVED Matthew Goode as Robert Evans.



I just finished watching this, and I liked it, but it was largely because I am a fan of the book and the movie.


The one big downside of the series is the general lack of tension. Any problems, which the characters encounter, get resolved quickly.


Pacino's casting was brilliant. Loved Goode as Evans. But the best part was the bromance between Puzo and Coppola.


And if anyone would have told me Dr. Karev would play Brando I would have laughed my butt off, but Chambers actually does a decent job.





Watching this next. Evans seemed like a fascinating character.
A movie or limited series about the making of The Cotton Club would be fascinating. Heard there was a lot of turmoil on that set. It was one of the few things that Robert Evans didn't want to talk about in his documentary The Kid Stays in the Picture.



Joe Columbo's speech as the leader of the Italian Civil Rights League was an unsettling beginning to ep 2, considering the movie hasn't even begun filming yet. Loved Kirk Acevedo as an FBI agent. Loved that first scene between Puzo and Coppola where Coppola refers of what they're doing as "just another day day"...not sure what he meant by that. Don't really understand how killing Al Ruddy was supposed to stop the film from being made, unless it was just meant as a warning. That party scene at bob Evans' house made me think the only reason Ali MacGraw married him was to further her career. LOVED Coppola's pitch to Bob Evans. Even if it was true, it was a little cliche implying that The Godfather was a do or die project for Coppola. I laughed out loud when they mentioned other actors being considered for the role of Don Vito Corleone. Sinatra's role in keeping this movie from being made is making for high drama and I'm loving Frank John Hughes in the role. Was Vic Damone that much of a pussy? Ruddy's speech to Coppola was like something out of a Mickey Rooney/Judy Garland movie. Not really getting Betty's importance to this story yet. Couldn't believe Bob Evans actually referred to himself as "The Movies". Loved Danny Nucci as Congressman Biaggi and Anthony Ippolito was perfect as Al Pacino. Loved that message left in Bob Evan's bed. How did they get it in there? I wonder if they really did that? Matthew Goode nailed that scene in the cab with Miles Teller. The writing was a little corny but the actors are doing their best to make this work.



Ghouls, vampires, werewolves... let's party.
I finished watching the last episode a couple days ago. I loved it. Pacing and everything was perfect ... and educational. It's a mystery as to why The Godfather is not available on Paramount Plus.



Giovanni Ribisi made the opening of ep 3 sizzle with tension. Loving the slow burn bromance between Puzo and Coppola. That phone call between Betty and Bludhorn was golden. Can't believe Betty went to Puzo's house on her own to get the screenplay. Not sure what kind of juice Ruddy's girlfriend has, but hoping it will become clear later. Christoph Waltz should have played Charlie Bluhorn. Lovanse when Columbo actually asked Ruddy what the phrase "Fade in" means. Teller worked that scene with Ribisi. "Wow, ...I thought we were having a drink, this is a salad!" Loved when Copolla was shooting the house and imagined Ruddy and Betty as Michael and Kay. So just removing the word "mafia" from the screenplay got the mob off Ruddy'sback? Really? I lost it when Columbo called Sonny Bono a lawn jockey. Loved the scene where Copolla and Pacino are discussing the Michael character. My jaw dropped when Francoise suggested to Bob Evans that Sinatra play the Don. I've never heard that before. Evans' reaction to the script had me on the floor. "I really wish people would stop telling me where to sh*t." Hope there's a huge catfight between Francoise and Betty coming at some point.



The fiery argument between Al and Francoise that opened ep 4 confused me. Didn't really understand why Francoise was upset about having to attend the premiere of Love Story. I'm loving the fact that Bob Evans is fighting the casting of all the actors who eventually ended up in The Godfather. Did he really refer to Brando as "box office poison." Didn't that phrase go out of style in the 1940's? Miles Teller is finally beginning to grow into the role of Albert Ruddy, even if it took four episodes for it to happen. Justin Chambers nocked it out of the park as Brando, possibly my favorite scene in this mini series thus far. I was glad t hear Ruddy admit to Betty that he often doesn't know what he's doing, because that's definitely how he comes off here. Loving Frank John Hughes as Frank Sinatra. Great to see James Madio as Carmine...I haven't seen him in anything since The Basketball Diaries. Danny Thomas auditioned for the role of Don Vito? Still not clear why Evans is fighting the casting of Pacino so hard. Don't understand Barry Lapidus' position at Paramount. The scene where Evans and Brando met was excellent. Does Ruddy actually consider Joe Columbo a friend? Seriously? Hope Francoise is really out of this, she was really starting to annoy me. Loved Teller in that scene where Ruddy stood up to Barry and Jack. Ribisi was excellent in that scene where they pressured the owner of the house. I liked the fact that Ruddy didn't like it. This show is beginning to imply that the mob overlooked everything regarding this movie. Coppola wanted Carmine Caridi as Sonny? He would have been terrible in that role. The scene where Pacino learned he got the role of Michael was amazing.



Well, we had to wait for ep 5 for it happen, but the first actual bloodshed over this movie occurred, though I didn't understand why the victims were such minor players in this whole thing. I guess they were just trying to send a message. Are ever going to learn exactly why Bob Evans hated Al Pacino so much? Might it have something to do with Ali MacGraw? This episode finally cleared up Barry Lapidus' role in this drama. Excellent work b y Matthew Goode in that scene with Evans and the head of MGM. Love that Congressman Biaggi is not of the story yet, still trying to stop the film from being made. Biaggi had a lot more juice behind him than I ever imagined. Didn't really see where Evans change of heart about Pacino came from. Very smart move on Ruddy's part to attend Carmine's funeral. Really liked the actor playing cinematographer Gordon Willis, he reminded me of James Spader. Loved Copolla's explanation of needing a working kitchen. Paul McCrane was totally smarmy as Jack Dawson. Teller was excellent in that scene with Andrea Eastman. Like the actress playing Ali MacGraw. She's a better actress than Ali MacGraw. Not surprised to learn that Evans didn't want her to do The Getaway. Burn Goorn, is fun as Charlie Bluhorn, but I keep picturing Christoph Waltz in the part. LOved the Corleone dinner party that Coppola threw and everyone waited for Brando to sit down first. The actress playing Diane Keaton looks EXACTLY like her. That dinner party scene was brilliant...couldn't tell if it was improvised or not. Coppola's fascination with seeing the "family" together was infectious. How did Ceasar and his guys get on the payroll without Ruddy knowing about it? Curious to find out exactly what Charlie is trying to gey out of Betty. Dan Fogler brings a very unassuming quality to Coppola that I have a hard time reconciling with the real Coppola. It looks like Columbo has Ruddy's balls in a vice.