Question: When Sollozzo offers Vito 30% of the drug profits for his financing and political protection, Vito asks him why he (Vito) deserved such generosity. Was Vito being sarcastic, or was it actually a good deal?
The Godfather (1972)
1 question since 29 Jun '24, 05:14
Directed by: Francis Ford Coppola
Starring: Robert Duvall, Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, James Caan, Marlon Brando, Richard S. Castellano
Revealing mistake: When Sonny is punching Carlo under the spraying fire hydrant, he misses an audible punch by at least six inches. (01:43:30)
Tom Hagen: I'm an attorney for the Corleone family. These men are private detectives hired to protect Vito Corleone. They are licensed to carry firearms. If you interfere you'll have to appear before a judge in the morning and show cause.
Trivia: Marlon Brando won a Best Actor Oscar for his role as Vito Corleone. Robert DeNiro, who played the role via flashbacks in Part II, won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. They remain the only two actors to win Oscars for playing the same character. Heath Ledger and Joaquin Phoenix both won for playing the Joker, but not really the same character, given the very different films and portrayals.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.
Answer: Vito was being sarcastic, but it's also a negotiating tactic. Vito is uninterested and considered it a meager offer. Sollozzo naturally would offer a low-ball price as an opening bid to test Vito's reaction. He would then negotiate further, gradually upping the amount. I took it as Vito testing why Sollozzo is coming to him with the deal rather than the other crime families and is gathering intel. He doesn't trust Sollozzo and likely suspects there is some collusion going on with another don, which was the case.
raywest ★
Given Vito's aversion to getting involved in the drug trade, I doubt it's about negotiating or getting a better offer. He has already decided not to go into business with Sollozzo even before meeting him. I think it's more the second part of the answer, about feeling Sollozzo out and trying to find out more about him and which of the other families he's already involved with.