One of the most chilling scenes in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather is undoubtedly the infamous restaurant hit, in which fresh-faced Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) guns down Virgil “The Turk” Sollozzo (Al Lettieri) and corrupt police captain Mark McCluskey (Sterling Hayden). Notably, the future don ignores directions to open fire immediately after exiting the bathroom, instead opting to kill the two point-blank after sitting back down at the table before leaving the gun at the scene, which is actually an unrealistic Godfather moment, according to one former mobster.

Michael’s hesitation in the restaurant scene illustrates his inner conflict between morality and loyalty to the Corleone family. Knowing the hit will bind him to the life he’s tried so hard to distance himself from, Michael appears visibly tense as he comes to grips with killing the pair. It’s not a question of whether the don-to-be has the stomach for such killings; that’s made all too clear in the famous seven-man hit in The Godfather‘s ending. Rather, it’s that Michael understands he must sacrifice his innocence in order to save his father’s life, and hesitates briefly before fully committing to that violent path.

Michael Doesn’t Carry Out The Godfather’s Restaurant Shooting The Way Clemenza Said To

Nerves Play A Part In Michael’s Slip-Ups

In his initial instructions, Peter “Pete” Clemenza (Richard Castellano), aka The Godfather’s “King of Quotes,” tells Michael to let the gun slip out of his hand and briskly walk out of the restaurant after killing Sollozzo and McCluskey. Later, after the Corleone family discovers the location of the meeting, Clemenza instructs Michael to ask permission to go to the bathroom, obtain the gun, and then come out blasting with the gun and put two sH๏τs apiece into each man’s head.

Contradicting Clemenza’s directions, Michael doesn’t come out of the bathroom firing at all. Instead, he chooses to sit back down at the table, barely listening to Sollozzo as he gears himself up for the hit. Once ready (or perhaps when he can’t wait any longer), he violently stands up and kills the men, shooting only McCluskey twice; Michael then walks out, only releasing the gun when he reaches the restaurant’s exit.

Michael’s Mistakes Prove How Killing Sollozzo & McCluskey Didn’t Come Easily For Him

Michael Was Looking For A Way To Spare The Two

Though it could be argued that Michael was desensitized to violence due to his family’s business and service in the military, he still sought peace with Sollozzo, appealing to him for a guarantee that there wouldn’t be any more attempts on his father’s life. However, once Sollozzo made it clear that he had no intentions of stopping, Michael then resolved to protect his father by carrying out the hit.

After Michael sits back down, his eyes dart wildly back and forth as he gears up to kill the two men; he’s not the calm, calculating killer he becomes by the film’s climax. He’s young, uncertain, and afraid; his mistakes reflect that as much as Pacino’s enthralling performance. However, in carrying out the hit, Michael damns himself to the life he never wanted, taking the first step toward his transformation into the new ruthless Don Corleone of The Godfather.