Hello everybody. It's been a long time away from this forum...

My point of view is that the Italian American Maffia is represented with nostalgia: the 20's and 30's: Gamblin, Women, Booze, Unions were the business. Don Vito refuses to get into hard drugs. He knew it would take things to a different level of violence.
Also the family is important, the base of it all. The big decisions are made having the family in mind. I think the Godfather without the family stuff would be a plain Gangsters movie.

In a way it shows that if you live by the gun, you die by the gun.

Regards