Letters to the Editor
susan sunflower
Published Letters: 1373 Editor's Choice: 29
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sunny -- you may have something .... my only caveat is that "nobody else got it" ...
[Read the article: "The Sopranos" goes dark]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I noticed how different the room Tony woke up in was from the room we last saw him in ... but there was a LOT of odd cutting and backing-and-forthing ... and the time-dimension got lost ... I have no idea how many days were between the moments/scenes we saw ...
however, you point out a number of the "continuity" issues I found so annoying/confusing about the episode (having nothing to do with the last 5 minutes).
I found myself wondering this morning if now-toothless Coco was behind the hit ... mostly because of the "the last thing this mofo will ever see his is beautiful daughter" ... I certainly got the impression that everyone was waiting until Meadow arrived (and fwiw, I still wonder if the whole Soprano family was hit or just Tony ... it was awfully crowded in there) ...
The "dream" theory also makes better sense out of the offer to AJ (and his accepting it) and the recent purchase of OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive cars for both kids ...
I'm afraid I still want to know about the asbestos and the Esplanade project and Janice's son and .... if Silvio will recover.
whatever! fugeddabotit.
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One part of the "jokier" or "clubbier" aspects of TV shows and David Chase in particular is the blatant use of the "perks" ...
[Read the article: "The Sopranos" goes dark]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]the "shout-outs" but also the reappearance of small characters/actors which add to their resume but MORE IMPORTANTLY provide them likely with residual payments ... which is what many a starving mid-life actor lives on ...
In addition, there's product placement for, what certainly appears to me to be, the sheer naked venality of it (ha ha ha) etc.
It's part of what I love about Law and Order casts (and juries) -- all sorts of theatre faces in need of a role to renew their SAG card ... not to mention the happy prospect of residuals for larger players (the returning judges, defense counsels, etc.) And that does not include whatever deals are made for DVD sales, etc.
It's magnificant to spread the wealth and let one hand wash the other (swag and product placement-wise)...
There's gold in them those hills and there's serious income as well for (some) of the musicians/music houses in the songs that are chosen. Imagine the I-tube downloads ...
I will re-watch the final sequence wrt to the look-alikes -- love the concept....
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these letters bring up a "meta" subject I've been pondering for several years now with no resolution ...
[Read the article: "The Sopranos" goes dark]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]which has to do with the sheer number of movies that on first viewing are unimpressive, disappointing even, but which "grow" on me ... to the point where their flaw (which are real) are overwhelmed by their virtues or shining moments.
It's made me look at movie reviews and reviewers in a different light ... I have found a couple of movies that I really disliked on first viewing (The Golden Bowl comes to mind) that I now enjoy often.
The flaws in other movies (the recent Pride and Prejudice and Vanity Fair come to mind) become harder to ignore ...
All of these movies I've mentioned -- like the Sopranos -- have very good to excellent performances. It is as if the core understanding of the story/subtexts is pivotal ...
It's easy to get caught up in great performances and/or great production values (sets, scenery, cinematography, music) ... but usually, eventually if hollow spots and chinks reveal themselves.
So -- as it relates to these letters and this finale -- do we judge (and decide the outcome) based on our first naive viewing ... or after much discussion and multiple viewings?
(the same dilemma is true for theatre and most of the arts -- there have been a couple articles recently on how our prejudices wrt music shape our appreciation -- fascinating stuff).
On my first viewing Gosford Park was confusing and muddled -- on my second, it became one of my most favorite recent movies... and I can detail it's virtues ...
We live in the time of DVD and VCR and Tivo ... how does this technology color our appreciation?
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My problem wasn't with the "end" (which was remarkably like the "end" of the penultimate episode), but with the episode and all of its "loose end" tying up ...
[Read the article: I Like to Watch]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I was fine with "the end", i.e. the last 5 minutes and the ambiguity there of -- though I certainly understand the folks who expected a "real" ending from David "I've known how I was gonna end it from beginning" Chase.
I thought the episode was superfluous, hamfisted and generally awful -- despite truly fabulous production values and music and performances -- I hated it -- contrived, weak, unlikely, you name it ... I wish it had been left on the cutting room floor and we had been left with big-baby Tony in the ice blue bedroom staring at the door that seemed to be becoming less and less substantial ...
I'm fine with ambiguity. I'm all for "cutting edge" and suprises.
I think Chase squandered a great deal of enviable viewer enthusiasm and loyalty. We'll see how his next projects do ... I know I never really forgave or ever again really trusted David Lynch ... Oddly, I didn't mind "The Prisoner" because it was a wacky, non-traditional, non-linear show ...
The Sopranos was a SOAP-OPERA ... of 86 EPISODES ... not the same thing.
Oh, and I'm not seeing a lot of folks pissed because the story wasn't neatly wrapped up -- they're pissed because they don't know how it ended and they've been stuck with people arguing about it for days now -- Thanks bunches Mr. Chase -- although I'm doubtful this is the reaction he was aiming for (god, I hope not)...
Enuf.