This shot is then followed by a sharp straight shot to a gun. The quick shift from the shot of the baby to the weapon is disturbing as these two objects represent completely different meanings – the angelic child and a lethal firearm.
This is shortly followed by a match on action of the priest rubbing a substance on the baby’s face, whilst the barber dabs shaving cream on an assistant of Michaels. This is abruptly followed by a mid-shot of another assistant preparing a police officers’ uniform from a suitcase. The soundtrack at this point is that of parallel sound. It begins to increase its texture as the assistants prepare for the slayings. The tone is tense increasing the sense of tension in the sequence. There is also a sound bridge as the sound of the organ and baby continues over the several shots.
The two different shots of the priest’s benediction and the assistants preparing themselves have graphic matches. The shots have broad similarities such as the little light used and the slow and calm way they seem to move themselves across the screen.
To increase the feel of suspense, the assistants are shown to even be nervous themselves. There is a clear match on action as two of them both wipe there brows with tissues.
The several mid-shots of Michael establish his character due to the impassive, emotionless expression on his face. With the clever inference of editing in this sequence the audience immediately can realise that he is responsible for these murders. The sequence is very linear although the cross cutting could be representing a time shift of some sort. Jump cuts are used several times throughout this montage to show two juxtaposed events, the baptism and murders. They create a sense of disorientation and confusion, causing the audience to feel even more unsettled.
However, Coppola has stuck to the 180 degree rule, so as not to confuse the audience too much.
The dynamics of the soundtrack is a mix between intenseness with the baby’s cries, yet the sound of the organ is soothing. This deliberate contrast adds to the apprehension to what is going to happen. The intentional haunting nature of this soundtrack adds to the experience of suspense within this series of shots.
As the priest asks Michael if he believes in the Lord, Jesus Christ, and all of his works, Michael's soldiers aim and fire at the rival family heads in their own separate and completely different ways. This piece of dialogue particularly emphasises just how Michael’s character has changed throughout the film. This sequence is an important one for his shift in the family hierarchy. Along with the detached expression on his face, Michael agrees to renounce Satan, although he is commiting a sin by murdering fellow men. As Michael answers yes, he does believe in Jesus and renounce Satan, the audience is shown a variety of close ups of the bloody bodies in various locations around the city.
The murders are carried out in an almost ritualistic manner. These tie in with the baptism and its ritual link to the Catholic Church. Nevertheless, Coppola has shown these murders in a way that is not meant to be realistic. He has emphasised the violent nature of these men, just to stress the binary opposites within this sequence. He has concentrated on the convention of gangster films and their links with death, and taken it to a whole new extreme by contrasting it with an innocent child’s baptism. This alone could cause an anxious feeling within the audience.
Low key lighting is used throughout this sequence. This forms a large amount of shadows around the characters and there settings, making the audience restless and feeling uneasy.
The final shot shows another mid-shot of Michael as the baptism has been completed as has his murders. There is a high degree of closure at the end of this sequence when referring to Michaels place in the family being clear – he is now the new Godfather.
Consequently, Coppola has presented the natural challenge faced by Michael in his new dual life using a variety of binary opposites and film techniques. While he speaks in one way in one world (with the blessing of the child and his affirmation before Christ), he acts in a completely contradictory way in another world (by ordering the murder of the head of every rival family). In this montage, Coppola edits two worlds together in an extraordinary style.
