10 Heart-Breaking Film Moments When The Hero Became The Villain

10. Michael Corleone In The Godfather

Michael Corleone is one of Al Pacino's most famous roles, yet his character's beginnings as a morally upstanding soldier with little interest in joining the Mafia are often overshadowed by the Don's various nefarious actions in the Godfather trilogy once he has accepted his family's legacy of organised crime. When we first meet Michael at the wedding that opens The Godfather he's a perfectly affable and transparent, if incredibly sharp, young man, clearly deserving of his virtuous girlfriend Kay (Diane Keaton). He's peripheral to the goings-on of his father, Vito Corleone, who prefers things that way; he wants Michael to have nothing to do with 'the family business'. However, as the story progresses, betrayals are made and assassinations are attempted and Michael becomes more and more entrenched in the mob feud that's central to the film, committing dubious acts and plotting with his brothers in order to secure his family's status as the head of the pack. Though his journey is painfully clear to all those who've seen the movie, the full extent of Michael's descent into the heart of darkness is never quite clear until the final scene in which Kay questions him about about a man he had murdered, which he denies. She believes him, but as a door closes between the two and he receives his capos - becoming the new Godfather - it's all too obvious that Michael Corleone has crossed over to a place he can never return from.