Modern Familyremains one of thebest modern sitcoms, a heartfelt family drama that explored many sensitive issues with delicacy and emotional depth. Its 11-season run followed the lives of diverse characters as they grew together and faced off against relatable adversities with heart and humor. The series draws its laughs from a number of definite elements, mainly its mockumentary format and a plethora of cringe humor. But the true heart ofModern Familyalways sat above these labels. It lay in the fact that, beyond the chaos and personal embarrassment stirred up by its myriad characters in every episode, every single character tried their best to show up for each other.
It is this binding logic that allowed the series to produce one of the best parody scenes in television history —theGodfatherspoofin the season four episode, “Fulgencio.” The main plot of this episode is the baptism of Gloria and Jay’s son, Fulgencio, for which Phil and Claire are to be present as godparents. However, in the sidelines of this precious family moment, all three of Phil and Claire’s children are going through major problems in their social lives, with Phil himself facing some issues with a community member.
Phil, being the innocent do-gooder, tries to solve all their problems through kindness and personally reaches out to the people making the family’s lives difficult. But when this naive step ends up making matters worse for all of them, Phil switches over to his devious side, giving audiences one of the best moments in the series.
The Adorable Relationship Between Phil and Luke Dunphy
There is nothing more important for making a good sitcom than the chemistry betweenits cast members. And it’s this very quality that makesModern Familysuch a funny and enjoyable show. Its showrunners have a great awareness of the unique charms of every character, utilizing the most minor character traits to sketch out big laughs throughout the series.
In the case of Phil, he usually presents in a chaotic good orientation, suffocating his children in love and care, and acting as the foil to his wife Claire’s anxious, highly organized personality. However, they’ve also written in some captivating deviousness to Phil’s character that contrasts magnificently with his usual childlike glee. He has proven time and again that he can be an absolute menace when situations call for it, sometimes planning events months in advance.
Meanwhile, his son Luke is like a mini-copy of Phil, with an unabashed quirkiness that goes hand-in-hand with childish innocence. Despite being so alike, the father and son rarely work together in harmony. In fact, a chaotic bumbling towards a shared family goal is a key trait of the entire Dunphy family, and this acts as the format for many episodes ofModern Family. The “Fulgencio” episode, however, features a rare instance when two members of the Dunphy family — Phil and Luke — work together in perfect synergy. Aided by Phil’s devious imagination, this teamwork turns out quite dangerous for their ‘enemies’ in the community. The episode nicely reveals a key piece of the puzzle that is the Dunphy family, illustrating how they manage to maintain a positive environment despite the surficial chaos that seemingly defines them.
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A Tribute Par Excellence
The entire parody montage in the “Fulgencio” episode spoofs not one, but three iconic moments fromThe Godfather. Firstly, Phil stands in as replacement for Michael Corleone in a baptism scene that directly mimics the climax of the firstGodfathermovie, complete with the discordant background score from the church organ. As Phil renounces Satan at the church, Luke forgoes his typical doofy self and executes his assigned mission with deadly precision — staging a minor van accident, sabotaging a children’s party, and taking down balloons with a BB gun.
The montage also finds just the right space to insert a horse’s head. It’san iconic symbolfromThe Godfatherthat is universally recognized. It becomes the source of yet another joke in the brilliant spoof, as Luke’s bully wakes up to find a severed zebra plushie in his bed, and is strangely terrified at the sight.
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After the mission is completed, Claire approaches Phil in his office. She is surprised at how all their problems went away magically. This final moment is the absolute best of the entire parody scene, filled with a self-awareness on Phil’s part that makes it all the more funny. Claire’s bemused attitude is met with an unusually heavy response by Phil, who tells her to never ask about the business. This dialogue is met with utter confusion, but before Claire gets to respond, Luke appears to block the frame and closes the door on her, in a direct callback to the haunting final frames ofThe Godfather.
A Wholesome Parallel
TheGodfatherparody inModern Familydoesn’t stand out simply for blending multiple iconic moments from the movie. In general, spoofs tend to stand apart from the rest of the story, and often appear dry for trying to create humor solely on its basis.Modern Familyavoids the mistake by brilliantly integrating the parody in the course of its own plot. The writers of the series go one step further by adding a distinct hint of self-awareness in Phil, any time he enacts such elaborate plots, which make it all the more funny.
Although not directly shown, Ty Burrell, who plays Phil, subtly lets on in his performance that Phil planned the elaborate revenge by imagining himself as Michael fromThe Godfather. Maybe the character was reminded of the scene from the movie because of Fulgencio’s baptism — the thought leads the viewer to wonder if the showrunners were always looking for an excuse to spoofThe Godfather, at the first mention of a baptism in the series.
But more than this, this scene stands out because of its supreme relatability and wholesomeness. In the original, this scene has a horrifying significance of Michael fully embracing the role of the Godfather, becoming a man more ruthless than his father ever was. InModern Family, the parody is representative of the love that Phil has for his family. At the same time, Phil’s solutions to the typical family problems faced by his children come out of left field in a maniacal fashion that is nothing less than peak sitcom entertainment. TheGodfatherparody scene inModern Family, with its close connection with the episode’s direct plot, leaves you belly-laughing on the floor, marveling at the perfect conjunction of characterization, comedy, and homage that led to the creation of such wholesome yet nuanced humor.
