Was Michael Corleone more ruthless than Vito?
Michael: He Was More Ruthless
While Vito preferred to reason issues out with his enemies, Michael had them killed. In the first movie, viewers got a sense of just how ruthless Michael was when he killed McCluskey and Solozzo in a diner for being involved in his father's shooting.
Vito Corleone. Not taking anything away from Michael who was also good-heck he was succesful at expanding The Corleone Empire. However if you look deep into it and by viewing the Godfather movies and between the two, Vito was LOVED and Michael was FEARED. Vito had his FAMILY, Michael lost his and had himself.
Vito Corleone was a proverbial “man of the people” while Michael was a man of business, wishing to consolidate as much fortune and territory as possible. Vito was a man who carried tradition with him, while Michael was a man who embraced the American dream of prosperity.
Luca Brasi is Don Vito Corleone's personal enforcer, and the only man Vito himself fears. Brasi is fiercely loyal and has a reputation as a savage and remorseless killer.
Michael Corleone - 'The Godfather: Part II' (1974)
While Michael was seen as one of the more levelheaded members of the family, the sequel (and the third film) portray his downfall as he becomes a ruthless killer and crime lord.
Michael is cold-blooded, ruthless, smart, and determined. His ability to think clearly under fire, to be decisive, and to command respect makes him an excellent Godfather. Of Vito's children, he is certainly the best candidate to take over the family. But Michael was never supposed to get involved in the Mafia.
Vito vs.
Vito Corleone is loved and respected more than Michael because Vito conducts himself with dignity and overtures of friendship whereas his son operates only in terms of cunning and tactics and is ultimately alienated.
Orson Welles - Don Vito Corleone, The Godfather (1972)
Marlon Brando was always Francis Ford Coppola's first choice for the role of Don Vito Corleone.
They became the most powerful crime family in New York City after defeating Salvatore Maranzano during the Olive Oil War in the early 1930s. It was during this time that Vito's eldest son, Santino "Sonny" Corleone, made his reputation and eventually became a caporegime himself.
Vito would have been proud of Michael as a Don. Michael was smart. He was perceptive, decisive, ruthless, and knew how to lead men. Michael was a good earner, becoming the richest man in the world by Godfather III.
Is Vito Corleone a hero or villain?
Despite his role as a crime veteran, he is a moral and principled man who is loyal to his family and friends. Upon his death, he is succeeded by his son, Michael, as don of the family.
This cold intelligence and calculating ruthlessness would be inherited by Vito's youngest and favorite son, Michael, who would be the one to take vengeance for his older brother's murder.

Being weaker and less intelligent than his brothers, Fredo has little power or status within the Corleone crime family.
The Godfather's Michael Corleone is the textbook example of a psychopath.
Tom Hagen was an important advisor to the Corleones. The Consigliere (also known as Consigliori) is an advisor to the family and sometimes seen as the Boss's "right-hand man".
Tom. There's no doubt that Tom is the smartest character in the entire gangster series, and if it wasn't for him, the Corleone family would have burned so many bridges and wouldn't have half of the power that it does.
Around 1939, Vito moves his home and base of operations to Long Beach, New York on Long Island, where Genco serves as his most trusted adviser until he is stricken with cancer and can no longer fulfill his duties.
Despite this, he was always director Francis Ford Coppola's pick to play the college boy turned Godfather. Several much bigger names were being courted by the studios, though, and one of them was Jack Nicholson.
1. Michael Corleone. It sounds inconceivable now, but the executives did not want Al Pacino to play Michael Corleone.
As an INTJ personality type, Michael Corleone's best matches are ENFP and ENTP.
How did Michael Corleone become so cold?
Once the love of his life and unborn child dies, Michael becomes a bitter and ruthless man. Love was replaced with hate and a coldness running through within him. Michael may have left behind an optimistic young man with All-American dreams behind when he killed Sollozzo and the officer to flee to Sicily.
Vito Corleone was born on December 7, 1891. For his final scene as the young Clemenza, Bruno Kirby wore a fake fat belly beneath his costume to indicate the growing obesity of his character, played by the hefty Richard S. Castellano in the original film.
Don Fanucci (November 27 1850-August 16 1920) was the padrone of Hell's Kitchen, and the victim of Vito Corleone's first hit.
Many can relate to that part of his story. He is a family man doing everything he can to protect and provide for his loved ones, he is a loyal friend to many and a fair leader. His struggles make him relatable as well. He seems to have everything, but he is not happy in his personal life.
Producer Robert Evans referred to Pacino as “that little dwarf.” He told Coppola “a runt will not play Michael.” Evans was concerned that Pacino's short stature would be a problem since Sonny Corleone was originally to be played by six foot four actor Carmine Caridi.
Diane Keaton revealed no one actually wanted Al Pacino to be cast in the iconic 1972 film, “The Godfather.” The actress, 76, said Pacino, who later received an Academy Award nomination for his role, was far from casting directors' first choice to star as Michael Corleone in the hit gangster flick.
Michael says he'll visit Pentangeli, and Roth gives his support when Michael says Pentangeli is a “dead man.” When Michael visits Pentangeli in New York Michael says he knows Roth was the one who ordered the hit. He asks Pentangeli to help him take revenge.
In the book, we learn that Brasi was a crazed hitman, so hellbent on loyalty that he once killed a man who worked for the Corleone family because he thought he made them look bad. He also took part in the Olive Oil Wars, where he was in the room with six other hitmen and killed all of them in various bloody ways.
The Genovese family is the oldest and the largest of the "Five Families". Finding new ways to make money in the 21st century, the family took advantage of lax due diligence by banks during the housing bubble with a wave of mortgage frauds.
Is Michael Corleone a hero or villain?
Michael was recognized as the 11th most iconic villain in film history by the American Film Institute.
Zasa later wiped out most the Commission, yet Michael and his old friend Don Altobello escaped. Michael had a diabetic stroke, and whilst incapacitated, Connie gave Vincent and Al Neri the go-ahead to kill Zasa.
As an INTJ personality type, Michael Corleone's best matches are ENFP and ENTP.
This cold intelligence and calculating ruthlessness would be inherited by Vito's youngest and favorite son, Michael, who would be the one to take vengeance for his older brother's murder.