The Movie and Corleone, Sicily
 

Hi, I just watched the first of the Godfather series on cable last night. The scenes of Corleone Sicily and the villas were fascinating. Has anyone been to Corleone? I suppose this is where it was shot, but maybe not, oops a bad choice of words.

I was waiting to see if anyone else answered this, so I guess I'll take a stab at it. We stayed in Corleone one night because it was the only town with a hotel closest to Bisacquino where my grandparents were from. Although, I don't remember the scenes from the movie exactly, I don't think the town resembles anything with beautiful villas, etc. Maybe it was filmed somewhere outside of the town which we did not see. But being located pretty high up in the mountains, it has some beautiful panoramic views of the surrounding areas. We also had some excellent pizza there.

Perhaps you should rent the movie (if you did not record it) and look at the credits for locations. I am sure there are books about this too. Watch Godfather 2 as well as a lot of that is set in Sicily...

Corleone, Sicily does not have a reputation for beauty, it does have one for producing some of the toughest "tough guys" in Sicily and has a pretty lousy reputation.

Would it be ok to visit Corleone? My husband loves the Godfather movies, I would like to surprise him and make reservations in Corleone, would you suggest doing this? Thanks.

I don't see why anyone couldn't visit Corleone. But I really didn't see anything there that was distintive of the Godfather movie. You may be disappointed when you get there. It's mostly like any of the other small towns in that area. Incidentally, I don't believe Corleone produced any more mafia figures than some of the other towns in Sicily, especially around Palermo.

Hi Nance,<BR><BR>I spent a week in Taormina in February a few years ago. We were offered a &quot;Godfather Tour&quot; which was great. We went to a nearby hillside town, Forza d'Agro. The town is very old world but many of the building are being restored by &quot;important people from Rome.&quot; The church is currently being restored - quite beautiful. That is where the wedding took place in Godfather I. Our guide also arranged for us to visit the tavern where the famous scene between Michael and the bride's father took place. It was in a nearby town but I am not sure of its name. I would suggest you see the movie again. If I remember correctly,the movie was not filmed in Corleone itself. Just love the movie and Sicily. Our guide's name was Maria. She is very well known in Taormina. Just ask at your hotel. You will have a great time!<BR><BR>Good luck! Helen

How great, thanks. Maybe I will spend more time in Sicily than I had planned. I just think the Godfather movies were so well done, in my opinion, just perfectly directed and shot (there's that word again). <BR>I wonder why Coppola picked Corleone, does anyone know? I do want to do the Godfather tour. <BR>Sorry to hijack your thread, Nance.