'The Many Saints of Newark' (for me) is an excellent piece of Sopranos fan service with strong character moments and some quite memorable scenes.
The plot is reasonably good as it covers a lot of ground in the lives of Dickie Moltisanti, Harold McBrayer, Giuseppina Bruno, the young Tony Soprano, Johnny Soprano Junior Soprano and Livia. The narrative is quite loose as it focuses key parts of Dickie's life, some influential moments on Tony's, plus the racial tensions of the time. There is enough material to cover several episodes of a series and putting it all into one movie feels like I've only had a glimpse of several larger stories.
I think it is important to have watched the series beforehand to have a full appreciation for everything. Episodes like the ones mentioned above, plus 'Kennedy and Heidi' from the final series were essential for my own enjoyment.
There is a lot of strong character focus, particularly with the influence certain relationships and events have on future events depicted in the series. Most actors have the parts previously played by other actors nailed. I particularly enjoyed the performances of Vera Famiga and Corey Stoll as Livia and Junior.
All the cast are superb and Alessandro Nivola leads it well. The presence of Michael Gandolfini does give it that extra edge of plausibility that you are actually seeing a young Tony because of that resemblance.
I found it quite reminiscent of Scorsese movies. The use of a voiceover narrator for one (the identity of whom is brilliant), plus the character of Dickie reminded me a bit of Charlie from Mean Streets with his explicitly stated desire to do some good things whilst living a life of crime.
As a lead character Dickie is written similarly to Tony as a complex individual finding his way through a brutal world. He is aware of right and wrong which is a source of conflict addressed in multiple scenes of dialogue much like The Sopranos.
Visually it is very strong as it tells a story with great cinematography and editing. The opening and ending are absolutely fantastic. The music, narration, and imagery combine perfectly. There are also some incredibly well crafted moments of violence that stick with you long after.
My favourite scenes are the ones that involve the family together, such as the dinner table sequence with Christopher as a baby and Johnny's homecoming. I also love every scene that involves Livia.
Not everything works for me. There are one or two key moments I personally find a bit contrived to push the plot in a certain direction. I won't spoil, but they involve a situation that eventually provokes violence from a character. They are not badly made in any way, just for me a bit out of left field.
I'll be honest and admit to being a biased fan of the show and find it tough to rate. As a stand-alone-alone movie it is solid. As an episode of the Sopranos franchise I think it is a very strong addition. The marketing of the movie as prequel about a young Tony hurts it.
I hope David Chase writes and produces another movie because he has wet the appetite with a glimpse of the characters at this stage of life, but not really given enough to fully satisfy. I guess a lot may come down to the financial success of this movie.
The plot is reasonably good as it covers a lot of ground in the lives of Dickie Moltisanti, Harold McBrayer, Giuseppina Bruno, the young Tony Soprano, Johnny Soprano Junior Soprano and Livia. The narrative is quite loose as it focuses key parts of Dickie's life, some influential moments on Tony's, plus the racial tensions of the time. There is enough material to cover several episodes of a series and putting it all into one movie feels like I've only had a glimpse of several larger stories.
I think it is important to have watched the series beforehand to have a full appreciation for everything. Episodes like the ones mentioned above, plus 'Kennedy and Heidi' from the final series were essential for my own enjoyment.
There is a lot of strong character focus, particularly with the influence certain relationships and events have on future events depicted in the series. Most actors have the parts previously played by other actors nailed. I particularly enjoyed the performances of Vera Famiga and Corey Stoll as Livia and Junior.
All the cast are superb and Alessandro Nivola leads it well. The presence of Michael Gandolfini does give it that extra edge of plausibility that you are actually seeing a young Tony because of that resemblance.
I found it quite reminiscent of Scorsese movies. The use of a voiceover narrator for one (the identity of whom is brilliant), plus the character of Dickie reminded me a bit of Charlie from Mean Streets with his explicitly stated desire to do some good things whilst living a life of crime.
As a lead character Dickie is written similarly to Tony as a complex individual finding his way through a brutal world. He is aware of right and wrong which is a source of conflict addressed in multiple scenes of dialogue much like The Sopranos.
Visually it is very strong as it tells a story with great cinematography and editing. The opening and ending are absolutely fantastic. The music, narration, and imagery combine perfectly. There are also some incredibly well crafted moments of violence that stick with you long after.
My favourite scenes are the ones that involve the family together, such as the dinner table sequence with Christopher as a baby and Johnny's homecoming. I also love every scene that involves Livia.
Not everything works for me. There are one or two key moments I personally find a bit contrived to push the plot in a certain direction. I won't spoil, but they involve a situation that eventually provokes violence from a character. They are not badly made in any way, just for me a bit out of left field.
I'll be honest and admit to being a biased fan of the show and find it tough to rate. As a stand-alone-alone movie it is solid. As an episode of the Sopranos franchise I think it is a very strong addition. The marketing of the movie as prequel about a young Tony hurts it.
I hope David Chase writes and produces another movie because he has wet the appetite with a glimpse of the characters at this stage of life, but not really given enough to fully satisfy. I guess a lot may come down to the financial success of this movie.