I was extremely excited to see the new cut of The Godfather Part III. I bought a digital copy. As I was seeing the movie, I could barely notice any changes.

By the trailer of this movies, I was led to believe that Sofia Coppola's role was going to be drastically cut; that was not the case. As you probably now, her acting has been the biggest point of contention against Part III.

After the movie ended, I felt that I was cheated. The differences in The Godfather Part III and The Godfather Coda are just too small to make a big deal out of them. I was expecting to see a big improvement that take this movie closer to the level of the first two parts, but was very disappointed.

First off, I adore the first two Godfather films. They were wonderfully made, scored, directed and acted with compelling elegiac stories. However, while I do not think it is as bad as it is made out to be, The Godfather Part III is a disappointment. I did like it in general, but in comparison to the first two it is like a distant relative.

Starting with the good things, it does look splendid. The cinematography is beautiful and the settings are superb. The music is also outstanding, and the direction is good. The acting is uneven, but not all of it is bad. Al Pacino does have a lot of fine moments as a more gentler Michael, while Andy Garcia is electrifying too.

However, I didn't like the story as much here. It lacked the elegiac feel of the first two, it has a lot of loose ends and there was a number of times I didn't know what was going on. The script isn't as thoughtful, intelligent or as sophisticated here, instead some of it is quite stilted. As much as I do love Diane Keaton I personally don't think she was necessary here, she served her purpose perfectly in the first two. Finally I have to concur about Sophia Coppola. She never convinces as the "symbol of innocence", and just comes across sometimes as embarrassing. Much has been said about the climax in the opera house, some loved it, others didn't. I think it was a mixed bag. I had no problem with Pacino, the way it was shot and the music but it did come across as very protracted.

So all in all, not awful, not great. 6/10 Bethany Cox

THE GODFATHER: PART III may not be the best film in the world, but it does serve as a fitting conclusion to the Oscar-winning series. The story (as well as the director and actors) have now moved on 20 years, allowing the narrative a change to explore the differences that age and time have had upon them, making a story that in some aspects feels superior to the second film, which didn't really add much that we didn't know from the original.

Coppola's direction is assured as ever, and there are enough returning actors from the original series to make this a joy to watch. The newcomers are also pretty interesting, in particular Andy Garcia, who seems to be channelling Pacino's spirit from the first two movies. I didn't find Sofia Coppola to be distracting in the least, only that the camera is clearly in love with her, which you'd expect given that the director's her father.

What I enjoyed most is that the film gets back to the series origins: this one's about corruption in high places, religion, betrayal and violent murder. The characters visit some dark places, which is what we the viewer wish to watch, and the extended opera set-piece works nicely along with the helicopter assault. It also doesn't feel as slow as the admittedly superior second part, which is also a point in its favour.