but ultimately, who in the world cares about Cicci's or Fanucci's or Neri's wives? I don't give a damn about it!

If Michael had been gay, that hillside near the town of Corleone would have been called "Broka-back Mountain."

Come to think of it, Calo and Fabrizzi may have been a bit light in the loafers, whistling at the G.I.'s and all.

Well, speculation is what makes the world go around. Lively discussion, eh?
Maybe they were all having one big party all the time. Who knows? It's better than reading The Return of the GF.

sure. Question Michael's virility again and I'm going to loose my control....

DT, do you have the first idea how long it took me to realize what that "light in the loafers" means??????

Cristina,

I recently watched GFIII (sorry it took forever for me to get back at you) but I think I would have mistaken another ring for Michael's wedding ring.

You see, at the beginning of GFIII where Michael and Kay were talking about Anthony, Michael sits down and there is a glimmer of light coming from his finger (which is a ring) and then you watch other scenes with his hand and when you look closer (I think it was the scene in the kitchen where he has his stroke) the ring is on his pinky. There is another scene (forgot which) where it shows his hand and the ring that I have mistaken as his wedding ring is a ring on his pinky with a big piece of jewel on it. That ring is very different from the ring (Michael's wedding ring) at the end of GFII where he sits in the chair alone and "reflect." His other hand in GFIII is ring-less.

But in GFIII, Michael does try to spend more time with Kay and shows her around Sicily. Maybe because he's lonely? I don't know but I still believe he loved her very much. In terms of characteristics, I don't find GFIII a very reliable source. And when it comes to me, I'm not a very reliable source either, haha.

[edit] I know you said no screencaps were needed, but I made one anyway (so I can prove that I am right ):



This is the scene in front of the opera house and Mary has just been shot

<<At the beginning of Part III, we learn that he and Kay must be divorced, since Kay has a new husband. Why didn't Michael remarry?>>

Because he's Catholic?

flucko, you are so incredible! Thank you for going to all that trouble and for giving such a detailed post... And the picture is fantastic. I see that pinky ring to which you refer; and the tell-tale 3rd finger of the left hand is ringless, as you indicated.

So there goes my romantic notion that Michael considered himself still married to Kay . Oh well, despite the absence of the ring, there are enough scenes between them in GF3 to indicate that Michael continues to have a special place in his heart for her .

And mustachepete, you brought up a good point about Michael's Catholicism. Considering that in GF3 he's trying to get into the good graces of the Catholic Church to make up for his past spiritual corruption, that could account for his wanting to have the semblance of following Catholic precepts, including those concerning marriage.

However, my feeling is that this is not the reason Michael did not remarry. First, Michael and Kay are already divorced. If Michael were truly concerned about adhering to Catholic orthodoxy, civil divorce would be out of the question, as it is forbidden by the Church. Admittedly, that's my weakest argument. As far as we know, in the film Kay had not converted to Catholicism. Plus she had originally left Michael, so I don't think there was much point in Michael fighting a divorce if she filed for one.

Most important, though, I believe the Church would have officially annulled Michael and Kay's marriage if Michael petitioned for that, which I think he did. The fact of his wife having an abortion without his knowledge would alone be enough grounds for an annulment. With the church's official "permission" to end the marriage, Michael is free to hobnob in the upper echelons of the Church without being looked on as an iconoclast (in other words, he's a "respectable" Catholic by all appearances). It also means that he is free to remarry.

That's my theory anyway . The question that we again come to is, since Michael has fulfilled Church requirements and can remarry, why doesn't he? (And at this point, I want to acknowledge the many good possible explanations that have been posted in this topic. More are welcome, for anyone who hasn't grown tired of this subject yet .)

I'm pretty sure that Michael had his marriage annulled. In GFIII, he really wanted that image of respect towards the church -- I think it was actually quite important to him that he succeeded that.

I think a good question is why should he remarry? During GFII, he is a husband that barely spends time with his family and is busy with his "business" all the time, so why should he have a pressure of a wife plus the pressure of his family business? I think he has abandoned all hopes for a third marriage because I think he really thought that he was a failure as a husband by the third film. He tells Kay, "I had a very different destiny planned for us."

And by the end of the second film, I think he felt little love for Kay. Her abortion really hurt him and his values. I don't think he can trust another woman again and he would most likely feel insecure in a marriage. I think marriage would consider a little "risque" for him.

As for what was shown in GFIII, that's still in question. I think spending time with Kay is sort of an escape for him. He has been spending the last few years with hopes for peace but he is always surrounded by those he do business with or the family members he have left. The goal of Michael in GFIII is to make the family business legitimite -- but wasn't that his goal all along? Kay is a bitter reminder of a promise he has yet to fulfill. Time heals and I think in the Michael and Kay relationship, it really did and Michael may have restored his love for her as time went by and he has grown into a old and lonely man. Family is his foundation and that is what makes Kay important to him. She is still the mother of his children, after all.

I might want to add that Michael is actually quite a controlling husband to what was shown in GFII. I can't blame him especially when bullets can sometimes well, fly through the bedrooms. Being the level-headed person he is, I don't think he would want to bring another woman in his deep underworld.

But that's just my "theories"