Ultimate Movie Year finds the best released films from weekends past to build an all-star lineup of cinema.

"The Godfather"
Released March 15, 1972
Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

For whatever benefits it may provide, being a mafia boss is a tough gig. The hours are long, it's not suited for a healthy lifestyle, and of course, there's the constant threat of arrest or being shot dead in a meat truck. Your own family may also suffer, because what good is all that money if you never have time to spend with your kids, or have been shot dead in a meat truck?

Francis Ford Coppola and writer Mario Puzo seem to have understood this when bringing the character of Vito "Don" Corleone to life in "The Godfather." Played by Marlon Brando in the 1972 film, Corleone is sharply focused on providing for and protecting his own family as the head of a decades-old organized crime operation, but has also brought his own children into the business. The story of Vito's leadership to lift both his own family and the mafia "family" he runs, leading to his son Michael's (Al Pacino) inability to protect both at the same time, form the basis for one of the greatest epics in cinematic history.