The Godfather Part IIImight be the worst installment in the trilogy (by far), but it did succeed in finally giving Connie Corleone the larger role she always deserved. Connie is Vito’s only daughter and is often described as his favorite child besides Michael. The character was played bydirector Francis Ford Coppola’s sister Talia Shire, best known for her role as Adrian Pennino Balboa in theRockyfranchise. Shire earned plenty of critical acclaim for her performance as Connie (and even earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress), but she was often sidelined byThe Godfathermovies.
There are a few reasons whyThe Godfather Part IIIdidn’t match the universal acclaim of its predecessors. Sofia Coppola’s performance as Mary was criticized for being wooden (although her acting has since been reappraised), while the narrative wasn’t as vital. But the threequel did do one thing right: it finally gave Connie a substantial role in the story. Shire was always one of the strongest performers inThe Godfathercast, but she was used more as a plot device than a real character in the first two movies. InThe Godfather Part III, she was given a long-overdue spotlight.
After 2 Movies In The Background, Connie Got A Proper Role In The Godfather Part III
Connie Became Michael’s Most Ruthless Advisor
After two movies as a glorified background character, Connie finally got a proper role in the story ofThe Godfather Part III.The other Corleone siblings took the spotlight in the first two movies, which meant Connie got sidelined. InThe Godfather, Sonny’s rage at Connie’s abusive husband and his untimely death took up a lot of airtime.InThe Godfather Part II, Fredo’s betrayal of Michaeland his own untimely death became the focus. InThe Godfather Part III,after the other two siblings had died, it was finally Connie’s time to shine.
After being disgusted by Michael’s cold-hearted actions in the first film, Connie became just as cold-hearted in the threequel.
Connie evolves into Michael’s most ruthless advisor inThe Godfather Part III. For the majority of the film, she’s a mediator in Sonny’s illegitimate son Vincent Mancini’s feud with Joey Zasa.She even orders a hit against Zasa behind Michael’s backafter an attempt on his life. When she discovers that her own godfather, Don Altobello, is the mastermind behind the plot against the family,Connie kills him with a poisoned cannoli. After being disgusted by Michael’s cold-hearted actions in the first film, Connie became just as cold-hearted in the threequel.
Connie Corleone Is One Of The Godfather Part III’s Real Highlights
Connie Has Some Of The Godfather Trilogy’s Strongest Character Development
The conclusion of Connie’s arc inThe Godfather Part IIIgives her some of the strongest character development in the entire trilogy. Connie’s dark turn in the third film made sense after she started showing more loyalty to Michael towardsthe end ofThe Godfather Part II. In the first movie, Connie went from being the spoilt favorite child of her father to being the embattled target of her husband’s abuse. In the second and third movies, she tried to become the peacemaker who could put an end to all the violence.
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InThe Godfather Part III,much like Michael in the first film, Connie finally relents and gives in to the family’s violent nature. She abandons trying to maintain peace and becomes a merciless killer. Along with Michael and Kay, Connie is one of the only characters who gets a complete dramatic journey from the first movie to the second movie to the third movie. In many ways,The Godfather Part IIIis a standalone story that doesn’t feel like an organic continuation of the first two films, butConnie’s development is consistent with the previous movies.
The Godfather Should Have Given Connie A Bigger Role In Part II
Talia Shire Still Scored An Oscar Nomination For The Godfather Part II
It was great that Connie finally got a bigger role inThe Godfather Part III, but she arguably should’ve gotten a bigger role inPart II.The ending ofThe Godfatherset up a compelling story for Connie. In the final scene of the first film, Connie confronts her brother about her husband’s mysterious disappearance. Michael pleads ignorance, but Connie doesn’t believe him. At the beginning ofThe Godfather Part II,Connie is still bitter towards Michael for what happened to Carlo, but the movie doesn’t really go anywhere with that conflictas it focuses on other storylines.
Connie appears as a supporting character in Mark Winegardner’s sequel books,The Godfather ReturnsandThe Godfather’s Revenge.
Shire still earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her turn inThe Godfather Part II— although she lost to Ingrid Bergman forMurder on the Orient Express— but the sequel doesn’t do enough with the character. It splits its time between the sequel timeline with Michael andthe prequel timeline with young Vito, so only half of the movie is focused on the Corleone kids, but it still could’ve found more time for Connie. Fortunately, that was rectified when Connie got a big role inThe Godfather Part III.
The Godfather Part III
Cast
The Godfather Part III: Released on August 02, 2025, this third installment in Francis Ford Coppola’s trilogy follows Michael Corleone’s efforts to legitimize his crime family’s interests in 1979 while dealing with his past sins and mentoring a young protege in both New York and Italy.
