No matter in novels or movies, The Godfather is a story of a group of men. When men are on the show, women inevitably become the "side dishes" at the feast. However, they are also very important female characters with few roles. Ni, Kai (I didn't count Apollonia in one episode and Mary in three episodes, because their roles were not to highlight the character's own characteristics but to accentuate Mike's tragic color.) Among the above three female characters, Only Kai's portrayal is the worst and most chaotic, forcibly linking her unpleasant and even "scolded" issues with feminist patriarchy, and refraining from talking about modeling issues, it is precisely because of her guilty conscience that she dare not face the various loopholes in this role .
The debate about the second-generation godfather's wife, Kay, seems to always be inseparable from "independence" and "women in the new era". So bla bla, IMHO, after watching the movie, I didn't realize that Kay has such a persuasive charm. . In order to flatter Kay, some viewers did not hesitate to criticize the old lady, Connie and even Apollonia as women who were deeply influenced by the dross of Sicilian feudalism. . However, I saw in the old lady the atmosphere of not being afraid of doing things without fear, in Connie, I saw the strength of the prodigal son after his rebirth, and in Apollonia, I saw the liveliness full of vitality. Which of these qualities is not the core of an excellent woman who is truly loved and respected?
A label is a label, if it is not affixed to the whole body, it is finished. If you are not convinced, then we can take a detailed look at where Kai in Part 1-2 can reflect the so-called "independence".
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Kay in the first part:
1. For the first time, I went to my boyfriend's house from Mafia to attend a wedding banquet. She asked her questions and pointed her fingers. Immediately changed his face. There are many such people in life, they are always curious and gossipy. If you don't say it, they will feel cheated by concealment. If you say it but it's not the answer they want, then there will be grudges.
2. The old godfather had a gun and was hospitalized. Kai asked Mike on the phone to say that he loved her, and he only cared about when he could meet again at the hotel. As a viewer, I know that you are in a relationship, but isn't this reaction too outrageous when such a big incident happened in your boyfriend's house? Although your father is about to die, as a boyfriend, you have to appease my mood first.jpg
3. Mike found Kai one year after he came back from Sicily. This is a movie adaptation. The plot of Kai taking the initiative to find Mike in the novel was replaced by Mike taking the initiative, which happened to be the handle of some audiences who love to tangle the most. However, let's take a look at the meaning of Mike's conversation, three key points: "I took over from my father Mafia", "Don't think of my father so bad, he is no different from those politicians", "I will try my best to make the family go Right way". Do you have any questions about Mike in this conversation? Neither concealed the current situation of the family nor explained his future plans. As for Kay, he broke out the golden phrase "politicians don't kill people", and then he actually followed Mike into the car. This is very funny. The murderer family in Kai's eyes said that he would be whitewashed in the future, but Kai actually accepted it. It turned out that he didn't mind whether he had a criminal record at all.
4. Connie quarreled with Mike because of Carlo's death. This is a conflict within the Corleone family, and Kay, a wife who keeps saying that she rejects the Corleone family's practice, can't help but get involved. Okay, why don't you first ask if his elder brother died because of Carlo, and why don't you ask what happened to their family before? Connie clearly mentioned this sentence when they quarreled, so why is Kai so selectively deaf. Kai is always indiscriminately accusing and questioning, and he doesn't even know the reason for the first fight. This attitude is not a normal husband and wife relationship.
5. Some people say that because Mike's five-year goal is not completed, it is a deceptive marriage, so you might as well analyze it in parallel with the first finale. In the finale, the two had been married for over four years, and at this time it was clear that Mike had not completed his whitewash and officially became "Lord Corleone" in front of Kay. So Kai really doesn't know the truth, don't tell me they get married and live by the watch, and they have to wait until the fifth year to make a decision. In real life, your boyfriend promised you that he would be admitted to Tsinghua University in five years, but he did not get admitted in the fifth year. Is this cheating?
Throughout the entire first part, Kai has the complete right to choose, she chooses her husband, chooses to join his family. If Kai made it clear in the finale of the first movie that he couldn't accept Mike's approach, and the two would say goodbye, I can say that Kai's role logic is tenable, although it's mean enough. In the end, she didn't, and she was satisfied with a No. It turns out that Kay didn't want to find out the truth at all, she just wanted to have a peace of mind and let her husband give her the answer she wanted, but in fact she and her husband knew that there was no satisfactory answer, Kay forced Mike to give her the answer. She knitted an emperor's new dress.
Kay in Part Two:
1. At the opening charitable donation banquet, Kai was very happy and held a certificate and took pictures with the politician's wife to communicate. During the whole process, I didn't see a trace of Kai's dislike and reluctance, and I was a proper lady. So here comes the question, the first finale, Kai, is not like this. It's been the seventh year. Shouldn't independent women have dumped the boss of Mafia, who was spurned by you, why are they still fighting with him for a third child? You can't accept that the godfather of the first generation threatened a band boss to sign a contract, but now you can accept it as a wealthy wife who spends the dirty money earned by his son to be a high-class person?
2. There was a traitor in the house and was attacked by surprise. The two almost hung up in the bedroom. Mike flew away overnight to find the murderer & talk about business. Kai looked resentful the whole time. I don’t know where Kai’s resentment is at this time. husband? You can argue that without Mike marrying her, Kay wouldn't be in this danger. But why did Kai go earlier? After seven years, the family is in trouble and regrets it? This kind of arrogant post-causation theory is meaningless except to prove once again that Kay is a wife who can only share hardships and hardships after marriage.
3. Kay had an abortion during Mike's trip to Cuba. Yes, abortion is Kay's personal choice and must not be interfered with, but I really don't understand what kind of anger a husband and wife can get by holding on to their children when they have conflicts. After all, as an audience, I didn't see how Mike "severely poisoned" those two children. He and Anthony were not very kind and filial at first, but the third part after living with the mother of Bai Zuo was called an education that is hard to describe. (later). Kai kept saying that he didn't want Mike's children, and that he was talking about genetics. Is this insulting Mike or the innocent child who was shot. Could it be that your parents quarrel in your daily life, and after your mother has scolded your father, she has to scold even his seed for being bad, so damn it, isn't that too much? Anyway, I don't accept that the hatred between parents is deferred to the child, and I don't have this qualification.
4. The divorce scene happened just after Mike finished his hearing. The husband here has just escaped prison, and the wife is about to get a divorce. Another quarrel indiscriminately blaming each other, I don't even understand what is the motive for Kay to quarrel with Mike at this time, and judging from Kay's reaction, it seems that Mike did not go to prison this time as she wished. very disappointing to her. This is not a legal column, who wants to watch the drama of Kay Adams, a righteous and law-abiding citizen, who kills his relatives and makes Mafia's husband subdue the law. It's not because of abortion and cheating that Mike slapped Kai, but because of the words "two thousand years of Sicilian customs". Quarrels are quarrels. Is there something wrong with playing map guns in the area where poor mountains and bad waters make troublesome people, and where is Kai himself as an English immigrant?
Kai, in the entire second part, is someone who doesn't know his priorities and just wants to enjoy the bright side of marriage without putting in any effort. When her husband donated money to charity and politicians, she gladly accepted it, but when her husband used a knife to eradicate dissidents, she couldn't accept it. Even if this group of dissidents almost killed her whole family, she turned around and put the whole account on her husband.
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On the other hand, the role of Connie was criticized in the first part more than Kai. She is the biggest victim of marriage. She has an unpleasant and willful personality. She is raped by her husband and even her parents don't want to intervene. The eldest brother who took action to help her died tragically, and her situation was not human inside or outside the family. Especially after Mike came to power, Connie has been living in luck and guilt, her nerves are fragile and sensitive, and she is eager to climb up the relationship with the godfather to repair the rift between Carlo and the family. As a result, Mike burned her last fluke, so Kang. Ni hysterically hated Mike. This character is pitiful and hateful in the first part. She is cowardly and does not dare to resist and is extremely love-minded. She is not likable but her motives and logic can stand.
In the second part, Connie is willing to marry and divorce frequently to find fault with Mike. She keeps stabbing him with her father, as if she will never do anything that will make Mike feel better. However, it was such a silly girl who grew up quickly after the death of her mother and filled the vacancy in the family. At this time, although she did not yet have the ability to interfere in the family business, she had already begun to learn to take the initiative to resolve conflicts at home. To put it bluntly, a big family is never supported by one person, even if it is as strong as the old godfather, there is the old lady who is closely united with him from beginning to end. Not to mention the third, the godmother of 2.5 levels. Connie's writing in the first and second films is similar to that of Kai, but the character arc is very complete, and we can clearly see her struggles and transformations. Are the characters complicated? It's not complicated, it's nothing more than a sense of family responsibility, just like her brother.
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This is the successful shaping of a character, either consistent or changed in a reasonable way, so as to fully convince the audience. On the other hand, the role of Kai is nothing. You said that she was consistent, did she do less self-slapping things? I can't even find a motive for her to criticize others several times in this family by saying that she has changed reasonably. For a while, what your husband says is what you are, and you dance a little dance to talk about love. For a while, you will become a white lotus fighter and stand on the moral commanding heights and output like a machine gun. Said she was sober, she was sober, married into the Corleone family and lived a glamorous life. Said that she was deceived, and she thought she knew that everyone else was blind.
I don't even know what Coppola's intention was in adapting the character to look in the movie, just to add drama? Kay Adams in the original book is a complete character, and Puzo has a full psychological description and foreshadowing of her words and deeds. After she had problems communicating with her husband, Tom filled the gap. After the film adaptation, the whole character is extremely confusing. As a director and screenwriter, Coppola did not give any valuable interview information, and it all depended on the audience's first impression.
My impression is: empty and untenable
Don't say that she represents the last idealism in Mike's heart. Is the idealism in Mike's eyes "politicians don't kill people"? Don't say that she represents women in the new era of the United States. Independent women have never chosen to join a family that they don't recognize or even despise from the bottom of their hearts. In terms of material enjoyment, I have never seen Kai's hesitation towards Mafia's family, but spiritually let me empathize with her pain. Who knows?
Therefore, there is no need to argue that there is nothing wrong with this character here. The audience should not hate the innocent Kai, who is accused of misogyny and patriarchy. Because Kay Adams is a very lame and labelled woman in the film Godfather series, in the dark film, which is already extremely depressing, she is the only one who creates an unbearable sense of irritability.
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