Young Anthony Soprano is growing up in one of the most tumultuous eras in Newark, N.J., history, becoming a man just as rival gangsters start to rise up and challenge the all-powerful DiMeo crime family. Caught up in the changing times is the uncle he idolizes, Dickie Moltisanti, whose influence over his nephew will help shape the impressionable teenager into the all-powerful mob boss, Tony Soprano.
“The Many Saints of Newark” follows the prime of Anthony Soprano’s uncle Dickie Moltisanti during the roughest times of Newark, New Jersey. The film is set in the ’60s and ’70s, years before the events of the award-winning show, “The Sopranos.” After the unlawful death of a black man, riots start, and gangs begin to form. This forces Dickie to get caught up in his own gang, having him make some questionable decisions. These are the decades that influence Anthony to become the infamous mobster Tony Soprano.
Alessandro Nivola plays our main character, Dickie Moltisanti. Nivola was a great choice for this role as he adequately shows how his character slowly becomes more and more intimidating throughout the film. At first, he is just a family man, but after becoming a gangster, we see how it chips away from his morals. We see why Anthony would look up to Dickie, he’s the only “normal” one that pretends to have his life together. Nivola does great with changing from his American accent to an Italian/New Jersey one.
Another great actor was Michael Gandolfini. It was interesting to see him as the big-name character of Tony Soprano. He wasn’t in the movie as much as it was advertised but he was great on-screen. However, he didn’t steal the spotlight as I expected. He was more of a supporting character. I was disappointed that the story didn’t focus more on how Tony became who he is in the show.
Just to mention, there were other big-name actors such as Ray Liotta, who played Dickie’s father and uncle. Also Vera Farmiga, as Tony’s mother, was my favorite character in the movie. Her acting and cadence were believable. Another actor I’d like to mention is Jon Bernthal as Johnny Boy Soprano, I just love this actor in general and he never disappoints, so when I saw him on-screen, I knew he would deliver, and he did.
Objectively, this is a great movie to watch if you like mobster/gangster movies or if you watch “The Sopranos.” The reason I say objectively is that the acting was spot on and the story had a good concept. However, for me, personally, I didn’t enjoy the film as much as I wanted. It wasn’t well-paced either, and I felt myself getting bored in the middle. The film was advertised as showing how Tony became a mobster but it ended up being 90% about Dickie Moltisanti. Also, I am at a disadvantage because the show came out when I was a kid, so I never watched it, I came in blindly. I know that if I had watched the show, it would probably have been a better experience.
Now available on Digital HD, and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD December 21st
