Watch Bonanno: A Godfather's Story For Free

Why so much hype?

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Go in cold, and you're likely to emerge with your blood boiling. This has to be seen to be believed.

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.

So many people have seen Mario Puzo's the 'Godfather' and Terence Young's 'The Valachi Papers ' that the famous families of all the gangland characters of the 1920s' and 30's are very familiar household names to audiences everywhere. Thus this serious film directed by Michel Poulette, called " Bonanno: A Godfather's story " should come as no surprise to anyone watching the movie. The story is a multi-generational tale as recalled by Joseph and William Bonanno. They were the Father (Martin Landau and Costas Mandylor) and son heads of the Bonanno crime family in New York. Beginning with his birth in Italy, emigrating to America and later ruling as one of the Five Families in New York, Joseph relates his life as part of the Rise and Fall of the Cosa Nostra. Audiences are towed along on a historical ride as the two relate their ties with all the well known bosses, and key family heads like Charlie 'Lucky' Luciano, Joe Masseria, Don Ciccio Joe Profaci, Albert Anastasia and Joe Valachi. Other notable figures also surprise audiences like Joe Sr., John and Robert Kennedy. Through four hours of vivid narration, we see how a single life touched so many during the heyday of the gangster, adding key elements to historical assassinations and murders. It's a great film, albeit, a tad long, nevertheless, Martin Landau is a superb choice for the centerpiece of this Classic movie. ****

This movie have 4 parts and every is around 170 minutes long. Its based on true story of life of Joe Bonanno and it is telling all how he did see. So in some events we can notice that we heard different about it. Movie make you tied up for chair till the end, i think it is possible to watch all 4 in a row, and not notice i watched 2 in a row and 2 next day in a row. Acting in movie is OK in some scenes awesome but in general could be bather, but this movie is not about acting or special effects and glamor, this one show real thing and story is key to this movie. So the one who look for same spectacular Rambo/matrix/titanic movie you can skip this one. Good thing in movie is that follow the main story so you will not have long and boring love scenes or any different interrupt with something not important to crime business of Bonanno.

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!!