Even an adaptation must be an original

"I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse."

If you watch movies and really love them and you are exposed to Hollywood productions then it is hard to have missed out on "The Godfather". The above quoted line singularly defined the internal drive of the character played by (the) Marlon Brando: VITO CORLEONE.

Where did this character take birth? Was it in the writing of Mario Puzo? Was it in Francis Ford Coppola's toying with the adaptation of the novel into a movie screenplay? Or is it the power of the memorable lines that get quoted over and over by fans and mimicry artists? Or was it Marlon Brando putting boot polish in his hair and stuffing Kleenex in his mouth during a make-up test, which was actually a screen test for Coppola to convince the studio bosses about his conviction on casting Brando as Vito? Or did it materialize when legendary make-up artist, Dick Smith (R.I.P. - July 31, 2014), applied the mask of Vito onto Brando?

A page from Francis Ford Coppola's copy of the Mario Puzo novel, 'The Godfather' with his notes along the margins and markings through the text as he read and reread the book over and over again till he could mark out all the important portions of the book that had to make it into the film.

I personally believe it is a combination of all these efforts working together as a compounded effect, even beyond the character itself; painting the palette of the film: the supporting characters who through their performance make us believe in this character and its myth ... the mise-en-scène, the wonderful cinematography, all the aspects that make a movie what it is—a reality with eternal resonance.

The most memorable movie characters of all time:

(It is a subjective viewpoint and everyone is likely to have a list of their own favorites; these are mine...)

• Vito Corleone, Marlon Brando

• Darth Vader, James Earl Jones (voice)

• Captain Jack Sparrow, Johnny Depp

• Hannibal Lector, Anthony Hopkins

• Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks

• Joker (The Dark Knight), Heath Ledger

• Tony Montana, Al Pacino

• Indiana Jones, Harrison Ford

• The Dude, Jeff Bridges

• The Terminator, Arnold Schwarzenegger

• Yoda, Frank Oz (voice)

• John Rambo, Sylvester Stallone

• Rocky Balboa, Sylvester Stallone

• Travis Bickle, Robert De Niro

• Erin Brockovich, Julia Roberts

• Rain Man, Dustin Hoffman

• Atticus Finch, Gregory Peck

• James Bond, Sean Connery

• Dr. Evil, Mike Myers

• Maria, Julie Andrews

• Edward Scissorhands, Johnny Depp

• Amelie, Audrey Tautou

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