VIDEO The first images of The Godfather, restored in 4K, are online: what the Godfather looks like, 50 years after its launch

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Francis Ford Coppola’s masterpiece, “The Godfather,” Paramount Pictures will release all three films in the epic 4K Ultra HD trilogy for the first time on the 22nd. March 2022.

All three films have been meticulously restored under Coppola’s close supervision.

Launched on March 24, 1972, “The Godfather” was well received by both the public and critics. Based on the best-selling book written by Mario Puzo, “The Godfather” was the highest grossing film of 1972 and won three Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Marlon Brando) and best screenplay adapted by Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola (who also received a nomination for Best Director).

In all, “The Godfather” received 11 Oscar nominations, including Al Pacino, James Caan and Robert Duvall, for Best Supporting Actor.

Meanwhile, “The Godfather” became one of the most important films of the twentieth century, successfully joining the cult list.

The first images from “The Godfather”, restored 4K

The new 4K Ultra HD release for the 50th anniversary was a long process of meticulous restoration of all three films. This happened over three years.

The film was last restored in 2007 and using that restoration as a starting point, the team spent thousands of hours making sure that each frame was evaluated to create a flawless image, staying true to the original look and feel of the three movies.

In this exclusive clip, published by ScreenRant.com, film archivist James Mockoski and restoring editor / artist Robert Schafer discuss the restoration process, juxtaposing several images of the film, before and after.