mise-en-scene explores two angles of the godfather's life

The beginning of The Godfather constructs two deliberately contrasting settings in an effort to establish the two areas of Vito’s life: the office setting and the outdoor celebration of Connie’s wedding. The director makes use of a naturalistic mise-en-scene, instantly convincing me that the four men in the initial scene are conducting serious business in an office, thanks to their strict attire and formal attitudes. Likewise, I have no trouble believing that the second setting is a real wedding, with all of the busyness, (the photographer struggling to take a structured family photo before Vito wanders off to greet more guests) and the recognizable matching dresses for bridesmaids and tuxes for the groomsmen. The setting seems like a real place. Although I’ve never seen this estate before, it appears familiar and natural.
Within the office, the only characters present are men dressed in dark tuxes. The heavy furniture indicates importance and rigidness, and the slats on the window allow only stripes of natural light to enter the room. Dim desk lamps are the other visible sources of light. An overall sense of seriousness comes across through the shadows and dark colors, and the door is shut closing the room off from outside noise or interruptions. By implementing lighting, props and costume, it is clear that this room is intended to be strictly for business. This private aspect of Vito’s life contrasts quite piercingly with the wedding scene that suddenly flashes onto the screen.
In the courtyard of the house, a wedding reception is taking place. In contrast to the previous scene, the light makes everyone visible. The sunlight and the sky indicate a sense of freedom and openness. Family and friends are crowded together on the lawn, with barely enough room for anyone to move past, but the faces and voices are joyful. This use of social blocking in this scene shows us that the family and guests at this party trust each other, in the sense that they are touching each other in greeting, pressed closely to each other in a crowd, and dancing with one another. Each individual is surrounded by many others, while in the previous scene social blocking indicated a professional distance between Vito and his client who were separated by a broad desktop.
Both settings are very distinct. Vito’s public life is spent enjoying his family in a courtyard crowded with loved ones, but his family recognizes the clear boundary between this and his business. There is a sharp contrast between the attitudes of these two spheres, but as the movie develops there will be instances when this boundary blurs because Vito’s family significantly plays into his line of business.