DIRECTOR: Alan Taylor
PRODUCERS: David Chase & Lawrence Konner & Nicole Lambert
WRITERS: David Chase & Lawrence Konner
PERFORMERS: Alessandro Nivola Leslie Odom, Jr. Jon Brethnal Corey Stroll
Michael Gandolfini Billy Magnussen Michael DeRossi John Magarro with Ray Liotta
and Vera Farmiga
"Who made Tony Soprano?" This is an interesting question, hence the tagline to this film that serves as a prequel to what is known as one of the most landmark shows in HBO history. For a film like this to be made and to tell the story it told, the answer to the question above is being revealed slowly, but surely. From childhood to adolescence, we see Tony Soprano (a role made famous by the late James Gandolfini) go from youngster to an aspiring mob boss.
The Many Saints of Newark tell a particular story about the mob life unlike anything ever seen. Taking place during the 1960's to the 1970's, you see these group of people just trying to do what anyone would: get by. But when it comes to power, one will do anything to ascend to that position and remain on top for as long as possible. From The Godfather to GoodFellas, any film about living the mob life was always about ascension to power, the rewards that come with it and the subsequent fall that eventually follows. This film completely deviates from that formula, as it depicts a young Anthony "Tony" Soprano in his younger years while his uncle (played by Alessandro Nivola) grows within the mafia ranks. There's no over the voice narration, no freeze frame or even character analyzation as you would get from a film of this nature, just straight-forward and right to the point.
Michael Gandolfini turns in a very effective performance as a teenage Tony, seeing him in this part immediately brings you back to his late father in the role he is originally known for. He made not have had a lot to do gangster-style here, but you slowly see him becoming who he's meant to be as his destiny comes closer and closer to him. He's just so convincing and transparent in his role that you think you're looking at his dad, only younger. As for Nivola, he brings to the screen in a way I hadn't seen before. The last thing I saw him in was Jurassic Park III and that was a good one for what it was, even though it didn't hold a candle to the first film. His portrayal of Tony's idol is so masterfully done here that you begin to see why he was such a huge influence on Tony. The casting choice of Ray Liotta was a big timer for me because this is guy who was in GoodFellas and so see him in a dual role of twin brothers, both involved in the mafia ranks, blew my mind; especially when one of them gets killed. but then he suddenly reappears as this inmate and I'm like 'didn't he just die?!' Then I learn that he's a twin of that guy I saw earlier, so there. The best part is he's the only A-lister in the whole bunch, everyone else are either just newcomers or people we haven't seen in a while such as Nivola. More newbies, less well-knowns... that's what makes a good cast.
I was even surprised to see some of the things that were happening during that time in Newark, such as the conflicts between the African-Americans and the Italians within the underground world, including the riots and everything. Former Sopranos writer and creator David Chase really touched on these things with such great detail and reference like they were meant to be in there for a reason. My only puzzle was the relationships being played out between the characters, who's working for who? what's really happening here? and how does one expect to keep this or that once gained in a business like this? In any mob film, it's always every man for him or herself, but in this one it's everything or nothing. The acting is superb, the writing is brilliant, the setting is excellent and the lighting is just fantastic! Though I was clueless about a few things, I slowly got the pacing as it went along. Keeping up with a film like this is not easy, you would have had to have seen the series to understand it better.
The Sopranos have been known for being this family of organized crime living in New York and their day to day lives. This is a depiction of how they got that way and why. Prequels are not as bad as some tend to think, and this one proves that it takes a backstory to tell 'who are these people and how did they get this way?' If I were to do a book report on somebody like Tony Soprano, I would want to start on who got him started in business he was in and most importantly, who made him? Then I would want to know how he got the way he did culminating in a potentially tell all report having learned about someone's life story and coming to an understanding of that person. We can never be to quick to judge, but we can be quick to think and Chase knows these people better than anybody. Director Alan Taylor did a good job as well taking us back to the Sopranos family before they became what they were known as to millions of people all around the world. Sure it wasn't like mob films I grew up on, but it was exactly what it needed to be: an origin story. If anything, this film was so impressive that I have a feeling it will not stop there. There may be more origin stories Chase has up his sleeve and only time will tell if we'll see more of young Tony as he grows and grows. If you're looking for a mob film to check out, see this one... just beware of the brief nudity and sex scenes because if you're like me, you'll have to turn away from them. Highly recommended, especially for any Sopranos fans out there and worth the revisit to Nostalgia lane.
MY RATING: 3 out of 5