Book Reviews... The Godfather and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed....

I finished reading the first and original The Godfather novel weeks ago but yet to put up a review. So here goes to my first review.



Like the movie itself, The Godfather novel is a true masterpiece. Instead of focusing on just only one theme, it branches out into many other elements. With crime as it's root theme, the themes of romance, action, thriller and of course family plays major parts in the novel.

The crime elements of course are about the Corleone family's dealings and infrastructure. From Don Vito Corleone, Camporegimes Pete Clemenza and Salvatore "Sally" Tessio, Consiglieres Genco Abbadando and Tom Hagen. Also included is a flashback arc about Vito's rise to power as shown in The Godfather: Part II.

The element of romance explores Michael Corleone's relationship with Kay Adams in USA and Apollonia when he's exiled in Sicily. Also included is Santino Corleone's illegitimate relationship with Lucy Mancini. Family elements consists of Vito's relationship with his children. The thriller element deals with Vito Corleone's main hitman Luca Brasi who is Vito's Jason Voorhees. Of course we get a slab of mafia action.

By reading the novel, you can conclude that director Francis Ford Coppola never truly wrote the script. He directed most of the scenes according to the novel itself. So Mario Puzo must be given the credit. Of course Coppola should be given credit for selecting splendid actors such as Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert DeNiro and Robert Duvall to play the characters. The film follows VERY close to the novel. More close than Harry Potter as far as I'm concerned.

There's just one flaw in this masterpiece. I kinda dislike the characters of Johnny Fontane and Lucy Mancini who are covered in a few chapters. Good thing Coppola almost erased them from the movie.

Due to the fact that I've read the book after I've watched all three movies, it didn't make much difference. BUT, you know the novel is the ORIGINAL piece. Needless to say, the first novel is better than my other Godfather novels The Sicilian and The Godfather: Lost Years.






My brother bought the novel Star Wars: The Force Unleashed from USA. With my current sci-fi fascination now being passed from Star Wars to Godfather, getting a Star Wars novel revived my interest in Star Wars which still remains my craziest childhood fascination. The novel is also based on the Force Unleashed video game. Although I know how the story goes, the novel's detailed language explores into the Force. Good reference if you wanna write a fan fiction Star Wars novel.

The novel starts of with Darth Vader promoting his apprentice to a level in which he is allowed to hunt down Jedi. However, his apprentice Starkiller/Galen Marek is an "unofficial" Sith apprentice due to Darth Bane's "Rule of Two" where there can only be two Sith Lords at one time. One master, one apprentice. Despite his lack of the Sith Lord pangkat, Starkiller's force ability surpasses Darth Vader because Vader lost his potential after getting toasted in the volcano.

But as the novel progresses, things heat up with Starkiller going on missions to kill 3 Jedi Masters. Rahm Kota being the first, followed by a war bitter Kadazan Paratus. His hardest battle was Jedi High Council member Shaak Ti who possessed the ability to control Rancors(bipedal monsters that resemble dinosaurs. Luke Skywalker killed one owned by Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars Episode VI). This process is repeated, mission after mission. This makes the middle part of the novel kinda boring. One thing I also despise is Starkiller's romance with Juno Eclipse, an Imperial pilot.

Then Darth Vader almost killed his apprentice to avoid being killed by his master Darth Sidious for breaking the Sith Rule Of Two and prove his allegiance. Vader gave his revived apprentice new orders, Form a Rebel Alliance to distract Emperor Palpatine's spies. A frustrated Starkiller broke his ties with Vader, adopted his birthname Galen Marek and formed the Rebel Alliance not to distract Palpatine but to avenge his master. Despite his noble actions, he remained a practitioner of the dark side.

Vader eventually captured the Rebel Alliance conspirators and left Marek for dead. Juno revives Marek who proceeds to the un-operational Death Star I to free the rebels. Darth Vader goe to duel his apprentice. Knowing his apprentice's lightsaber skills exceeds his own, Vader tried to bash him up with the force. But the tables turned, the extremely powerful Vader was overpowered by his former pupil. Emperor Palpatine then burned Rahm Kota with Sith lighting so Marek left the badly wounded Vader to save his friend.

The dreaded Emperor surrendered and asked Marek to strike him down just like what he will ask of Luke Skywalker 4-5 years later. Marek refuse to give in and moved away. Palpatine then blasted lighting at Kota and the other rebels. Marek who was as powerful as Yoda, was able to block Sith lighting with his bare hands and could even wield lighting on his own due to his Sith tutelage. Vader recovered and commanded a platoon of stormtroopers to blast down Kota and the rebels who escaping to Juno's ship. Marek then "unleashed" the force within him by giving out all he had, even the force necessary to sustain life, killing himself and all the stormtroopers, mildly injuring Vader and Palpatine as well as enabling his friends to escape.

The novel was dark and had little subplots compared to my other novels. It really focuses on the whole "Jedi vs Sith" concept. The Force Unleashed project which comprised of the game, comics, toys and novel is definitely better than the dreadful Clone Wars movie and TV series. Probably the best non-live action movie Star Wars material ever made so far.