Traces the legacy of the Corleone family. It starts with Don Corleone as a young man in Sicily (played by Robert De Niro from the flashback scenes in 'The Godfather, Part II') and moves to the last years of his time in charge of the family (as played by Marlon Brando from the first part of the trilogy). The story unfolds in a fight for control of the illegal trades in New York with young Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) taking charge of the family and guiding them through a bloody era. It ends with the family trying to go legitimate in the 1980s, with Michael seeking an heir apparent to his empire, the heir being the hothead nephew Vincent (Andy Garcia). Francis Ford Coppola worked closely on the re-editing of his masterpiece which was originally commissioned as a mini-series for television.