Review: The Many Saints of Newark ★★★★
If you’re a Sopranos fan, you’re in for a real treat.
The highly-anticipated prequel to David Chase’s award-winning HBO drama series “The Sopranos”, will be in theaters and on HBO on October 1st. If you were a fan of the series and looking for more of a backstory on how the Sopranos came to be, that’s exactly what you will get with this film. In fact, if haven’t seen the series, the film will also make you want to see what the series was about. If you already were emerged into the series, it’ll make you dive right back into the series to the good old golden days full of mob drama.
Perhaps the most recognizable performance is that of Michael Gandolfini who plays Anthony Soprano. Who better to play the late James Gandolfini than his own son? Papa would be proud, he is a spitting image of the man who made Tony Sorpano a household name during it’s six-season run.
The storyline to the film is centered around an young Anthony Soprano played by Michael Gandolfini, growing up in one of the most vicious eras in Newarks history. Young Tony was becoming a man as rival gangs were beginning to raise and challenge one another, such as the powerful DiMeo crime family who at the time had a hold over the race-torn city taking place around the 1967 Newark riots. Caught up in the mess that was Neward was his uncle Dickie Moltisanti whom he looked up to. Uncle Dickie was going through his own problems by trying to manage his professional and personal life, which were both falling apart. His long-time friend Harold plays a pivotal role in the film by realizing he doesn’t want to be part of the group anymore but in fact wants to make it in this country under his own terms.
Uncle Dickie takes on numerous battles within and out of the organization, killing seems to be a simple sport to him. It’s a battle he tries to find solace in by visiting his uncle (father’s brother) who is in prison for life for murder. At one point Anthony Soprano becomes the subject of a conversation and his Uncle tells him if he loves Anthony he needs to stay out of his life. This is a request Dickie takes to heart, but little did Uncle Dickie know his influence would help mold his nephew into one of the most powerful mob bosses we’d come to know, Tony Soprano.
“The Many Saints of Newark” was shot on location in New Jersey and New York, with several original characters from the series that inspired the film are featured in the movie. During the six seasons that the infamous show, “The Sopranos” ran, it was recognized as one of the greatest and most influential television drama series of all time. The series was awarded 21 Primetime Emmy Awards, 5 Golden Globe Awards, and 2 Peabody Awards, and many more.
The film rated R for it’s strong violence, pervasive language, sexual content and nudity. So expect the usual if you’ve seen The Sorpanos.
You can catch the film in Theaters and HBO Max on October 1st.
https://youtu.be/rAFfeGRbWLQ
