The sex in 'Dr. Strangelove'

Here, I'll examine the sexual themes in Stanley Kubrick's film 'Dr. Strangelove'

I am not a historian on the Cold War; I'm just a guy who loves movies and this analysis is my way of showing respect and appreciation to Kubrick and his collaborators for making this film. Thanks for stopping by:

There is a correlation between Jack D. Ripper ordering the bomber to nuke Russia, coitus or sexual intercourse, and the Doomsday Machine, described as a machine that can’t be shut off once triggered. Once Ripper sends the go-code to the 843rd Bomb Wing for the bombs to be dropped on Russian targets, every attempt to stop the bombers fails. In other words, the Doomsday Machine is 1) the Russian device itself; 2) a metaphor for Jack D. Ripper’s commitment to bombing Russia; and 3) sexual intercourse and the point of ejaculation and loss of control. Ripper explains it to Mandrake this way: 

“Women sense my power, and they seek the life essence. I do not avoid women, Mandrake. But I do deny them my essence.”

Denying women his essence means that during the act of sex, he pulls out prior to the moment of ejaculation or, in keeping this idea in the context of the bombers heading towards Russia, Ripper sends the recall code to the bombers carrying his essence which are the bombs themselves. This explains the fact that he commits suicide before being captured by the Army. Because in order for the bombers to drop their "loads," there can be no interference from the mind (he kills himself fearing he’d give up the recall code under torture) which also explains why none the radios in all of the bombers can receive messages. At a certain point in the act of sex, the mind shuts off which is why the radio on Major Kong’s plane gets damaged. The fact that all of the planes except for this one plane gets recalled is also an analogy of fertilization. (Web MD):

“The average ejaculation contains about 150 million sperm, but the majority of them will prove unfit for travel. Only 1 will actually penetrate."

This analogy can’t be ignored given the offbeat nature of the plot. Everything in this film is calculated and nothing in it is random. And remember also Ripper comparing the loss of his essence with a “profound sense of fatigue,” and compare this with the plane running out of fuel or becoming “fatigued” and unable to reach its target. Major Kong going down into the bomb bay to ‘manually’ fix the damaged doors is masturbation within the sexual context I use here. 

Chronology Of The Doomsday Machine

• Jack D. Ripper perceives that America is under attack by Russia
• He orders Mandrake to confiscate all of the radios on the base
• Ripper orders Mandrake to send the 3 digit standby code to 843rd bomb wing. 
• Major Kong double checks and confirms the code. He assumes the worst, that Russia’s already made a sneak attack on Washington
• Major Kong initiates the attack profile which involves setting the plane’s radio system to a 3 letter code prefix to protect communications between the bomber and base command. The only person who knows the 3 letter code prefix and can communicate with the bombers is Jack D. Ripper
• Ripper calls General Buck Turgidson to tell him that the 843rd bomb wing has been put under alert and that the planes are not able to get radio contact with base commander. Ripper, then, launches a preemptive attack on Russia.
• The US Army lay siege to the command base and overwhelms its security force. Fearing that he will give up the 3 letter code under torture, Ripper commits suicide with a gunshot to the head
• First, Russia hits the plane with a missile that hits but only succeeds in damaging the bomb door. Actually, the missile served to make stopping the bombing even more difficult by damaging the plane’s communication system
• Next, Mandrake figures out the 3 letter prefix to communicate with the bomber but with the communication system on the blink, that’s now impossible
• Next, even though the plane is low on fuel and unable to make it to its primary target, there’s just enough fuel to make it to a closer ICBM target
• Next, Major Kong goes down into the bomb bay to get the doors to open. The doors were damaged by the missile. He crimps a couple of wires and the doors open directly over the target

The sequence of events initiated by Jack D. Ripper ordering the planes to bomb the Soviets; Russia’s Doomsday Machine; the sexual act of ejaculation that the bombing of Russia represents—  All three of these elements illustrate processes that cannot be stopped until they are completed, thus, all 3 are the Doomsday Machine.

Video Analysis of 'Ali: Fear Eats The Soul'

This is an analysis of Rainier Werner Fassbinder's film Ali: Fear Eats The Soul

Emmi (Brigitte Mira) is a 60 year old housecleaner who works all day and lives by herself. She is White, German, and her parents were Nazis. One day, Emmi enters an Arabian Bar seeking shelter from the rain and, there, meets a 39 year old Muslim  named Ali (El Hedi ben Salem). Taking a dare from his friends, he asks the old woman to dance. He buys her a Coke. Then, he escorts her home. She invites him in for a drink. He's a guest-worker from Morocco, single, and shares a room with 6 other men. And, like Emmi, he is also very lonely. They become friends and eventually lovers in a most unlikely relationship. 

Fassbinder drew inspiration from Douglass Sirk's 'All That Heaven Allows'  and shot this film in just 2 weeks! This is a very tender little movie by one of my favorite directors. 

My scene-by-scene plot/ analysis of 'All That Heaven Allows' starring Rock Hudson and Jane Wyman

This is a scene by scene analysis of Douglass Sirk's film 'All That Heaven Allows'.

Title 1 (00:00-11:50) (11:50) Stop at “What a horrid thing to say, Mona.”

Cary attends a dinner where she is subjected to criticism for wearing a red dress. 

My viewpoint

The 1st shot of the film shows a clock on a church tower beside an overhead view of a New England suburb. The leaves are turning indicating the season and the theme of the film which is not death but change going with the fact that Cary, whose mourning her husband, is going to fall in love with another man again. We are also introduced to other elements of the plot that foreshadow elements later in the story. At around the 2:47 point on the DVD, Cary invites Sara to have lunch but Sara is attending a dinner and doesn’t have the time. She arranges a date for Cary. This establishes the film’s theme of other people running Cary’s life. Ron is finishing up some yard work for Cary and when she invites him to coffee and lunch, he accepts—this contrast between Sara and Ron—she, being too busy and he, not being too busy—sums up the entire film. This also is an illustration of what Alida says later about her and Mick getting off life’s merry-go-round. The opening shot of the clock and the neighborhood is also a metaphor for people living their lives on the clock. 

In this scene, we meet Cary’s children who remind her of what’s acceptable and not acceptable for a woman her age, expressing their approval of whom she chooses to date and expressing disapproval of a low-cut dress she wears out on a date. Cary is bombarded in this scene by what others like and don’t like. The dinner party is full of gossipers. 

This film makes excellent use of technicolor. The colors or deep and saturated. Criterion did a great job on this movie as they always do. 

Title 5 (16:32—20:49) (4:17) Stop at “It was probably thrown there because the pieces were missing. Better leave it.” 

Ron finishes up some final landscaping on Cary’s property and tells her that he plans on giving up the business to raise trees full-time. He invites her to his place to show her some trees and she accepts. 

My viewpoint:

Ron’s place is out in the woods with nature away from civilization and Cary’s world of materialism. Cary is taken by an old mill there, an old mill that hasn’t been used in a while. This mill, like Ron, is sturdy but empty because he doesn’t have a steady woman. The broken tea server is a metaphor for his heart which some woman has broken. Only love can fix it which is why he tells her to leave it. 

Title 7 (26:20-33:39) (7:19) Stop after Ron opens bottle with his teeth

Ron introduces Cary to his friends, Mick and Alida who also have a nursery business. Mick and Alida live a simple life like Ron and Cary wants to know why. Alida, Mick’s wife, explains to Cary how Ron helped them to get out of the rat-race. 

My viewpoint:

It is no coincidence that both Ron and Mick are in the nursery business. This society is so materialistic that we tend to connect our happiness to how much stuff we own. The message in this scene is that the closer we get back to the basics and nature the happier we become. All of Mick’s friends in this scene have occupations that have something to do with nature: 

• There’s Manuel, the lobster catcher
• There’s Grandpa Adams, a beekeeper and artist
• Then there’s Mrs. Edna Pidway, head of the Audubon Society and bird-watcher

Also notice how easily Cary is accepted by Ron’s friends who aren’t judgmental and contrast this with how Ron is rejected by Cary’s society.  Ron’s friends are diverse while all of Cary’s friends are lily-white.

Title 10 (47:49-57:34) (9:55) Stop as Ron and Cary leave party

Cary announces to her children that she is going to get married to Ron Kirby and they aren’t happy about it. What will everybody think of her marrying a gardener? Cary takes Ron to an evening dinner to meet her friends and things don’t go well there, either. 

My viewpoint: 

Cary’s society rejects Ron in direct contrast to how his society accepts her. First, her children are more concerned with what people think of Cary’s decision to marry Ron than they are with her happiness. At the party, Ron is treated as a novelty and a gold-digger. There is a lot of class discrimination here and it is easy to see from this scene and others how this film inspired Rainer Werner Fassbinder to make Ali: Fear Eats The Soul 19 years later.

Title 12 (59:46—1:06:38) (6:52) Stop after Ron and Cary break up and he sits on stair

Ned tells Cary that he won’t accept Ron as his father or come to the wedding; Kay blames an argument with her boyfriend on her mother’s decision to marry Ron. Cary calls off the wedding.

My viewpoint:

Cary is confronted with making a choice between being what her society expects her to be and pursuing her own happiness. She chooses, what she feels at this time, the best route by living her life as others want her to.

Title 17 (1:12:14—1:15:31) (3:17) Stop after “Drama, life, comedy, life’s parade at your fingertips.”

Ned and Kay come home for Christmas. Kay is engaged to get married and shows her engagement ring to Cary. Ned is going off to Paris to study for a year and off to Iran afterwards to work for a company. He plans to sell the house. He and Kay buy her a TV set for Christmas. 

My viewpoint:

Now, Cary sees that her children, who ran her life, are living their lives and are completely unconcerned about her. Cary realizes the mistake she made in living for others instead of seeking her own happiness. The TV set means that while she’s at home by herself she’ll be watching others live their lives, happy and not the least bit concerned about what she thinks. 

Title 19 (1:19:57—1:21:35) (1:38) Stop after Rod falls in snowbank 

Cary realizes her mistake and goes by to see Ron but he’s not in the mill. He sees her and tries to get her attention. He loses his footing and fall off a ledge and lands face first in a snowbank. 

My viewpoint: 

Title 20 (1:24:52—end) (3:55)

Rod is in the mill under doctor’s care, unconscious since falling off the ledge into the snowbank. He has a concussion. Cary understands now, how she’d let other people come between her and Ron. He comes to and the 1st thing he sees is her face over his. 

What 'Ali: Fear Eats The Soul' is really about

An analysis of Ali: Fear Eats The Soul by Rainer Werner Fassbinder 

Ali: Fear Eats The Soul is a bittersweet film about the destructive ways in which informal norms such as racism and age affects relationships and health of those who violate these norms. The film's central characters are Ali and Emmi, a Black Moroccan guest-worker and an older White domestic worker who fall in love following a chance meeting. Their cultural differences are challenged by society at every turn. Ali holds things in and doesn’t express his feelings. Emmi, who does express her feelings openly, acts as the safety valve in the relationship. Ultimately, the strain of society’s cultural expectations causes Ali and Emmi to drift apart and Ali's stomach ulcers to worsen. 

Emmi's own children become hostile when they find out that she is involved with a Black man. Her son calls  her a whore and kicks in the television set. The employees of a restaurant stare at her and Ali. The neighborhood grocer refuses to serve Ali. Her friends avoid her and make racist comments about Ali. He invites some friends over and Emmi’s neighbors call the police about their music being too loud. Throughout all of this abuse, humiliation and rejection, Emmi cries for both of them but Ali is a rock. 

The second half of the film begins with the racist grocer making up to Emmi after his wife talks some economic sense into the man. One of the female neighbors that made racist remarks earlier in the film, comes to Emmi smiling and needing a favor and Emmi helps this friend, so relieved to be accepted after being rejected for marrying Ali. Next, Emmi’s racist son stops by for a favor. His demeanor is completely different from when she told him she was marrying Ali. This son’s wife had taken a part-time job and they needed someone to keep their kid. Again, Emmi is relieved and glad to do this for her son who’s obviously using his mother’s need for acceptance to his advantage. She forgets about Ali’s needs and this is when he begins to express his feelings. He asks Emmi to make a north African dish called couscous. This is his favorite dish she used to make for him. But now that she feels accepted by those who once rejected her, she won’t make couscous anymore. Emmi is the only tenant in her building with a man and she puts Ali to work for her friends. When a couple of these friends visit her, one of them—in the presence of Ali—makes a racist remark about his good hygiene. Ali has on a T-shirt and one of the women makes a comment about his physique. They walk around him feeling his muscles. This is the last straw for Ali whose hurt is now obvious. Without the safety-valve provided by the comfort Emmi gave him or the emotional outlet he had through her, Ali begins to show the effects of racism. 

He escapes this pain by having sex with Barbara. She is nice to Ali and cooks him couscous, his favorite dish. She’s young, beautiful, well-built and lives in a nice apartment. By contrast, Emmi is old, not very attractive, and lives in a crumbly low-rent apartment. But Ali loves her and most, importantly, Emmi shares his pain with him. But now, in order to fit in with her society she conforms by going along with things she knows are wrong. At 57:54 minutes into the film, Emmi’s friends refuse to eat lunch with her because of Ali;  at 1:16:00 into the film, Emmi and her friends refuse to eat with a woman who earns less money than they do. 

Despite the physical comfort Barbara provides, the ulcers in Ali’s stomach are becoming worse and when he comes home late knocking on Emmi’s door, he doubles over in agony on the floor. Emmi mistakes his condition for being drunk and ignores it. At this point of the film, Emmi has become a true German. But when Ali stays out for a number of days, she goes looking for him and finds him at work. His co workers make cruel remarks about her age, one referring to her as his’Grandma from Morocco.’ 

Later, at the bar, Ali gambles away his money. He slaps himself in the bathroom mirror. Emmi, as she did in the beginning, drops by the tavern and Ali asks her to dance. He apologizes for having sex with another woman. Then he falls to her feet groaning. Later, we find out that he has perforated ulcers caused by stress. On the outside, Ali seemed fine, even under the racism he and Emmi faced throughout the film. But in reality, stress and the fear has eaten away his soul. Sitting at his bedside and holder his hand, Emmi cries as she did before Ali became ill, when she had cried for them both and they shared their pain with each other. 

Analysis of a scene from 'The Godfather'

In this scene from 'The Godfather', Apollonia dies.

This is my Take on the death of Apollonia referencing Sun Tzu's 'Art of War': 

Art Of War, Chapter 9: The Army on the March

“Pass quickly over mountains, and keep in the neighborhood of valleys”

The Godfather (Mario Puzo): “Every man has but one destiny”

In this scene, Michael is still in exile in Sicily after murdering a New York Police Captain and a drug dealer. During his exile, he marries a young Sicilian woman woman named Apollonia. They are staying in the villa of a local Don who is a friend of The Godfather but for only a short time. Enemy spies are also in Sicily and Michael can’t stay in one place for long. His car is booby-trapped with a bomb that kills his new wife and this death of an innocent represents his baptism into his father’s world and seals his destiny to take over the Corleone empire. The Biblical metaphor here is that his love for Apollonia represented the one thing that could come between himself and complete unconditional love for his father. Apollonia’s death and the poverty of his homeland enables Michael to fully understand his father’s determination to not be a puppet on the string of no one else. Also, as explained in the previous clip, the Don had cleared the way for Michael to return to America and if Apollonia had not died, Michael may not have made the decision to return to America and stand by his father. Throughout this film, death complements life in some form or another. 

A scene-by-scene examination of 'Ali: Fear Eats The Soul'

A scene by scene analysis of 'Ali: Fear Eats The Soul'

You can follow this Analysis with the DVD

Title 2 (1:34-20:26) (19:52) Stop after they make love and hug

The story is set in Munich, Germany. It is raining outside and the sound of Arabian music draws Emmi into the Asphalt Bar where she meets Ali. A young woman dares him to dance with Emmi and he asks Emmi to dance.  Afterwards, he walks her home and she invites him up to her apartment until it stops raining. Over a cup of coffee and brandy, they talk. She and her father were in the Nazi party. He is a Muslim and comes from a large family. He is guest worker from Tismit in Morocco.He stays over the night and they make love.  

My viewpoint

Right away, it is clear that both Emmi and Ali are lonely. The rain is her loneliness and the Arabian music is Ali calling out to her and drawing her into the bar. At first when the young beautiful Arabian woman dares him to dance with Emmi, it seems like he’s simply playing along. However, as they dance and talk about themselves and share their pain with each other, you can clearly see that there is something there and the girls at the bar see it, too, which is why they don’t look so happy about it. Ali and Emmi have a connection that goes beyond their differences. Another thing that Thomas D. and I discussed at the Meetup (12/3/16) is how the younger women in the bar are the ones who show their insecurities against a woman who is twice their age and unattractive (in the conventional sense of the word). Usually, this would be the other way around with the older, unattractive woman being the one showing insecurities against younger attractive women. I believe that the younger women in the bar could “feel” something about Emmi that they themselves lacked. Emmi brings warmth.

The apartment where she lives is like her, old and worn, but at the same time, warm. They talk in the vestibule. She has 3 children but only sees them on special occasions. They live their own lives. She cleans for a living and lives alone. Emmi opens the door to see if it is still raining. It is and she invites him to stay until it stops. She makes a beautiful statement that sums up the whole move: “I’ll go see if the rain’s stopped,” she says, and seeing that it hasn’t she says, “It’s still pouring. Why don’t you come up for a while? I’ll make us a coffee, and maybe the rain will stop.” Great moment! 

Ali and Emmi are emotional opposites. Ali doesn’t show or express his feelings and Emmi does. With Ali, it is impossible to know from his face if he is not simply leading Emmi on. But when he shows up in her room and sits on her bed and starts caressing her arm, and, most importantly, sharing his pain with her, only then is it certain that Ali is as taken with Emmi as she is with him. From this point in the film, Emmi shares Ali's pain and Ali is able to deal with the racist attitudes from her society.  

Wikipedia 

• The film was shot in just under two weeks, and was planned as an exercise in film-making for Fassbinder, to fill in the time in his schedule between the work on two other films, Martha and Effi Briest.

• Ali is played by El Hedi ben Salem, who was Fassbinder's partner at the time. Barbara is played by Austrian actress Barbara Valentin, who was in the 1980s a partner of Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the band Queen. 

Title 7 (26:17-29:13) (2:56) Stop after “Your mother’s got a screw loose.”

Emmi tells her daughter and son-in-law that she’s in love with Ali, a Moroccan 20 plus years her junior and they think that she is joking, not really taking her seriously at all. 

My viewpoint

This is a great scene from the standpoint of the cinematography and costume design. Her white daughter has on a black nightie that suggests that her outlook on her mother’s relationship will be polarized and racist. Contrast this with Emmi’s dress which is multi-colored coinciding with her attraction to Ali. Also, note the crucifix hanging in the corner suggesting what will happen to her and Ali from this point forward as they make their relationship public. 

Wikipedia

The man playing her son-in-law in this scene is Fassbinder himself who was in a relationship with the actor playing Ali in this film 

Title 11 (43:22-46:05) (2:43) Stop after children leave 

Emmi breaks the news of her marriage to Ali to her children who all disown her and leave. 

My viewpoint

Emmi is devastated by the way her children react to her marriage while Ali is almost completely unemotional. The 2nd half of the film reverses the emotional roles he and Emmi play in the 1st half of the film. Now, though, it is Emmi who acts as the safety-valve for the both of them. 

Title 12 (46:05-49:15) (3:10) Stop after Emmi leaves store

Store owner refuses to serve Alit. Emmi confronts store owner and he throws her out

My viewpoint

Ali is unemotional when he is mistreated by the store owner who refuses to serve him; Emmi is the opposite, confronting the store owner directly

Title 13 (52:17-57:34) (5:17) Stop after police car leaves

One of Emmi’s co workers has lost a sister and stops by to ask if Emmi can stand in for her. But when Emmi introduces her friend to Ali, the woman changes her mind and leaves. Ali wants to go see his buddies but Emmi tells him to invite his friends to their place. Emmi’s neighbors call police on her for playing loud music. 

My viewpoint

Emmi begins to distance herself from Ali in the form of denial. When the woman sees Ali then leaves Emmi blames the sudden about-face on the fact that the woman just lost a sister even though the woman was obviously disturbed at the sight of Ali. The pressure has weakened Ali but when Barbara invites him to her place he still has the will-power to refuse her invitation. Another thing to note is the rejection of his culture when the police order them to turn down their music. It’s not that the music is loud but the fact that it is Arab music. You also notice that all of the rejection comes from Emmi’s society. Ali’s side has no problem with Emmi being white. 

Title 14 (59:57—1:03:08) (3:11) Stop after Emmi says “They will.”

Emmi and Ali are at a table on the patio of a restaurant. The employees of this restaurant are gathered together staring at them. Emmi cries but Ali is unemotional. 

My viewpoint

This is the pivotal scene in the film but 1st I want to comment on the cinematography. The scene begins with a very wide shot showing the couple surrounded by empty tables and space. They are totally alone as they have been ostracized by Emmi’s family, her friends, and her society. The close ups focus on Emmi’s face which is worn down with age and fatigue. This scene compresses everything they’ve dealt with being together. This scene is also the breaking point for Emmi, that she has reached the limit of her strength.

Title 15 (1:04:41-1:10:52) (6:03) Stop after Ali leaves

Mrs. Ellis, who once insulted Emmi and Ali, asks to borrow Emmi’s storage space and Emmi agrees, getting Ali to move the woman’s stuff. Next, Anton, the grocery who refused to serve Ali and who threw Emmi out of his store sees her and is all smiles. He drags her into his store. Next, Emmi’s son Bruno asks her if she can babysit his kid for a given time and Emmi agrees to do so. This is the same Bruno who kicked in her television when he found out she was marrying Ali, a Black man.

My viewpoint

Emmi tells Ali to be nice to Ms. Ellis “and she will be nice to you.” This is the statement that defines Emmi from this point on. Everyone in this scene needs something from her and are willing to “tolerate” Ali and hide their true feelings. Emmi wants so badly to be accepted that she is blind to the fact that none of this is real. She even goes to the point of condemning Ali of the one thing he has to remember his own culture by refusing to make couscous for him. He left his Arab friends, the bar where he used to hang out and listen to Arab music, everything that he identifies with for Emmi’s culture where he has no friends, only those who wish to use him. And now that Emmi feels accepted again, she won’t even make his favorite dish! Emmi is no longer expressing her feelings and now all of the pain Ali’s been holding in begins to show in various ways.

Title 17 (1:18:23-1:19:44) (1:21) Stop after Ali leaves

Emmi allows her racist friends to grope Ali, feeling his muscles. He is insulted and leaves

Emmi is selling her soul to be accepted by her friends at Ali’s expense. Now, she’s showing him off like a freak. Again, the feelings he’s been able to suppress earlier in the film begin to show.

Title 17 (1:21:12-1:22:38) (1:26) Stop after they fall on couch

Ali visits Barbara who own the Asphalt Bar. They make love and he stays the night. 

My viewpoint

Ali is weakened by Emmi’s rejection and to address his pain he seeks pleasure in the form of sex with Barbara. Barbara, is much younger and far more attractive then Emmi but she can’t replace the warmth Emmi gave Ali. Without Emmi’s warmth, Ali seeks sex as a distraction. Again, the cinematography in this scene is very effective in showing the coldness of their lovemaking as the camera perspective is far away from them, almost detached, turning them into vague forms enclosed by darkness. 

Title 19 (1:25:22-1:33:12) (7:50) end of film

Ali is at Barbara’s bar gambling and losing all of his money. Emmi stops in the bar and she and Ali dance. Ali doubles over and is taken to the hospital to have a perforated ulcer removed. 

My viewpoint

Ali’s pain expresses itself in diversion, in this case, the diversion is gambling. Slapping himself foreshadows the perforated ulcers in that both are him attacking himself. Without Emmi as an emotional safety-valve, Ali implodes. When they reunite and dance as they danced in the beginning of the film, he tells her of his affair with Barbara and they make up. But by this time the damage is done and it is too late. However, there is a glimmer of hope at the end of the film as Ali lay unconscious with Emmi at his side holding his hand. Once again, as she had in the 1st half of the film, she cries, and in doing so, gives expression to his pain. 

Baptism: a scene from 'The Godfather'

In this scene from 'The Godfather', I will examine the baptism of Michael Corleone's godson.

Art Of War, Chapter 4: 

Tactics

“The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.”--Sun Tzu

Chapter 6:

Weak Points and Strong

“All men can see the individual tactics necessary to conquer, but almost no one can see the strategy out of which total victory is evolved.”--Sun Tzu

Again, in this clip we see the organic relationship between life and death as Michael attends the baptism of his godson as his soldiers kill off the heads of the other 4 New York Families. By the time the godson is baptized and the heads of the 4 New York Families are executed, Michael emerges in all of his glory as the undisputed Don of Dons, the reincarnation of his father, Vito Corleone. By pretending to be weak, closing the Family’s New York businesses and moving everything out to Vegas, Michael and his Family were not only underestimated, but their enemies became arrogant to the point of letting their own guard down as the Bible says in Proverbs 16 and verse 18: “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”