bkoganbing Mario Puzo's continuing saga of the Clericuzio family continues with The Last Don II which has Godfather Danny Aiello passing on, but before that bringing back his grand nephew Jason Gedrick and proclaiming him his successor as head of the crime family. At the same time Michelle Burke, Gedrick's sister has taken over a film studio as part of the family enterprises and things are looking good for both.But as Joe Mantegna said to his son, trust no one really. Ironically the same advice that Herod gave to the Emperor Claudius in I Claudius. And I did say Mantegna who if you remember the original series was killed. He comes back as a ghost for Gedrick and Gedrick listens because Mantegna is the only one who has no interests of his own on this earthly plane.Both Gedrick and Burke deal with some attempted power plays to get them out. In the case of Burke it comes from former studio head Robert Wuhl who was fine in the first film, but really comes into his own in the sequel. He steals the film whenever he's on the screen and he's so incredibly arrogant and hateful that you will cheer when he gets his just desserts.As for Gedrick his being betrayed by someone very close whom I will not reveal except to say jealousy can strike us all.Also outstanding in this one as in the first film is David Marciano who is Aiello's son and passed over for succession, but quite content apparently in his role as consigliere.The Godfather was a period piece and The Last Don takes us into more modern times, but some things never change in the culture Clericuzios operate in.If we're lucky there might be a third installment.

Jack Keane I caught "The Last Don II" on the channel True Entertainment (an offshoot of the True Movies channels, which always show old and crappy American TV movies) the other night, when my mum wanted to watch it, as she had seen the first "Last Don" series many years ago, and was curious to see how they had continued it. We were both disappointed. Why? Because "Last Don II" is actually a comedy. It may not be sold as one, but believe me, it really really really IS. For one thing, the music for TLD2 sounds like the spoof "Godfather" music that Alf Clausen always does in The Simpsons whenever Fat Tony and his crew appear in it (which is ironic, considering that Joe Mantegna - the voice of Fat Tony himself - appears in this too, as part of some outlandish dream sequences). And who composed the music for this? None other than Angelo Badalamenti, the man who gave us such memorable and inventive music in his collaborations with David Lynch. For shame. And then there's the acting. Is there any? Very little, it turns out. Most of the cast members are as wooden as an elm tree. (This isn't helped by the presence of both Kirstie Alley AND Patsy Kensit, who are both the dampest of squibs in an ocean of damp squibs in this series.) But a few of the cast who emerge unscathed from this include a very young Alison Pill (who deserved better material, but thankfully went on to be extraordinary in "In Treatment," "Milk" and "Scott Pilgrim"), Jason Isaacs (HELLO TO JASON ISAACS!) and one cast member who I thought was Stephen Root, but apparently isn't, but who near the series' end breaks out through the dull dirge that has gone before, and realises that he's in a comedy, and so acts accordingly by going completely over the top of OTT...and then they throw him off the top of a building. (Boo!) And then there's the death scenes, which are tragically mishandled. How is it possible that scenes involving a man getting crushed by a shipping container, a woman being blown up by a bomb in a box, a man being strangled in a prison cell, and so on, be the most hilarious parts of the whole series? It's amazingly awful, and breathtakingly bad. It's almost the worst thing I've ever seen...but I've also happened to see David Lynch's "Wild At Heart", which thus far remains the worst film I've ever seen. Anyway, you've been warned. Only watch "Last Don II" if you're viewing as a comedy, and have a steady stream of alcohol to numb the pain. (Watch with friends, as well, for maximum enjoyment!) =))

GeneralZodSucks How can I justify a good review on this movie? Let's see...I can't. There should have never been a sequel in the first place. Though this movie was a big disappointment, it was way better than Mario Puzo's Omerta TV mini-series. Why, you ask. Because there was no Omerta TV mini-series based on the Mario Puzo novel. If you read the novel and watch the Omerta TV mini-series, you will understand. Anyway, if you decide to watch this movie(though I do not recommend it) I advise you to read novel first (if you have the time and patience), then watch the first part, and then the sequel. It should be more enjoyable that way...if that is possible.

RuffRuff "The Last Don (Part I)" is not a spectacle but at least it's a very decent gangster film. Part II is a complete disaster, filled with a ridiculous plot, shallow (and highly unconvincing) characters, and poor acting from the likes of Miss Patsy Kensit.The plot is nothing new: the head of the mafia family dies, the good nephew Cross, whose wife is murdered, comes back to the family and takes control of the family business. The film tries to make Cross a tragic hero being haunted by the past (his dreaming of his dead father), and portrays him as an angel being forced to become a mafia boss. We repeatedly see him showing "mercy" at those who betray him, yet as soon as he walks away, his henchmen always finish the job for him. Is the film trying to tell us that Cross is, after all, innocent of (some of) the crimes, that it's his henchmen, but not him, who are truly evil? Give us a break.It is easy for Kristie Alley's character to gain our sympathy. After all, her husband and son are killed by her own family members. Her hatred towards her family (she spits and attacks the Don's dead body) is perfectly understandable, but one really wonders why she never leaves them. Instead, she cries every day, curses every one, and has no problem living on the expenses of her family which she detests, and retires to her little bedroom in the family house every night. She seeks consolation in the priest and falls in love with him, and when her family intervenes and uses the bishop to persuade the priest to give her up, she goes home and returns to her normal life of crying and cursing. Perhaps she is meant to be a doomed woman, unable to break away from the "evil clutches", but it is naive to assume that she's a totally innocent victim. There is no way that she can get away from the responsibility for causing her own sufferings.The most incredibly pathetic character in the film must be the Austrian film star Dirk von Schelberg, obviously modelled on "Arnold". Dirk, with his very blond hair, fake German accent and unnecessary affection (to Claudia) in the public, is meant to be a contrast to his scheming, black-haired and cold-blooded Italian family-in-law. His character is completely hollow, and his presence (making a film called "The Fumigator" in which he kills giant insects) is a sad joke. It's even more pathetic to see Claudia genuinely mourns over his betrayal (his casual affairs), and her efforts to revive her studio from the Fumigator crisis.Last but not least, is of course, Miss Patsy Kensit, who plays an undercover cop in Cross' family (as the teacher of Cross' "autistic" adopted daughter -- and no, the girl is not autistic, but mentally-challenged, and the film fails to tell the difference between the two) and suffers from a tremendous conflict when she genuinely falls in love with Cross. Her character lacks substance (it's embarrassing to see her trying to prove her loyalty to Cross) and Kensit's performance is poor beyond words, which is, as a matter of fact, up to her usual standard.