Fans of the legendary film The Godfather are only just working out a subplot decades on from its release. The Hollywood classic left some viewers stumped, with members of the r/Godfather Reddit page finally piecing together one of the film’s smaller but still crucial storylines. A post to the forum saw users decipher a crucial detail which would lead to one of the film’s most iconic scenes.
Mario Puzo’s novel adaptation is hailed as one of the best films of all time, frequently topping best-of lists. The film still clearly has influence, as fans discuss it decades on from release. One detail that has left viewers stumped for years has finally been solved, it seems.
A fan asked: “Why are the plice with Jack Woltz’s horse? When Woltz shows Tom Haggen his horse in the stall – there is a police officer in there with the stable hand. Is he there to guard the horse? He did not do a very good job!”
Jack Woltz, a minor character in the first film portrayed by John Marley, is a movie producer who also runs a stable which houses prize-winning horse Khartoum.
Khartoum’s head ends up in Woltz’s bed, with hitman Luca Brasi killing the prize-winning horse. The plot points circling around the animal had left some viewers confused over the years, however.
One user wrote: “Khartoum was a $600,000 horse that was to be retired and put to stud. Woltz’s entire stable was to be built on this horse’s offspring so Woltz hired security to protect him.
“In the brilliant video game you get to follow Paulie around avoiding or subduing many of these guards.” Though the video game version of The godfather may not be familiar to viewers of the film, extra details can be found within.
One user praised the games and the additional detail, writing: “I loved that game! I loved all of those off screen moments you get to take part in. It seemed like it was made with love!”
Another added: “He was there to guard the stables, but in killing Khartoum, Don Corleone showed Woltz that his security was a joke.”