The Many Saints of Newark | Syracusefan.com

The Many Saints of Newark

Guinness

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Somehow I missed that this was actually happening. Pretty cool that they casted James' son to portray him when younger.

Sopranos Prequel
 
When it was first announced I was under the impression that it was going to be a series on HBO. Once I paid more attention and understood it is a movie, I became less enthusiastic. But obviously I will have to see it.
 
I haven't watched yet. But the anonymous Twitter critics, that I trust so much on everything else, don't seem to have loved it.
 
I hated it. Had to hold back several times from shutting it off. It really had little to do with the Sopranos. Kinda like how Joker had little to do with the DC universe. Except this movie had no plot.
 
I will say the way they left it off was setting up for a sequel. The first half of this movie was like episode 1. The 2nd half like 2. If they make a next movie with the first half being how Tony gets involved (3) and the 2nd half how he gets made (4), then it will all tie together. That would at least make sense but it makes this movie go from garbage to just being bad.
 
The Sopranos is my favorite series of all time. This movie was not befitting off the franchise. I am stunned that David Chase, who guarded this franchise with his life, settled on this as its follow up. The sequel he so adamantly refused to develop could not possibly have been worse.
 
I hated it. Had to hold back several times from shutting it off. It really had little to do with the Sopranos. Kinda like how Joker had little to do with the DC universe. Except this movie had no plot.
The plot was every 3 minutes introduce a character, reference, incident, or one liner from the show because they think the audience are idiots who only need that. That was the whole damn plot.
 
The plot was every 3 minutes introduce a character, reference, incident, or one liner from the show because they think the audience are idiots who only need that. That was the whole damn plot.
We should have known by the title. In Italian it is Molti Santi di Newark. The problem is Dickie had no story to tell.

I rather have seen a movie about Johnny Boy and Junior or about Tony. But that would be the Sopranos and not the Moltisantis.
 
would people who have never seen the show enjoy it more than those that have
 
would people who have never seen the show enjoy it more than those that have
IMO no it is even worse. There was no real plot. So I don't see how anyone who hasn't seen the Sopranos can enjoy it. If you watched the Sopranos then you recognize the characters and what they are about. There are a lot of references that happen later in the show. It felt like one of the filler episodes of Sopranos that was setting up the next episode.

I bet there is another movie that gives fans what they really want. I didn't see the real point in this movie. If they wanted a Dickie origin story it should have been set 10 years earlier. If they wanted a Tony origin story they should have set it 5 years later. Instead we got neither.

If the point was to explore the relationship between Dickie and Tony, they failed to really get into it. They didn't explain why Tony was so close to the non blood husband of Tony's mother's sister's husband's sister. Why did he idolize Dickie instead of Johnny Boy or Junior? Why not show Dickie helping to raise Tony when Johnny was in prison? Then we feel the connection.

They brushed on Dickie the person. We know more than we did before but still don't really know him. They brushed on Dickie's family but didn't get into much. We learned a little but not enough. They brushed on Dickie the mobster. We know he is a mobster but never see him do much. Part of the appeal of the Sopranos was it going into real mob life. Much like the Godfather, Goodfellas, Bronx Tale, Gomorra. This movie was missing that realism, it was the Hollywood version instead of the neighborhood version of the mob. They brushed on Dickie's relationship with Tony. But we don't know how or why Tony idolized him. It felt like they wanted a C and Sonny like relationship but never showed it and just implied it. They brushed on all the other characters but we really did not learn more about them.

I am failing to see the main point fo the movie. I feel it failed to add anything to the Sopranos universe.
 
There is also quite a bit about the movie that conflicts with the show. You have a few things said in the show about the past which would make no sense with what we saw in the movie.
 
It was ok but really wasn't about Tony which I thought going in. Was more about the uncle than anything else.
 
It was bland, disjointed and mostly pointless. You kept waiting for it to pay off and it just kept dragging on.
 
It was bland, disjointed and mostly pointless. You kept waiting for it to pay off and it just kept dragging on.

The only way it makes any sense if is there was always to be a sequel. As a stand alone it is so disappointing.
 
The only way it makes any sense if is there was always to be a sequel. As a stand alone it is so disappointing.
Yup. And making a terrible film to set up a great sequel 3 years from now seems like a poor idea. They gave us a movie no one wanted. Just give us Tony’s story!
 
I think the point of the film was to show two major sources in Tony Soprano’s development (his uncle and his mom).

The problem with prequels or long awaited sequels is that the references to the original distract from storytelling. I’m going to watch it a second or third time before expressing an opinion.
 
I watched it a 2nd time and still don't see a plot. I don't want to give a way any of the non plot but will comment on the characters.

Dickie- I thought the actor reminded me at times of Bobby Axelrod and at other times like Richie Aprile. I liked the character and the actor. We never really learn his role. Is he just an associate like his father? A made man? Capo? Was he an alcoholic? We saw him drinking but not misbehaving as a result. He has a picture from being in the Navy where he looks much younger. That has to be pre Vietnam, but was he never called to duty for the war? How old is he? Late 30s the 1st half and early 40s the 2nd half? We never learn why he is so close to the Soprano family.

Hollywood Dick- I thought Liotta looked awful. He has aged a lot. We never learn what happened to his first wife. He didn't add much to the story.

Giuseppina- really did not add a whole lot to the story. Never explained how she moved out of the house. Wouldn't her step daughter have wondered?

Uncle Sal- he looked better here. I really do not understand the point of this character. All of his scened were weird and added nothing to the story. Made me think they were fantasies or dreams. BTW how do you kill a made man in your family, get caught, and not be killed as payback?

I think you could have cut out the above 3 characters and spent more time on answering those Dickie questions.

I think they missed a huge opportunity to run a montage like GF1 This Loneliness or season 2 of the show It Was a Very Good Year. They could have covered 1967-1971 and showed Dickie helping to raise Tony without showing the Tony actor's face since they changed actors.

Johnny Soprano- he didn't have a big role. Thought he was consistent with the show Johnny.

Livia- I thought she did a good job. I thought she looked more like Carmela and even sounded like her at times. But she also had good Livia moments. Such a great character.

Tony- I thought he came across very much like AJ. People are saying that there is a hint to his fate, but you could go either way depending on what you previously believed. I did not understand the ending.

Junior- one too many see you next Tuesdays. I thought the actor and role were good but the ending IMO did not fit Junior's behavior. It contradicts his actions in the show.

Harold- interesting character. I think his role was under used and could have really added to the story. Gotta think he is involved in a sequel.

Paulie- he was funny and fit his character.

Silvio- he overacted and tried to be like Little Steven. I didn't like that. His story conflicts with the show.

Big P- his story conflicts with the show


Other comments:

I liked the opening scene but didn't understand the closing remarks by Chris.

The Soprano house in the movie looked like CNJ while in the show looked still relatively urban. Like something you see in Jersey City, Queens, Staten Island, or Yonkers. I suppose they couldn't use the same house.

The riots didn't really add to the story. The ended up being important to Dickie but it felt forced. Big picture of the Sopranos it wasn't needed.

Chase was amazing into adding very little things to the show that no one person could see everyone of them. I felt like the movie was the opposite. Very little detail.
 
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Uncle Sal- he looked better here. I really do not understand the point of this character. All of his scened were weird and added nothing to the story. Made me think they were fantasies or dreams. BTW how do you kill a made man in your family, get caught, and not be killed as payback?
I thought that maybe these scenes were meant to parallel Tony’s therapy sessions.
 
I thought that maybe these scenes were meant to parallel Tony’s therapy sessions.
That is what the going theory is but the question is why? Do we really need that? What does it add? We are trying to show that Dickie has a conscience? Do we care? And this situation isn't a thing like Tony's. He didn't want to be there and had to for his condition. If those scenes were cut IMO the movie is better. What would we have really missed?
 
That is what the going theory is but the question is why? Do we really need that? What does it add? We are trying to show that Dickie has a conscience? Do we care? And this situation isn't a thing like Tony's. He didn't want to be there and had to for his condition. If those scenes were cut IMO the movie is better. What would we have really missed?
I wasn’t defending the movie, just sharing a thought.
 
Some other thoughts:

-Still don't get Harold's character. It should have been a bigger story given what transpired. If that isn't fixed in a subsequent movie, it was a waste.

-They should have had a scene at Uncle Pat's farm with Dickie and Cousin Tony B. That would have helped explain Dickie hanging out with Tony and their connection.

-I noticed the first watch Chase's cameo. I noticed 2nd watch they called him Ercole. I didn't realize until reading fan reactions that it was DiMeo. So Chase who started Sopranos cast himself as the founder of the crime family. Pretty neat.

-I always thought that we would learn that Junior was Tony's real father. I expected Junior to blurt it out when Tony last visited him and he was senile. I mention this because of Dickie's girlfriend. She looks like Chris. She likes the word MFer like Chris, they said Chris's mom couldn't have kids, and Chris was never close to his mother. However after the she can't have kids scene, the rest of the movie makes no sense for this theory. Why would the girlfriend give up the baby and then never ask about the baby? She had no resentment? Would Chris's mom pull a Stark and raise a bastard son? Was it known or did they try to hide it? Did they "adopt" or did she not leave the house for 9 months to cover it?

-I am sure Tony was influenced by Dickie but he is about 16 here. He said he had a semester at college so he doesn't really go the crime direction for another 3 years. So how was Dickie the main driver for Tony becoming a gangster? And wasn't the pinkie swear to stay straight? Made no sense.

***Edit***
The whole WANTING scene maybe was a dig by Chase to the fans. The fans wanted a movie and this is his screw you take it and like it.
 
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