The Offer Movie Review: An Extraordinary Story of Struggle, Hardwork & Dedication Behind The Making Of Iconic 'The Godfather'

Paramount Pictures, the second oldest film studio in Hollywood, has seen many ups and downs throughout its journey in the last 10 decades. From working with silent era legends, the renaming process in 1935, multiple musical hits in the 40s, new age classics in the 60s, the best period in the 70s, the legendary hit Titanic in the 90s, to modern day sequels and franchise films, the production and distribution house has seen almost every phase of Hollywood cinema. Just a month back, one of their greatest productions ever, The Godfather, celebrated its 50th anniversary. The film has set a benchmark for gangster films and has been loved by critics and audiences across the globe. We all remember the iconic dialogues, scenes and characters from the film, but do we know the struggle behind the making of this film? Paramount+ brings that untold story in a miniseries format called The Offer to all the viewers, and it is truly an unmissable experience for fans of the legendary film The Godfather (1972).

The Godfather is truly a legendary film by all means. A dark film like this never broke box office records before, but this film proved that the genre doesn't matter, and the content does. Brando, who was dubbed "the box office poison," received his first ever record-breaking blockbuster, and many consider his performance to be his best ever. Coppola, who was coming after directing four sort of decent films, entered this dark world of crime for the first time and made a film of a lifetime.

Al Pacino wasn't even considered a good film actor then, but he got his most remarkable role ever in the first two films of The Godfather franchise. These are the facts most of us know, but what we don't know is the struggle behind the making of this film. And believe me, that's much bigger than what we would have thought it would be. The Offer gives you a full-length view into that behind-the-scenes footage, which I believe is equally great as the cinematic classic.

The Offer starts right on point with Paramount buying the rights to the best-selling book, The Godfather. The writer of the book, Mario Puzo (Patrick Gallo), gives his nod to the cinematic version but has to go through multiple rewriting processes to make the final draft. Meanwhile, the team at Paramount is still not sure about whom to give the lead as a producer, whom to offer the chair of director, and even scared of the box office failure because the gangster films aren't enjoyed by the family audience.

Robert Evans (Matthew Goode) is serious about the film, and he chooses Albert Ruddy (Miles Teller) as the producer, who is very passionate about making The Godfather. What challenges he has to face during the film's production, from the director to the budget, mafias, bosses, actors, politicians, and so on, are all depicted in this 10-episode miniseries. It is indeed a long time, about 10 hours, but it is worth every single minute of yours. That's an incredible thing, really.

Speaking of the acting department, The Offer has a full bouquet of powerful performances to offer you. AND THIS IS AN OFFER THAT YOU CAN'T REFUSE! I haven't seen a better acting unit, this big, than this in recent times. What a marvellous cast and how everyone has performed. Unbelievable! We haven't been crazy about Ruddy, as he wasn't a movie star or a popular singer, but Miles Teller presents the exact replica of him in the series. Once you see his performance closely, you can't imagine any other actor playing this role. The accent, looks, expressions, everything is top notch.

Wait, he is not the only one to do it, but there are a bunch of at least ten actors who have done the same job in their individual roles. Matthew Goode as Robert Evans gives a standout performance. You can't just get over it. Juno Temple as Bettey McCatt is impeccable, unshakeable, and unbeatable. The very first frame Dan Fogler walks in, and you don't see Dan at all. The only thing you see is Francis Ford Coppola. He would go on saying one of John Ford's famous quotes, and you have to watch out for his bearing there, or for that matter, throughout the series. Burn Gorman, Colin Hanks and Giovanni Ribisi add powerful support.

Moving to the reprisals of the original cast members of the film, you won't see no fake acts. You'll only see replicas. Justin Chambers walks down the stairs as Marlon Brando, and you stop breathing for a moment. "Tissue paper and polish, and Marlon Brando disappears," says Coppola, and you're going to have goosebumps. Anthony Ippolito appears as a young, cute-looking Al Pacino, and you are left with jitters. Let's not spoil everything here and end it in brief. Josh Zukerman, Meredith Garretson, Nora Arnezeder, Paul McCrane, Jake Cannavale, James Madio, Anthony Skordi, Lou Ferrigno, Stephanie Koenig, Frank John Hughes, Danny Nucci and the rest of the cast members have all done a good job with whatever scenes they have got while recurring.

If one really wishes to understand all the nuances of The Offer, then one must have an extensive knowledge of Hollywood. If you haven't seen The Godfather, I mean, who hasn't seen it yet, but still, if you haven't seen it, then please watch it before you give your watch to The Offer. It will only help you to understand the situations and every small detail. For instance, if you haven't seen The Godfather and you don't know about its legacy and accolades, then you won't relate to almost 90% of the scenes in the series.

The conflicts are new to even those who have great knowledge of The Godfather and old Hollywood, because it's an exclusive detailing, not just a regular BTS. But for those who don't know it, even those normal scenes of shooting The Godfather will go flat. Even for those who have good knowledge of The Godfather and its surroundings, there is a lot more from Old Hollywood. "We can't live on Rosemary's Baby," "Chinatown," "Frank Sinatra," "Robert Redford," "The Longest Yard," "MGM," and many more. You must be aware of Hollywood, who's who, stars, singers, celebrities, studios, controversies, gangsters, politicians, films, and everything else to understand those details.

Technically, The Offer is a very strong product. Michael Tolkin offers a great script on paper, and the execution is no less than a gem. The Offer never bores you despite such a long narration because the screenplay is just terrific. Every episode has new surprises, new characters, new conflicts, and drama to offer. It just keeps getting more interesting with every passing episode. It also has good production value, as you can see from the sets, make-up, clothes, etc. The cinematography is top-class, and the VFX work looks good too.

I never expected Dexter Fletcher to be this good based on his previous work. The Offer is by far his greatest work so far, and I won't be surprised if people agree with that when they finish watching this gem of a series. As a whole, The Offer is unmissable, especially for The Godfather fans. It's so intriguing and substantial that you just can't get over it. This extraordinary story of struggle, hardwork, and dedication that formed your iconic The Godfather is PHENOMENAL! Even the story behind the making of one of the greatest films of all time makes a great flick of its own, that's definitely interesting.

The Offer streams 28 April 2022 onwards on Voot Select