Praised and highly regarded as it may be, The Sopranos is the best series I've ever seen. And I don't even know how it ends yet, I'm part-way through the final series, but, despite being a person whose never been overly interested in mafia stuff (I couldn't get into Goodfellas, Godfather I & II were good), The Sopranos has me gripped.
What the Sopranos does so, so well is allows the viewer full access to the private lives of all the main characters (Quite a few - Tony, his wife and two kids, his mother, uncle, sister, and nine or ten different mob associates). Depth and attention to detail in this series is truly staggering. Narration and the use of psychiatry is also key in getting into the psyche of the family boss Tony. So often, actions are only made sense of when discussed with psychiatrist Dr. Melfi. Plus, it is a rare occasion such as this where we discover the innermost feelings and what drives a pretty conservative man like Tony Soprano. Similarly, dream sequences further the narrative incredibly effectively.
An underrated aspect of the show is its humour. Soprano's main associates, Silvio (his consigliere), Paulie and Chris ('captains'), regularly demonstrate their naivety in hilarious situations which have provided yours truly with at least as many laughs as both series of the Office over the course of the five and half series which I've ploughed through intensively. A fine example is the series three episode Pine Barrens in its entirity, although Chris hilariously expresses his disbelief upon discovering the Cuban Missile Crisis was real, having thought the movie Thirteen Days (presumably! Chris refers to having seen 'that movie') was fictional. Unusually also, product placement is rife throughout (notably with cars and coca-cola), although the producers insist this was for hyperreality and they were never paid to use particular products.
Now, however, as is always the case personally regarding wonderful TV series, I find myself in a familiar quandary. 50% of me wants to race through the remaining 13 episodes to see the conclusion (which, after five and a half series, I have zero clue what it will be). Au contraire, the other 50% doesn't want it to end so quick. See, The Sopranos is that good, it must be savoured, with every subtle nuance enjoyed to the maximum. Much like a great meal - eat it with respect and enjoyment, rather than to quell ones' hunger. I thought the same about Lost, enjoyable and engrossing as it is, it doesn't have the same beautiful subtlety and filmic quality, and now I just want to know what the fuck is going on (13 more weeks!).
It's that good, and I don't even like gangster stuff. Added to the hilarity is the constant references to the classic gangster texts, sources of amusement throughout [n.b. see above image for Sil's Pacino impression from Godfather III]. It is always made clear, almost comically, that the gang worship the movie. Who knows, maybe now I'll appreciate the Godfather trilogy and Goodfellas. If not, there's always Tony and co.
Dan.
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