ilm and the novel on which it is based have cited Tom Hagan as the one element in the film that is false, since an outsider would never be allowed to have such an important position as consigliere in a crime family, Hagan being not only not a true member of the family but also not Italian.) The women are ancillary to the males in the family, acting as wives, daughters, and girlfriends and otherwise having no role at all in the business world or any interest in the business conducted by the males in the family.
The story is set in the 1940s, and the American society of the time is only sketched minimally in the film. The authorities are shown as corrupt--a police captain works for the other family and thus facilitates attempts at murder. American society is represented in the film largely by Kay, the woman Michael dates in college and later marries. She is the outsider brought into a family structure she only dimly understands, a structure that ultimately freezes her out as an outsider
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