Fourteen years after the end of the “Sopranos”, fans of the series did not hide their joy Wednesday by discovering in preview the film which traces the youthful years of the future mafia boss “Tony”, embodied at the time by the late James Gandolfini.
The Beacon Theater, an auditorium transformed into a giant cinema, took on the appearance of a stadium when David Chase, creator of the series, who co-wrote the film, introduced the actors of “The many saints of Newark”. And the applause has redoubled for Michael Gandolfini, the son of James Gandolfini, who died in 2013 at the age of 51. In the feature film, the 22-year-old actor plays teenage Tony Soprano in 1960s New Jersey.
The star-studded cast of The Many Saints of Newark, premiering tonight at The Beacon as part of @Tribeca Fall Preview pic.twitter.com/ZdiJV8regt
– Beacon Theater (@BeaconTheatre) September 23, 2021
If it traces the youthful years of Tony, a gifted teenager but without benchmarks, between an absent father and an overly severe mother, the film centers on a character he venerates, Dickie Moltisanti, played by Alessandro Nivola.
References to the cult series of the 2000s
The story also explores the tensions between the Italian-American and African-American communities in then-New Jersey, as well as the Newark riots of 1967 and police violence. “The many saints of Newark” especially multiplies the references to the series at the five Golden Globes and 21 Emmy Awards, and delivers some keys to fans who have mastered the genealogy of the Sopranos at their fingertips. “I saw the series maybe six or seven times, and it really lived up to my expectations,” said Robert Quinn, 23, after the screening.
Broadcast in the United States simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max from October 1, the film will be released on November 3 in France.