Sofia Coppola’s Mary Corleone is infamously one of the most hated characters in The Godfather Part III (1990), but the original casting of the talented Winona Ryder could have saved the part. The Godfather 3 is the final installment of the saga, bringing Michael’s primary role in the Corleone family to a close. The main plotlines focus on Sonny's bastard son Vincent (Andy Garcia) attempting to ascend within the family, and Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) seeking to legitimize the family's business while also involved with the banking scandal of the Vatican.
Aside from some controversial plot points and directions The Godfather 3 took, Mary Corleone was seen as one of the biggest faults of the movie. Director Francis Ford Coppola’s daughter Sofia Coppola was cast as Michael Corleone’s daughter Mary after several actresses had previously dropped out. Before the movie, Coppola had only had small roles in her father's movies; nothing to warrant qualification for a pivotal role in one of the most important franchises of all time.
A few actresses were confirmed to have signed on as Mary before Coppola’s infamous casting, but the most significant name was Winona Ryder. Ryder had just finished three movies back-to-back and (via Vanity Fair) dropped out of The Godfather 3 at the last minute due to “nervous exhaustion.” Her boyfriend at the time, Johnny Depp, called The Godfather 3 set to say Ryder was ill and couldn’t come in for her scenes. The set doctor visited her and diagnosed her as having a nervous collapse, deeming her unable to play the role. Unfortunately for The Godfather 3, Winona Ryder’s experience and acting style would have been the perfect solution to fix the infamously hated character Mary Corleone.
Mary Corleone’s role in The Godfather 3 is the emotional anchor, which requires a much more skilled performance to be effective. Mary is the reason why Vincent is risking his ascension as the Don of the Corleone family as well as the tragic death that serves as the highest price Michael pays for his sins. Mary’s character is integral to the plot, and Coppola’s inexperienced acting, when paired with professionals like Pacino, Garcia, and Diane Keaton, is almost so distracting that her contributions to the storyline are ineffective. Winona Ryder was at a high point in her career, having just come off of Heathers and Beetlejuice where her rebelliousness and semi-immoral conscience could be translated flawlessly to Mary Corleone. Ryder also had an acting style that would reflect both of her parents’ characters: the fidgety uneasiness of Kay and the cool, confident Italian demeanor of Michael.
The poor chemistry with Garcia from Coppola’s underwhelming performance makes one of the most crucial conflicts - Vincent having to decide if he will give up the Don to be with his cousin - seem all the more childish and insignificant. The Godfather 3’s incestual storyline is taboo, which adds a layer of high-risk rebelliousness to Vincent who is trying desperately to claw his way into the family, but needed the right actress in Mary’s role to be convincing. Winona Ryder would have been able to deliver the subtleties of Mary’s character that help the audience fully understand why Vincent would risk his life’s goal for his naive young cousin.
Winona Ryder’s substitution may not have fixed the movie’s critical panning as a whole, but it would have made the audience more positively receptive to Mary’s central role in the core conflicts. The strange incest plotline is a major critique of The Godfather 3; it wasn’t necessary as other romances within the extended mafia “family” could have served as Vincent’s conflict instead. Also, another ditched plotline could have saved the overall story: Tom Hagen (Robert Duvall) returning as the Corleones’ moral conscience. Aside from the Vincent/Mary storyline, Mary’s death as Michael’s final breaking point as the Don is important and a well-received actress performance would have made it more impactful in The Godfather Part III.
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May 03, 2021 at 06:10AM
