Posted on 03/11/2019 11:40:39 AM PDT by Coleus
On June 10, 2007, less than five minutes remained in the final episode of “The Sopranos.”
After eight years with Tony Soprano, his family and the Family, viewers of the landmark series sat keenly alert to the final action as Tony waited for his family at Holsten’s in Bloomfield: The bell that sounds each time someone walks through the door. Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'” playing on the jukebox. The onion rings that Tony, Carmela and A.J. pop in their mouths as Meadow attempts her maddening parallel parking job outside.
Then, nothing. Cut to black.
Those final seconds hit Tony’s native New Jersey — and the entire viewing audience — like the Big Bang, especially when everyone realized the black screen was not, in fact, a cable outage. As the waves of shock expanded outward, “The Sopranos” was never really over. Since that Sunday night more than 11 years ago, fans and TV critics, including former Star-Ledger writers Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz, have debated whether the abrupt end was an indication of Tony’s demise or something else entirely.
So when they sat down recently with series creator David Chase for a series of interviews about the show, they did not expect any monumental clarification. And yet, behold this sentence in their new book:
“I think I had that death scene around two years before the end,” Chase told them.
Yes. “Death scene.”
(Excerpt) Read more at nj.com ...
It contains the line "you better not grow old," which always struck me as a nice bit of wisdom.
At the time that song came out, I was living the "street life," but not because I wanted to. The advice about "not growing old" really had resonance for me back then.
Midway through, I though the BeeGees had taken over.
I never saw “Sharkey’s Machine,” but I hear it’s good.
I heard the song on the radio, in the NY/NJ region, back in the late ‘70s.
No it would not. A few years back, I tried some "clean" dialogue with the Sopranos characters and it just didn't work. For example:
Paulie: "Gee whiz Tony, are you really going to promote that man to captain? I often have serious disagreements with him and I don't think he is a very good fit for our organization. Also, he dresses like a slob"
Tony: "Paulie, I'm the boss in this family of ours and all personnel decisions are decided upon by me. You may not always like the choices I make but remember that I alone am accountable for them and I expect you, as part of my management team, to support me in those decisions."
Paulie: "Yes, you are right Tony, I apologize for being so forward. If you think he will make a good captain, I will give him my full cooperation and support. But Tony, could you please put him in touch with a wardrobe consultant? At our last sit-down, he was wearing sneakers and dockers for crying out loud. And his shirt looked like he bought it from The Gap at the Palisades Mall!"
See what I mean? It just doesn't flow right.
I'm not a big fan of profanity and I almost never use it myself, but I understand the need to include it in books, TV shows and movies in order to make it more real.
Dead in Rome of a heart attack at age 51.
RIP, Jimmy.
I’m not saying Tony didn’t get whacked, but there was no reason to hide a gun in the toilet. (Unlike the Godfather, where Michael was frisked when he arrived at the restaurant).
That was sort of the point of the show.
But in a world split up into tribes, they were definitely a tribe, and for some people belonging is important.
True, but MOG probably was packing anyway when he came in.
I could not stand Toni’s weak-kneed liberal kids. This show made me thankful that my kids are conservative.
I wonder if it’s not something completely different: the ending allows for a continuation. ‘Never say “never”’. With the ending as it is, the show could have picked up again anytime.
Death around every corner. Constantly under surveillance. Grinding out a mediocre living until you get near the top. If you do manage to not get killed no form of pension or insurance for your dotage. It’s a pretty ugly unpleasant existence depicted in Sopranos.
Wow. I never noticed that. Could it be connected to this scene the last time that same song was used in the show? A hint as to what was going to happen at the end?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoYHoc8Ez1w
I never really watched The Sopranos in its first run, but a few years ago my son got me hooked on Game of Thrones, so I am subscribing to HBO at least until June.
I decided I should go back and re-watch The Sopranos. My first impression was the characters, acting and writing were great. The dark humor of a mob Boss whose wife doesn’t understand him, whose kids don’t listen to him and who ends up visiting a pyschiatrist was unique. I can see why it won so many awards.
But about the time I reached the end of season 2,it seemed to me hat the overall plot advanced painfully slow. I just just didn’t’ find myself interested in going further. And by series end, the plot still hadn’t advanced all that much. The same family characters are eating diner food, and we’re still left wondering, will Tony’s enemies manage to whack him, or won’t they?
No one.
They presaged the whack in an earlier show when, IIRC Tony says “...wham, that’s it, you’re gone...” I think they were holidaying at a lake with another couple and the guys got to talking about being on the receiving end of a hit.
What would have been left? A lot of the major characters were dead. It was a war, and Tony was just the last casualty of it.
I wonder if he'd still be alive if he hadn't taken the role of Tony Soprano. Obviously, as long as he played the character he couldn't lose weight. If he hadn't gotten the role, he might have taken better care of himself.
Wow.
He was Great in other roles I saw him in.
I grew up knowing wiseguys and Gandolphini and a LOT of other characters played them great.
It ranks among the best series ever created.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.