Source: The Buffalo News

Pass the pasta and the pistol – Tony Soprano and the rest of ‘the family’ get ready to say farewell in the final season of HBO’s hit series


By Alan Pergament
Updated: 04/01/07 8:24 AM


NEW YORK — It wasn’t easy getting an audience with Tony Soprano at Tuesday’s mobbed screening of the first two episodes of the final season of HBO’s “The Sopranos.”

But there was James Gandolfini, aka Tony Soprano, chowing down at a packed party afterward in a restaurant adjacent to the Rockefeller Center skating rink.

After seeing him constantly being interrupted by friends and still appearing to be in a good mood, I introduced myself and asked the burly Gandolfini if he minded being asked one question. He looked reluctant but listened patiently as I asked him if he was satisfied with how the series was ending.

Gandolfini gave that Cheshire-cat smile, leaned down as if to whisper something in my ear ... and then gently kissed the side of my face.

It was a Tony Soprano moment. He might as well have been dealing with one of his gang. Gandolfini never said a word, and he turned away.

It was reminiscent of those many uncertain moments over seven seasons on “The Sopranos” in which characters like Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli), Bobby Baccalieri (Steven R. Schirripa) and Artie Bucco (John Ventimiglia) had to interpret where they stood with Tony.

It may take weeks to discover if Gandolfini’s kiss was intended to explain his satisfaction, or was a kiss of death. But judging by the reaction of a celebrity-studded, invitation-only crowd of about 2,500 at the Radio City Music Hall premiere of the first two episodes, the final season with the Jersey boys will be one to love and savor.

It is loaded with laugh-out-loud humor, and often illustrates how little Tony and his family understand themselves. There is also shocking violence, political humor and Tony’s reflections on how he has dealt with his different families at home and at work.

These opening episodes are as powerful as the ones that started the saga in 1999.

The HBO series ends its much-celebrated run with nine episodes that begin airing at 9 p.m. next Sunday and runs consecutive Sundays through June 10.

The final episode, written and directed by series creator David Chase, is being filmed now. Chase, as usual, is only comfortable talking about a general, vague theme for the season.

“It really is about America, about the way we live in America,” Chase said at the party. “It’s an American story. It is about people who came here a while back and they tried to make it.”

Lessons from mother

Chase was inspired by his relationship with his mother to create a mob boss badly in need of therapy because of all the abuse he got from his mother, Livia, who was played in earlier seasons by Buffalo native Nancy Marchand. Livia (and Marchand) died years ago, but her psychological legacy lives on in the season opener.

Called “The Sopranos Home Movies,” the episode focuses on a visit that Tony and his wife, Carmela, (Edie Falco), make to the Adirondacks home of his sister Janice (Aida Turturro) and brother- in-law Bobby Baccalieri. It may be one of the best two or three episodes of all time.

And that’s saying something when you consider the accolades the series has received over the years, including Emmy and Peabody awards.

Brad Grey, the University at Buffalo graduate who produces the series, told the Radio City Music Hall audience he considered the series “the greatest adult TV series of all time.” There has been a chorus of impartial observers who share his opinion.

Grey conceded in a conversation that he initially didn’t see the pilot turning into the cultural phenomenon it has become. “I loved it,” he said. “But I had no idea people would respond to it the way they have. Like I said, it has been the most amazing 10 years of all our lives.”

Falco didn’t see it coming, either. In fact, she didn’t even expect to get the role. “Then I got the call that they wanted me,” said Falco. “I thought, I’ll make some money and pay off the credit cards.”

Chase told the Radio City crowd that “the first inkling we collectively had” that the show was becoming a hit came after a character, Big Pussy Bonpensiero (Vincent Pastore), disappeared in Episode 11, two episodes before the first season finale.

“We didn’t know where he disappeared, and we didn’t know why he disappeared,” said Chase. “Then we came back two months later and America was asking, ‘Where is Pussy?’ We looked at each other and said holy s—-. We had to figure it out.”

As usual, the writers figured it out brilliantly.

In the final season, the writers use Tony and Christopher to give an absurd take on the process of movie-making and entertainment. In the season’s second episode, “Studio 5,” Christopher’s highly personal horror movie, “Cleaver,” is set to premiere. Though some may view it as a hatchet job on Christopher’s mentor, it initially gets a semi-rave from Tony.

“One hundred years from now, when we’re dead and gone, people will be watching this [expletive deleted] thing,” Tony tells Christopher.

You almost wondered if the line — as absurd as it is, considering Tony was talking about a slasher movie — is intended to have double meaning and relate to “The Sopranos.”

“That was not my intention,” said writer-producer Terence Winter. “But it is funny. I did say it to David Chase the other night as a joke. We were talking about the end of the series and we got sentimental. I said, ‘David, 100 years from now, people are going to be watching this on DVD’ and we both laughed.”

A classic

Frank Vincent (Phil Leotardo) and Ray Abruzzo (Little Carmine) — who play candidates to become the New York boss now that Johnny Sack (Vincent Curatola) is ailing

and in jail — think the line should be taken seriously relative to “The Sopranos.”

“This is never going to go away,” said the white-haired Vincent. “It will be here as long as all the classic shows. This changed the face of TV.”

“It is indisputable,” said Abruzzo, “that it will go down in history 50 years from now in the way that people refer to ‘The Honeymooners’ and ‘I Love Lucy’ and a handful of great, groundbreaking shows. I don’t think there is anything more that can be done in television.”

The quality has been helped by HBO’s policy of giving writer-producers as much time as needed to produce less than the 22 episodes that broadcast networks traditionally require. The 86 episodes of “The Sopranos” are slightly less than four network seasons. This final season is referred to either as Season Seven, or part two of Season Six.

At times, the delays for new episodes have aggravated fans. There also have been complaints that there hasn’t been enough action. Now viewers are sorry to see “The Sopranos” go.

“It just felt like the right time,” said Winter, who has written about one-quarter of the episodes after joining the series in its second season. “To me, this has always been an epic novel, and it is the right time to bring it to its conclusion.”

Before every season, Chase, Winter and writers Diane Frolov, Andrew Schneider and Matthew Weiner sit around a big table for weeks discussing a road map of what Chase has planned and sharing personal stories or remembrances that may augment the scripts.

“Part of David’s genius is he will let you ramble,” said Winter. “He wants to hear what happened to you as a kid. [You’ll say,] ‘One time I met this guy ... ‘I had a dream about so-and-so.’ And two days later, David will say, ‘What was that dream you had again?’

“A lot of things that happen to Tony and the other characters are things that happened to us in our lives.”

Winter said Chase decided to deal with the death of Tony’s mother, Livia, the same way the staff heard about the death of Marchand from cancer.

“That was a huge loss for the show,” said Winter. “We got a phone call. In addition to personal loss we all felt, how does this impact the series? Obviously such a huge part of the series itself is

Tony’s relationship with his mother, part of what drove him into therapy ... We decided to handle [the character’s death] the way it sort of happened to us in real life. That Tony would get a phone call saying his mother died.”

The memorable scene in the “Pine Barrens” episode written by Winter, in which one of Tony’s girlfriends hit him with a piece of London Broil steak, was also inspired by real life.

“When I wrote the episode,” recalled Winter, David said, ‘Wouldn’t she serve him a better cut of meat?’ I said, ‘Probably, but when it happened to me it was a cut of London broil.’ So he said, ‘leave it alone.’ ”

Christopher’s acting lessons were inspired by Winter, who took lessons before he became a writer. Paulie’s (Tony Sirico) visit to a psychic was based on an experience Winter had, too.

Now that the end of Tony’s story is near, it is hard to say whether there is more pressure on Tony — as the Feds seek to bring him down and a new New York boss is chosen — or on the show’s writers.

“If you ask Jim Gandolfini, he’ll probably say Tony,” said Winter. “I think it is equal. I think part of the problem of being Tony is there is always pressure.”

There is something for everyone in the first two episodes. Though Tony’s psychiatrist, Dr. Jennifer Melfi(Lorraine Bracco), has only one scene, it illustrates that all his time in her office hasn’t gone to waste.

“I don’t know if [the therapy] helps, at least I’m making a difference,” said Bracco.

There also has been something in it for Dr. Melfi. “I think she finds him very exciting,” said Bracco. “I don’t mean exciting, sexually. Exciting in that he comes in with issues that are different than Psych 101. They have dug deep to try and get him to see what his life is about.”

Hitting his 47th birthday and surviving a health scare, Tony has become more reflective about family, the family business and the meaning of life, and he’s more selfaware after years of therapy.

“I know too much about the subconscious now,” Tony tells Dr. Melfi.

How will it end?

A “Sopranos” fan would have to be unconscious not to wonder how it is all going to end. Will Tony kill Christopher? Will Christopher kill Tony and become the new boss? Will Carmela, who already considered life without Tony once, end up alone? Will Tony just ride off in the sunset and decide to spend his golden years watching his beloved History Channel in Italy by the tranquility of the water?

Or will he be watching from jail after he’s arrested by federal agents? Will it all end with what’s left of the family eating a meal together?

So far, there have been no credible leaks about how it is all going to end.

Winter has a theory: “People say they want to know, but they really don’t want to know,” he said.

Of course, Chase has become famous for refusing to wrap up story lines — so nothing is guaranteed. Winter said “a fair amount of things” are wrapped up, but added that the goal wasn’t to answer all the questions. “We didn’t feel we had to do that,” he said.

Winter doubts there will be a long-rumored “Sopranos” movie to answer more questions.

“David has said in the past in lieu of the movie we did [this] season,” said Winter. “I think that sort of took the steam out of the movie. That said — who knows? David has always wanted to write and direct a feature, and this is certainly something he could set up pretty directly if he wanted to ... I would guess the movie won’t happen.”

Grey, who now heads Paramount Pictures, isn’t ready to concede the movie idea is dead even with Chase’s view that the final season used the material. “David told you there wouldn’t be a sixth and seven seasons, didn’t he?” noted Grey.

Winter doesn’t need psychic abilities to guess what will happen after the finale. “I can already see it coming,” said Winter. “ ‘Why did they do this? Why did they do that? What happened to this, what happened to that?’ “

“I believe,” added Winter, “the nine episodes represent a very satisfying conclusion to the series.”

Unlike Gandolfini, Grey didn’t kiss off the satisfaction question, either.

“I think the audience is going to be really, really pleased with this season,” Grey said. “It is a very strong and very entertaining season and I think David and the writers outdid themselves.”