When dealing with the mafia myth on screen many screenwriters have followed the lead which Mario Puzo took when he wrote The Godfather. Based on the testimony of Joe Valachi, Puzo set the stage with The Godfather by adhering to four myths presented by Larke: Sicilian/Italian heritage, structure, business, and omerta. So, what exactly does this mean? Well, it means that the ideal film will present these elements in some way, shape, or form.
What are these ideal films? Although my mafia film repertoire is limited, two films that come to mind are the Seduction of Mimi and of course the Godfather. In the Seduction of Mimi, Mimi has to deal with the Sicilian mafia as he tries to avoid breaking the code of omerta. This occurs multiple times since the mafia if highly connected in both Sicily and Turin. While The Godfather as one of the “model” mafia films it contains everything that a romanticized mafia film could have. It has the powerful Sicilian family with business connections across the country with which includes other mafia families. It features the myth of structure with the Don as the head and finally the secrecy code of omerta which is taken very seriously in the films.
If I were to choose any movie that portrays the mafia myth the worst it would be Gomorrah. Although the film does touch up on a few of the myths such as the structure and business. The film does not focus so much on these myths or romanticized aspects but instead focuses more on the reality of the mafia. By featuring a film composed of six different stories but all with the revolving influence (the mafia) the film is unique in which it is no longer tied down to such a cliché set of standards (myths). This is why I say Gomorrah featured that myths the worst, which does not mean the movie was the worst, it simply deviated to its unique own path.
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