Gotti: Godfather and Son

Gotti: Godfather and Son is an excellent series. In 4 episodes of about 45 mins each one gets to follow the story of New York Mafia boss John Gotti and his son John jr, told by the Gotti family. The insights to mafia life in New York around year 1990 are unique, informative and entertaining.

While enjoying this series one should however not for a second forget that these are all bad guys painting a picture of themselves that is as glorious and positive as can be done. They caused tragedy, suffering and harm to thousands of people, and this is real life, not some story based on a fairy tale.

Amazon/Freevee cut out 2 episodes of the 4 Godfather and Son documentary. I was wondering why so many years passed between "part 1" & "part 2". I had to watch the full version on YouTube. A 0 rating for Amazon/Freevee.

I wish A&E would go back to what they do best instead of broadcasting dumb reality TV shows. This Biography documentary is outstanding. Personal accounts from the families, lawyers, and government officials involved help to tell the Gotti's story. Writers and journalists explain the background history and culture of the mafia. Home photos, videos, and even interior images of the Gotti house are included for reference. A&E should make similar documentaries on the other 4 families.

This is a very interesting series. Gotti was beloved by many people and did what appeared to be a lot of good for his community. Whether a front for his other life or in general how he lived is yet to be known many may have opinions either way. My take from this series is that Gotti had a way he viewed society should be led and that government had no business in his business and as a result made him an outlaw for living how he wanted. While living rather modestly despite his riches he never over exemplified his lifestyle with his family but he did glorify the mob boss lifestyle and the fact for many he was untouchable until his fateful mistake and trust in what would be the Judas betrayal. Had Gotti lived by his decree to absolute he may have had many more years outside of prison and many more body bags would've been filled. He was not the man to go head to head with and being the boss was his ultimate travesty. His son so desperately wanting to fill his fathers shoes had quickly been frightened away from the lifestyle once his toes were wet. The reality of cement shoes and deep lake waters many of Gotti's fellow men had simply disappeared. John Jr. tells his story growing up the son, the Jr., the eventual temporary boss himself realizing his time must end he headed clean to a new life where his family was more important than the power and money he could obtain living the lifestyle of America's most ruthless mob family. A must see if you want to learn some history and find this sort of thing fascinating.

Though many may consider the story of John Gotti one sided I believe it is a loving portrayal of a man's love for his Father. And it is very easy to understand the sympathy many had for Gotti The Godfather, to such an extend that so many of the "man in the street", "so to speak" demanded Gotti's release. Yes Gotti was responsible for a variety of crimes, but his charm and charisma, his over the top personality and his exceptional handsome looks added to his vibrant persona that he presented to almost everyone who knew Gotti the Godfather. A fascinating story yet also extremely sad that a man like Gotti chose the life he lived. With his exception charm and intelligence he could have succeeded in an honest career. The series evokes a lot of contrasting emotions. DEFINITELY WORTH WATCHING A SECOND TIME

I agree with the other positive reviews here after I just finished watching this short series. We get a behind the scenes look at the father, the son, the blood and crime families, and how the son came to the realization he needed to support the family that was the most important to him. He needed to drop the other family in the process, and it was much like the famous line in Godfather 3, "Every time I think I'm free of the life...They keep pulling me back in." Only in this case the "They" was the federal prosecutor's who gkeot trying to gin up charges to keep him locked up for life or executed. All because they couldn't believe he left the life and was not the head of the Gambino family.

This is one of the best documents about the real life inside and out of a mob. It's very interesting indeed. John Gotti Jr. does a really good job explaining all the history as the story moves on...He works very well in front of the camera.