For years, movie buffs’ standard rejoinder to the statement, “Sequels are never as good as the original” has been The Godfather Part II.

It’s a standard reviewer’s ploy: Tell the readers they don’t have to know much about the ballet or string theory or sheep herding or collateralized debt obligations, you name it. This movie, the reviewer asserts, transcends its nominal and superficial subject to draw audiences in with its human drama.