Letters to the Editor
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Mixed Messages
Interesting that with last night's episode seared into our minds, the day after there are already wildly divergent opinions about Tony's state of mind -- a tribute to the complexity of the writing and the Gandolfini's acting.
I fall somewhere in between DOCTORRICK and Glen Keenan. I agree with Glen that Tony's collapse on the floor of the casino seemed more like a hideously gleeful ROTFLMFAO moment than any cathartic paroxysm of grief. I felt sure that Tony was deluding himself into rationalizing that finally a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders and his luck had miraculously changed. Gandolfini's performance is so deeply layered that many things can be read into his expressions, but this sense of Tony trying to convince himself that by killing Christopher he was ridding himself of a burden was the overriding message I got last night.
So in this sense I think your interpretation is right on target, Glen Keenan.
However, I think the same self-delusional reasoning pervaded the entire episode, up to an including the final sunset moment. Tony staring at the sun, and he perceives a hallucinatory flash -- almost like a cosmic wink. Tony saw this as a sign from the universe (remember he already compared the roulette wheel to the solar system) and the wink of the setting sun was like a mystic conspiratorial nudge to him. Like, "yeah, I have godlike powers and even the Sun can see that, acknowledging and justifying my behavior with a wink."
So there was no question in my mind that Tony yelled, "I get it." No way in hell did he say, "I did it." Tony can't even admit to himself what a monster he is, so why would he have any confessional epiphany now?
One of the striking things about The Sopranos from the beginning has been the presence of Dr. Melfi and the persistent reminder that this man is seriously unbalanced. What we're seeing in these final episodes is Tony Soprano's ultimate unhinging, as he slips deeper into sociopathic madness.
Chills me to the bone. Do not give Tony an ounce of credit for any grief or remorse. He's incapable.
Heather, I clicked on Salon this morning hoping you'd already have your thoughts to share, and your column never ever disappoints. I'm not trying argue with your analysis of roulette table scene, but only explaining how I see the episode as much, much darker and scarier. That wasn't a sobbing grief-stricken man on the floor. That was a raging maniac unravelling.