Musicians Hotsheet

Unpopular opinion: In a purely literary sense, 'Omerta' is, in many ways, superior to 'The Godfather'. Whereas the latter - despite it's undeniably superior adaptability as movie fodder - has many long winded passages from 'B' and 'C' stories which do nothing to advance the main plot, 'Omerta' uses it's ancillary details to meaningful effect in the fabric of the story as a whole. We can better empathize with the hitmen or the broker by learning a little (but not too much) about their everyday lives. Romantic interludes which threaten to turn into counterparts to the utterly useless details about Sonny Corleone's mistress turn out to be setups for ruthless treachery. Plus, dialog as whole was less corny, unlike the frankly bad portions of 'Godfather' in which Sonny is portrayed as a cheesy film noir character. The makeover Coppola gave those characters was much needed. It has it's faults, occasional predictability being the chief among them. Still, in all and without pretension, 'Omerta' is an entertaining yarn about organized crime, nothing more, and thankfully, nothing less. - Jay Belfiore