Michael vs Vito Corleone – who was a better don in The Godfather?

Those who’ve watched “The Godfather” and its awesome follow up “The Godfather II” inevitably draw comparisons between the old Vito and the new Michael Corleone. Who was the better Don? Everyone seems to agree that Michael was a more successful Don in terms of money and power. But was he a better one? Let’s look at some differences.

Vito listens to a personal request
Vito listens to a personal request

Vito was Personal while Michael was Business

The classic opening scene of The Godfather starts with the undertaker asking the Godfather to mete out justice for his daughter and Don agrees only on the condition that the undertaker accepts him as his friend. He doesn’t ask for payment – in fact he takes offence at the talk of money. He says that one day (and that day may never come,) the Don may ask him for a favor. That’s it. An undertaker. Not a man with power or assets. What service could an undertake render the Don? But Vito doesn’t care. He’s not interested in money.

Similarly on his daughter’s wedding, the Don painstakingly grants personal favors to various people in friendship.

Michael on the other hand has no friends. He couldn’t care less about an undertaker’s daughter and no undertaker would ever come to him asking for help. Instead in the opening scene of part II, there is a ceremony like the first part with Michael taking care of “business.” But his business is about high powered deals with Senators and expanding his business interests in the state. To me, nothing illustrates the difference between the two Dons than the first 20 minutes of each movie.

Vito had friends. Michael only had enemies

In the first part, when Vito was in the hospital after the assassination attempt, the baker’s son dropped by with some flowers. This in itself is amazing. You can be sure that if Michael was in hospital in part II, not a single real friend would have come to see him. Furthermore, on learning that Vito’s life was again in danger, the baker’s son offers to stay and help saying “For your father.” This is a don whom people love and respect. Not one who is obeyed out of fear.

Michae has no friends
Michae has no friends

Vito built a family. Michael lost his

Vito’s was a death which everyone desires to have. He lived to a nice old age, and died amongst his tomato plants while chasing his grandson around. His family was with him and he wasn’t bitter despite having lost his eldest son. He had his loving wife, his children, and adopted son.

Michael on the other hand loses his entire family despite seeming to try harder. He regularly asks his wife if she feels her son will be a boy, and shows an obsessive interest in continuing his family line. He could never adopt a son like Vito had merely out of the goodness of his heart. He drives his wife away by lying to her and not giving a shit about how she feels, has his own brother murdered, and the rest of his siblings hate him. He also tried to alienate Tom  – the only person who really stood by him all through.

So though Michael’s tenure as Don was marked by a great expansion in business – both geographically and monetarily, he was never a real success. He dies alone and abandoned. We’re reminded of the words “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

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30 thoughts on “Michael vs Vito Corleone – who was a better don in The Godfather?”

  1. Delighted to read a piece on the series..

    Totally agree.. I guess its more because of the society and circumstances that made them Don..

    Vito was more of your Robinhood.. protecting his people and community and not doing anything that endangers it.. He was a self made man.. He earned his position as a Don and as he climbed the ladder, knows the importance of having friends and well wishers at all places..

    Michael on the other hand had Don dom thrust upon him by birth.. He had always despised this community and their life .. He did not take it up to survive like his dad.. He took it to avenge his death.. Also he saw all those people who were considered friends and family, but had turned their back on them (resulting in Sunny’s death)..

    The reason for the success of Vito’s marriage was having a wife for whom the life seemed natural.. Michael on the other hand had a wife who felt like a transplant and outsider in this world.. She did not get this thirst for revenge and avenge.. If Michael had married someone who was more like his mother it could have survived.. (thats my humble 2 cents on it)

    Vito was the greatest Don (representing a way of life that was on the retreat in general) and Michael well (can I call him the sexiest Don ;) ) was the slickest business man dealing in the business of being a Don(?!?)

    :D there ends my rambling.. (give me any chance to talk about the Godfather)

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    • In reply to Sakthi

      Totally agree about the part regarding Vito’s wife. Apollonia would have probably made the perfect wife for him, but she got killed while pregnant and that might have fed into Michael’s obsession with children.

      In any case, Michael acted like a total jerk towards Kay even in part one where he was back for a year and didn’t even bother to get in touch with her. I can never imagine Vito doing that.

      There’s a scene in part II when Vito has to leave his job at the grocery store and he brings back a pear that evening for his wife and he gives a smile of satisfaction when he sees her happiness…for him, his wife was there to complement him, make him take a break from the big bad world. I never got the feeling Michael was ever like that with Kay.

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  2. FIRST OF ALL, I think , there wud be nothing like Godfather movie, I can see 100 parts of Godfather sequence if it made in future.

    I think, both don had there own circumstances which influenced them to be a DON,

    Vito’s past was not charmed up, his family ruined in Italy, even he couldn’t set his early lyf in US also (as threaten by local mafia) then other incident created him as a Don Vito (but his soul was completely melted for helping other) I thought Godfather did not tolerate anyone suffer as he felt in his childhood.

    Where Michale coreleone sacrificed his whole life for his family similar as Vito, only scenario was changed he had more enemies hindering his family by Laws and political pressure. Although he survived and made a platform for his family also. What if, went up with coreleone family if michale coreleone not charged up after godfather dead and rest 4 family will made their empire by assassinating Coreleone family

    So Both had their own impotence and couldn’t compare at all

    One exist for family Other exist from family

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  3. Michael is arrogant compared to his father. In the first film, you see Vito calling a meeting of the five families to end the war and accepting the fact that his family is more important than business. Whereas Michael just goes off killing people who come in his way as an act of revenge without worrying about putting his family at risk.

    Also, Vito gained his power and reputation through helping people and taking out the bad people. Business wasn’t his primary motive of becoming a Don. That is the reason in the first film he rejects the idea of entering into the narcotics business. Michael on the other hand right from where he becomes Don to his end he is always concerned about business.

    There is lots more I can over here but maybe later. Anyways, as Michael says in the 2nd movie “Godfather is a title given by people as a mark of love and respect”. I don’t really think Michael earned that title, it was always Vito who was the Godfather. Also, Vito is without doubt the better person.

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  4. I couldn’t disagree more. Michael was seemingly obsessed with business, because he was desperate to get the Corleone family OUT of organized crime so he could give up being the Don and all the killing. The only way he could do that was by building a powerful legitimate empire. Michael never enjoyed the power of being Don; he didn’t keep a mistress, never partied or fraternized with anyone outside his personal circle; Michael was miserable and burdened by his position.

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  5. Definitely Vito was a far better Don. Michael allowed was way too focused on the family business to the detriment of everybody under him. Clemenza and Tessio, for example, were begging Michael to let them fight back against Barzini who was making moves against them, in the first movie. And in the second movie, Frank Pentangeli was getting harassed by a couple of low level street hoodlums, the risotto brothers. And asked Michael for permission to retaliate. Michael refused because the risotto brothers were connected to Hyman roth with whom Michale had a big business deal going and didnt want it disturbed.

    In both movies, Michael allowed people to walk all over his men, members of his crime family, simply because of his greed. Because he didnt want his business deals to be disturbed. Vito would have NEVER allowed anybody to show any kind of disrespect to his men.

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  6. Don Vito walked softly and carried a big stick. He was also patient waiting for the right time to mete out justice. He kept cool when hotter heads prevailed.

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  7. Ummm, this is a difficult one, Michael was definitely more business focussed, out of all his brothers he was the smartest, calmest and coolest but focused too much on revenge and not enough on his family like Vito had. They were both brilliant characters and the perfect actors were chosen to portray them but I guess Don Vito Corleone will always be THE Godfather as he said.

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  8. Personal v Business
    Vito was Personal while Michael was Business

    I’m sorry but I just can’t go along with your first example, I’m afraid. It’s explained early on that there’s a Sicilian tradition that a Don cannot refuse ANYONE on the day his daughter is married so, consequently, a number of people feel they can come to Vito on this day, rather than any other. You’ll also hear Tom Hagen pass messages of congratulations (on the marriage) from a number of politicians and judges to Vito, but explaining that they dare not be seen with him – “they said ‘you’ll understand'”.

    When we are at Michael’s son’s communion party in Godfather Part Two, it’s clear that he has established a degree of respectability and legitimacy, to the extent that a senator feels able to be seen, and make a speech, at their family gathering.

    Furthermore, Vito, in my view, would have understood immediately the advantage of having an undertaker in his pocket: the mafia have had need from time to time to dispose of bodies – cremation could come in to be very useful – and what better way can one find to smuggle illegal goods than with a coffin? For Don Vito, ‘friendship’ is a euphemism, along with ‘reasoning’, ‘making a (hard-to-refuse) offer’ and swearing (on the souls of his grandchildren) that HE would not be the one to break the peace.

    Vito is every inch the businessman.

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  9. Both are similar except that Vito was respected while Michael was feared.
    The person that really gave me chills was Hyman Roth. He was old but still lusted for money. He played the part of a benevolent old man who loved watching games on TV but was in fact a ruthless killer. Pure evil. Definitely the man to be feared.

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