'The Godfather' is back in theatres: Lighting up, Hollywood style

MICHAEL: You did good.

Enzo, very scared, takes out a cigarette and has trouble lighting it with his Zippo lighter. His hands are shaking. Michael takes the lighter and lights his cigarette, noticing that his hands are not shaking. Moments later, sirens are heard as police cars screech to a halt in front of the hospital. Michael shoos Enzo away as he is grabbed by an officer.

OFFICER: (grabbing Michael) Now you hold still…

(From the original screenplay of The Godfather by Mario Puzo & Francis Ford Coppola. Page 51 of a total of 124 pages. Source: www.public.asu.edu/)

That 15-second Zippo lighter scene in The Godfather - with the noticeable glare and a pause - is often touted as the narrative’s turning point. The scene takes place soon after an attack on Don Corleone (Marlon Brando), Michael Corleone’s (Al Pacino's) father. Michael calmly takes the lighter, flicks the fire to life, and shares the flame with a grateful Enzo (Gabriele Torrei). Michael could calmly, without any tremors, light Enzo’s cigarette, when Enzo couldn’t. It was an act of mercy, decisiveness and self-realisation. With that Zippo in hand, Michael had embraced his destiny as the future don. Metaphorically, the lighter was a moth drawn to the mafioso flame.

This was no ordinary scene. And that was no ordinary lighter. It was a windproof lighter by Zippo that first hit the market in early 1933.

As The Godfather returns to theatres in 4K Ultra HD 50 years after it was first released by Paramount Pictures in 1972, we revisit the iconic scene and the lighter that have sparked so much discussion.

Lasting flame

Such has been the popularity of this scene from The Godfather that are several discussion threads on the internet are dedicated to its importance.

In a video essay titled "My Favorite 15 Seconds From The Godfather", filmmaker/critic Thomas Flight discusses this great small moment in the film.

In the video essay, Flight says, “Francis Ford Coppola’s film never shows Michael discussing his transformation from reluctant Corleone to full-fledged mob boss. The lighter moment is one of the few pivotal moments that show Michael’s transformation….”

In its nearly 75 years of filmography, Zippo has been featured in nearly 2,000 films, including Casablanca (1943), Die Hard (1988), Hocus Pocus (1993), and Charlie’s Angels (2000). From blockbusters to indie films, Zippo has served as a prop to get out of sticky situation, to draw out suspense, to make a style statement or to hint at rebellion.

In the Walk of Flame video that Zippo made in partnership with IMDb, Marvel Entertainment’s Head Prop Master Russell Bobbitt lifts the curtain off the magic of moviemaking, illuminating the creative process of film production and documenting Zippo’s celluloid legacy.

With a portfolio of over 50 films, Russell is responsible for acquiring, designing and manufacturing the objects that end up in the hands of Hollywood’s best-known actors.

In the video, Bobbitt takes film fans behind-the-scenes to a leading Los Angeles prop house with over 1 million props. He walks around the large space exploring the critical storytelling devices that drive plots forward, his most famous creations, and reflects on how the humble Zippo lighter became a dependable prop in the movies.

Indeed, Zippo has had many cameos in the movies. In Charlie’s Angels, Drew Barrymore has a Zippo with the American flag’s stars and stripes on it. For Ocean’s 13, Zippo customised a lighter with a lightning bolt on it to trigger the dice at the casino. In Die Hard, Bruce Willis uses the Zippo lighter while crawling through air ducts. Several Quentin Tarantino films feature Zippos; the most iconic being Reservoir Dogs. In The Sopranos, they pretty much use a Zippo every time a character smokes...

It has been 50 years since Zippo was featured in The Godfather. Four years ago, the company obtained trademark registration for the sound of the Zippo Windproof Lighter opening, sparking, and closing, which is referred to as the Zippo ‘click’. On June 3, 2020, the 600 millionth Zippo Windproof Lighter was rolled out.

Who knows when Zippo might have another historical celluloid moment, awakening the hero and moving the plot forward, as it did in The Godfather.

Marlon Brando in the role of Don Vito Corleone in 'The Godfather'.