The final scenes of The godfather It went down in history as one of the best moments in cinema history, and this is due to the seven characters that Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) killed. The end of The godfather saw Michael execute all of the Corleone family’s enemies at once, on the day of his nephew’s baptism. The scene moves incredibly quickly both in the film and in real life, and it can be a little difficult to know exactly who died and why Michael killed them. This scene, however, is a big reason The godfather is one of the best films of all time, so understanding it is essential.
Almost every living character in The godfather were involved in the massive attack and completely changed New York’s underworld in a single day. With a few bullets, Michael Corleone usurped the former “Don of Dons”, eliminated several traitors from the Corleone family, and opened a whole new city for them to expand their gambling. It was a hugely successful moment in Michael’s career as Don and set the tone for the rest of his journey through all Godfather films.
7
Dom Victor Stracci
Stracci was working with Barzini and had to die for Michael’s takeover to work
The Stracci family does not play a major role in the narrative of The godfatherbut his Don was the first to die in Michael’s Baptism of Blood. Victor Stracci (Don Costello) was getting out of an elevator when Clemenza (Richard Castellano) pulled out a shotgun and blew him up.. As one of the heads of the five families, Stracci was in league with Barzini, which was enough to convince Michael to kill him. His position of power also made him one of the targets Michael needed to kill simply out of necessity, as he needed the chaos of bashing all five heads simultaneously for his takeover to work.
6
Moe Greene
Moe Greene refused to sell his hotel and insulted Michael when defeating Fredo
Moe Greene (Alex Rocco) wasn’t a Don, but he messed up Michael’s plans as much as any other mob boss in history. The godfather. Moe was the owner of the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas, which Michael wanted to use to expand the Corleone family’s influence in gambling. Moe, however, refused to give in to Michael and sell his hotel, and also insulted the new Don by hitting his brother, Fredo (John Cazale). So Michael had Moe killed in a massage parlor, both to open Las Vegas to Corleone’s expansion and as revenge for Fredo..
5
Dom Carmine Cuneo
The Cuneo family was caught up in Michael’s takeover of the five families
Like the Stracci family, the Cuneo family didn’t have much to do in The godfather. They were, however, allies of the Barzini family and part of the five families, which made them Michael’s target. As a result, Michael had one of his men lock Don Carmine Cuneo (Rudy Bond) in a revolving door and shoot him to death.. Killing all five heads of the family was important to Michael because it meant that none of the families would be able to seek revenge on him immediately, and he would have time to take over all of New York.
4
Don Phillip Tattaglia
The Tattaglias attempted to assassinate Vito, enabled and protected Sollozzo
The Tattaglia family was not the biggest threat to the Corleones, but it was the most openly hostile. The Tattaglias openly supported Sollozzo (Al Lettieri) and used his drug trafficking as an excuse to attack Vito. Although Vito swore never to take revenge on the other heads of the five families after Sonny’s (James Caan) death, Michael made no such promise.. Michael’s men killed Don Phillip Tattaglia (Victor Rendina) along with a sex worker he was sleeping with amid a hail of bullets. Tattaglia’s death avenged Vito and was part of Michael’s takeover of the New York underworld.
3
Dom Emílio Barzini
Barzini was the secret mastermind behind Sollozzo’s attack on the Corleones
The main antagonist of The godfather it wasn’t revealed until halfway through the film, but it still gave Michael enough time to get his revenge. Don Emilio Barzini (Richard Conte) was the “Don of Dons” and had the other three families in his pocket. He envied Vito’s political connections and network of favors from judges and politicians, so Barzini orchestrated his murder. Years later, Michael would have his men shoot Barzini in the street for what he did to Vito and Sonny. Barzini was also the most important target in Miguel’s Baptism of Blood, as everything would take his place as Don dos Dons.
2
Salvatore Tessio
Tessio arranged a meeting between Barzini and Michael, meaning he was the traitor
Michael’s bloodshed did not end when the baptism ended. Before he died, Vito told Michael that whoever sought him out to arrange a meeting with Barzini would be betraying him. That person was Salvatore Tessio (Abe Vigoda), who tried to get the Dons to meet at Vito’s funeral. Tom then took Tessio to his car, and after being told that Michael wasn’t driving with them, Tessio realized he was being killed because of his betrayal.. He wasn’t the only traitor Michael dealt with.
1
Carlos Rizzi
Carlo confessed to setting up Sonny’s murder
The last person Michael killed in The godfather it was his own brother-in-law, Carlo Rizzi (Gianni Russo). Michael suspected that Carlo was involved in Sonny’s murder, as the older Corleone brother was on his way to kill Carlo after abusing Connie (Talia Shire). Michael made Carlo confess, and once Carlo got into the car, Clemenza strangled him to death as revenge for Sonny’s death.. Michael did not tolerate traitors, and anyone who tried to challenge him The godfather soon discovered why he was the new Don.