David Hume Kennerly Movies
- 2008
For the past fifty years, Painting Group founders Aaron Shikler and David Levine have been meeting in New York City to create art and establish a sense of solidarity among the city's artists. Each week, the artists of the Painting Group come together to paint portraits. On this particular day, however, their subject is not just a random model but pioneering Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. As the artists begin painting their portraits, O'Connor shares anecdotes about the Supreme Court that are sometimes funny, but always fascinating. Shikler is no stranger to such famous subjects either; in addition to having painted a post mortem portrait for President John F. Kennedy for the White House, he has also painted portraits of First Ladies Jacqueline Kennedy and Nancy Reagan. Likewise, his talented partner Levine is well known for illustrations and caricatures that have appeared in The New York Review of Books among other publications. While some of the artists opt to paint a more traditional portrait of O'Connor, others take artistic license to create portraits that are a bit less conventional. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
After a break of more than 15 years, director Francis Ford Coppola and writer Mario Puzo returned to the well for this third and final story of the fictional Corleone crime family. Two decades have passed, and crime kingpin Michael Corleone (Al Pacino), now divorced from his wife Kay (Diane Keaton), has nearly succeeded in keeping his promise that his family would one day be "completely legitimate." A philanthropist devoted to public service, Michael is in the news as the recipient of a special award from the Pope for his good works, a controversial move given his checkered past. Determined to buy redemption, Michael and his lawyer B.J. (George Hamilton) are working on a complicated but legal deal to bail the Vatican out of looming financial troubles that will ultimately reap billions and put Michael on the world stage as a major financial player. However, trouble looms in several forms: The press is hostile to his intentions. Michael is in failing health and suffers a mild diabetic stroke. Stylish mob underling Joey Zaza (Joe Mantegna) is muscling into the Corleone turf. "The Commission" of Mafia families, represented by patriarch Altobello (Eli Wallach) doesn't want to let their cash cow Corleone out of the Mafia, though he has made a generous financial offer in exchange for his release from la cosa nostra. And then there's Vincent Mancini (Andy Garcia), the illegitimate and equally temperamental son of Michael's long-dead brother Sonny. Vincent desperately wants in to the family (both literally and figuratively), and at the urging of his sister Connie (Talia Shire), Michael welcomes the young man and allows him to adopt the Corleone name. However, a flirtatious attraction between Vincent and his cousin, Michael's naïve daughter Mary (Sofia Coppola) develops, and threatens to develop into a full-fledged romance and undo the godfather's future plans. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, (more)
