Analysis of The Godfather

The micro elements have been used by the director to subtly portray information to the audience. As the characters enter the scene, we here the diegetic sound of the overhead train, which informs the audience that the scene is set in New York as these trains are most commonly found in New York. The sound is a significant identifier later in the shot.

The characters sit down in the restaurant as the sound of the train fades down to create a silence. This silence makes the audience feel tense as their mind is left to wonder what is about to happen, as there is no sound cues for what is going to happen next. The silence is momentarily interrupted by a cork being removed from a bottle, which has been emphasised to demonstrate how quiet the scene is. The bottle is a bottle of red wine, which is a visual metaphor for blood. This mise-en-scene has been used to foreshadow the blood shed after the shooting of Sollozzo, which makes the audience even more tense as they are waiting for the moment in which he is shot.

An interchange of mid shots between Michael and Sollozzo has been used in this scene.