Noble as mafioso. Historical accuracy in Mafia: Definitive Edition
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Experts on the subject point out that both Coppola and the author of the original book, Mario Puzo, romanticized mafia's image in The Godfather. This was done for a simple reason – the reader and the viewer were supposed to like the main characters, which is why Tom Hagen or Michael Corleone are educated, classy people, and Don Vito is devoted to his family and always puts honor and loyalty in the first place. We see a similar narrative in Mafia. It's hard not to like Tommy Angelo and root for him throughout the game, even though he goes from a taxi driver to a gangster. And Don Salieri is almost a dream boss and mentor.
Real-life mafiosi however, were usually ruthless people, putting profits above everything else, and not eschewing female companionship. In the game, the character of Don Morello, the head of a competing family, is much closer to reality, who is shown as a temperamental and ruthless gangster.
Tommy Angelo as a policeman?
According to the early idea for Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven, the player was to take on the role of a police officer whose job was to infiltrate the ranks of the mafia. When Daniel Vavra took over as the game's director and personally handled the script, he changed the narrative to tell the story of a rookie gangster who climbs the ranks in a mafia family.
Interestingly, the name Morello refers to one of the great Italian families that really formed the American mafia in New York City. Morello's gang was the first mafia family in the city, and its founder, Giuseppe Morello, came from the village of Corleone in Sicily! The Morello brothers ruled Italian neighborhoods in East Harlem and parts of Manhattan and the Bronx. In the 1920s they were conquered by the then ruler of New York, Joe Masseria, and in time became part of the Genovese family.
The latter clan is also associated with mafia boss Frank Costello, said to be the biggest inspiration for the character of Vito Corleone from The Godfather. It was Costello who was said to be the reasonable boss, discouraged his people from dealing in drugs and used diplomacy and connections rather than brute force and intimidation to influence politicians and businessmen. Similar traits can be seen in Don Salieri, for example in scenes where he expresses his attitude towards drugs or pressures Tommy to stop drinking.
The real mafia is impressed!
The Godfather was a sensation among real Italian mafiosi, who were simply enchanted with it. Some even began to behave like and pick up traits after the characters from the movie, such as mimicking the way Vito Corleone spoke. One member of the Patriarca family, Nicky Giso, known for his excessive swearing and poor knowledge of English Grammar, got a hold of himself and started to learn how to speak properly. In his speeches, he started used more subtle words instead of profanities.
When the streets ran with blood – the Castellammarese War
One of the main themes of both Mafia: Definitive Edition and The Godfather is "going to the mattresses" – a total war between rival families – and this is a most authentic theme. Lasting from the early 1930s., sporadic acts of aggression intensified in 1935, turning into an open war that had to result in the elimination of one of the families. Assassinations of key figures, executions and shootouts in public places were a common sight on the streets of New York City at the day. The same goes for Lost Heaven.
The plot of Mafia is limited to two families (Salieri and Morello), which in fact matches the actual conflict between the forces of boss Joe Masseria and Salvatore Maranzano of 1930-1931, known as the Castellammarese War. In fact, however, the number of families involved in it was higher. The conflict ended when the heads of the two clans supporting Masseria, Luciano and Genovese, decided to betray him and ally themselves with Maranzano. In 1931, Joe Masseria was executed in a spectacular attack at a Brooklyn restaurant while he was playing cards.
The end of the war enabled Salvatore Maranzano to create an entirely new hierarchy of American mafia, divided into five main families: Luciano, Bonanno, Profaci, Mangano and Gagliano. Salvatore called himself "capo di tutti capi", or "the boss of all bosses". However, the power-hungry Maranzano enjoyed his title briefly. He was killed in 1931 on the orders of Lucky Luciano, and the governing body of the new American Mafia became The Commission (active to this day), which, in addition to the five New York families, also included, i.a. the Chicago faction led by the (in)famous Al Capone.
The Godfather features loose references to the events described above. The war in the movie is fought between five families (with fictional names: Corleone, Tattaglia, Barzini, Stracci and Cuneo), and Michael Corleone's execution of Virgil Solozzo and policeman McCluskey in a restaurant is the beginning of the great conflict and "going to the mattresses".
In Mafia: Definitive Edition, most missions involve a war between the Salieri and Morello families. We begin by helping Sam and Paulie escape Morello's button men and that's how we get involved in the grim world of mafia. We are witnessing extortions, betrayals and corruption, and one of the most spectacular and important missions is... you guessed it, the restaurant execution scene.
