Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Chamber of Commerce. Member- elves are hard at work at the antique Chamber Train Car preparing for the movie 'The Polar Express.' Pictured: Jennifer Dzvonar Owner -President of Bass Electric and Chamber President, Board Director Kristin Winter V.P. Branch Manager of Flushing Bank Port Jefferson Station and Board members Dee Earle Owner of Your CBD Store Port Jefferson Station
Board Director Kristin Winter V.P. Branch Manager of Flushing Bank Port Jefferson Station
The entrance to the train car.
Get in the spirit of the holidays with a screening of The Polar Express in a real train car!
The Port Jefferson Station-Terryville Chamber of Commerce will host screenings of The Polar Express in the Chamber Train Car, corner of Nesconset Highway and Route 112, Port Jefferson Station on Fridays, Nov. 26, Dec. 3, 10 and 17 at 6 p.m.; Saturdays, Nov. 27, Dec. 11 and 18 at noon, 3 and 6 p.m.; and Sunday, Dec. 5 at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. $15 per person includes popcorn, a cookie and hot cocoa. To reserve your tickets, visit www.pjstchamber.com.
Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer in a scene from the film.
In celebration of its 60th anniversary, West Side Story will return to select cinemas nationwide on Sunday, Nov. 28 and Wednesday, Dec. 1, courtesy of Turner Classic Movies, MGM and Fathom Events.
This electrifying musical, with music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics from Stephen Sondheim, sets the ageless tragedy of Romeo and Juliet in the slums of 1950’s New York.
West Side Story explores the rivalry between two teenage street gangs — the Jets and the Sharks. When a member of the Jets falls in love with the sister of the Sharks’ leader, things look hopeful at first, but rapidly go downhill. Illustrating the events are many memorable song and dance numbers such as “America,” “Somewhere” and “I Feel Pretty.”
Starring Natalie Wood, Rita Moreno, Russ Tamblyn, Richard Beymer and George Chakiris, the film went on to win 10 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, ans was the highest-grossing movie of the year on its original release in 1961.
This special anniversary event will feature exclusive insights from Turner Classic Movies. Locally, the film will be screened at AMC Stony Brook 17, 2196 Nesconset Highway, Stony Brook on Nov. 28 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. and Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. and Island 16 Cinema De Lux, 185 Morris Ave., Holtsville on Nov. 28 at 3 p.m. and Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. To order tickets in advance, visit www.fathomevents.com.
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The screening is the perfect precursor to Steven Spielberg’s much anticipated adaptation of the beloved film which is expected to hit theatres on Dec. 10. Featuring Ansel Elgort and Rachel Zegler as leading love-interests Tony and Maria, the star-studded cast not only includes Dance Moms alum Maddie Ziegler and Hamilton’s Ariana DeBose, but also features a special appearance by Rita Moreno who played Anita in the original film.
The Town of Smithtown will premiere its Veterans Documentary, entitled War Stories, on Sunday, November 21 at 6 p.m. at the Smithtown Center for Performing Arts, 2 East Main St., Smithtown. The documentary focuses on local residents who enlisted to serve in the US Armed Forces during war time, from World War II to Present Day.
“I’m forever grateful to the men and women all across the Country who have served in our US Armed Forces. This began as an interview process, so we could document and preserve the stories of patriotism, camaraderie and strength of our brave hometown heroes, for future generations. But it has become so much more. This is our way of saying Thank You for Your Service to our local heroes… for we owe them everything,” said Supervisor Ed Wehrheim.
Tickets are free and members of the public are encouraged to attend the premiere to show support and gratitude for the Men and Women within our community who served in protection of our Nation’s freedoms. Residents are encouraged to bring non-perishable items for donation, which will be delivered to the United Veterans Beacon House Pantry.
The Town began production of the Veterans documentary, interviewing service members from World War II, through to modern day conflicts. Filming for the documentary began in 2019 on Veterans Day, November 19th. The film is dedicated in memory of two World War II Veterans; Eddy Reddy and Howard Laderwager, who were filmed for the documentary, but have recently passed away.
Pablo Pauly and Bill Murray in a scene from the film. Photo from Searchlight Pictures
Reviewed by Jeffrey Sanzel
Auteur Wes Anderson’s works are an eclectic mix. From Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums to The Fantastic Mr. Fox and Moonrise Kingdom, his voice and vision are unique among filmmakers. Quirky characters in fast-paced comedies carry an underlying melancholy and introspection. His films have received a total of fifteen Academy Award nominations. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) received nine nominations and won four.
Now Anderson has written and directed a star-studded omnibus, The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun. Newspaper editor Arthur Howitzer, Jr. (Bill Murray) dies of a heart attack, leaving instructions to close the paper following a farewell issue. The final publication is to feature three articles from past editions, along with Howitzer’s obituary.
This thin framework is the basis for an anthology of three peculiar tales from the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun’s French foreign bureau, located in Ennui. Each vignette focuses on one of the staff writers. Perhaps the stories are meant to be a send-up of a particular genre; the overall tone is firmly tongue-in-cheek, more spoof than satire.
In the first (“The Concrete Masterpiece”), J.K.L. Berensen (Tilda Swinton) tells of an artist, Moses Rosenthaler (Benicio del Toro), serving a prison term for double murder. While incarcerated, he paints a series of prison guard Simone (Léa Seydoux), that comes to the attention of another prisoner, Julien Cadazio (Adrien Brody). Cadazio (based on controversial British art dealer Lord Duveen) feels he has found the ideal modern artist. When released, he approaches his uncles (Henry Winkler and Bob Balaban) to embark on an exhibition of Rosenthaler’s work. The fly in the ointment is that Rosenthaler has painted the works on the prison walls.
In “Revisions of a Manifesto,” Lucinda Krementz (Frances McDormand) is a correspondent reporting on the “Chessboard Revolution.” While becoming involved with a much younger Zeffirelli (Timothée Chalamet), the bumbling leader of the revolt, she claims that she can maintain journalistic distance and integrity. In addition to their romantic liaison, Krementz rewrites Zeffirelli’s manifesto, including an appendix.
The final chapter is “The Private Dining Room of the Police Commissioner.” Reporter Roebuck Wright (Jeffrey Wright), a nod to James Baldwin and A.J. Liebling, recounts the kidnapping of Gigi (Winston Ait Hellal), the son of the Ennui police commissioner (Mathieu Amalric), by a criminal syndicate. Police officer/noted chef Lt. Nescaffier (Stephen Park) becomes the hero through an elaborate poisoning.
The plots are simple: a send-up of modern art (with a prison movie slant); a parody of young rebels and pointless causes; and a cops-and-robbers noir. But the telling is either brilliantly twisted or frustratingly convoluted, depending on the point-of-view. While ostensibly an homage to the day of the printed magazine (i.e., The New Yorker), the visual gymnastics are the driving force. Both cinematically steroidal (including rich black-and-white and vivid pop-art color, an awareness of the artifice of the sets, and even an animated car chase) and meta-theatrical (tableaux vivant), The French Dispatch is an often absorbing, wholly strange, and indefinable two hours.
The first-rate cast is clearly game for Anderson’s world. They play in a style that could be described as hyper-low key—sly, wry, and somehow conscious of the audience. In addition to the previously mentioned, appearances include an extraordinary ensemble in roles both large and small: Owen Wilson, Elizabeth Moss, Jason Schwartzman, Fisher Stevens, Lois Smith, Larry Pine, Christoph Waltz, Liev Schreiber, Edward Norton, Willem Dafoe, and Saoirse Ronan. Anjelica Huston is the omniscient narrator.
Some will find The French Dispatch a delightful and engaging absurdist meringue, visually striking, playing on multiple levels. Others might see it as a pretentious shaggy dog story, an in-joke of epic and head-scratching proportions. In any case, it would be impossible to experience this movie and not have an opinion.
Rated R, The French Dispatch is now playing in local theaters.
In celebration of its 65th anniversary, High Society returns to select cinemas nationwide on Sunday, Nov. 14, courtesy of TCM Big Screen Classics and Fathom Events.
Heiress Tracy Lord (Grace Kelly) is engaged to one man (John Lund), attracted to another (Frank Sinatra) and, just maybe, in love again with her ex-husband (Bing Crosby) in this effervescent musical reinvention of Philip Barry’s play The Philadelphia Story featuring an endlessly delightful Cole Porter score.
Among High Society’s high points: Sinatra and Celeste Holm ask “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?,” Crosby and Kelly share “True Love” and Ol’ Blue Eyes swing-swing-swingle “Well, Did You Evah?” and Crosby and Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong perform “Now You Has Jazz.”
Sing and dance your way to the movie theatre for this special anniversary event that includes exclusive insights from Turner Classic Movies.
Screenings will be held at AMC Stony Brook, 2196 Nesconset Highway, Stony Brook at 3 p.m. and again at 7 p.m. and Island 16 Cinema de Lux, 185 Morris Ave, Holtsville at 7 p.m. To order tickets in advance, visit www.fathomevents.com.
Anya Taylor-Joy, left, and Thomasin McKenzie in a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Focus Features
Reviewed by Jeffrey Sanzel
Director Edgar Wright’s best-known work includes Hot Fuzz, Shaun of the Dead, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, and Baby Driver. In a strong departure from his more satiric work, Last Night in Soho is an entertaining psychological thriller, mixing familiar tropes with clever, original ideas. Wright nods towards British horror films of an earlier era and a shadowy look at the “Swinging Sixties.” If the ending does not quite live up to its potential, it is a minor cavil in a fast-paced two hours.
Eloise (a riveting Thomasin McKenzie) leaves her sheltered Cornwall home for London to study fashion design. After her mother’s death (due to an unspecified mental illness that drove her to suicide), “Ellie” was raised by her grandmother (fluttering and supportive Rita Tushingham). Ellie has two passions: fashion and the 1960s, illustrated in a spot-on (if a bit on-the-nose) opening with her dancing in a newspaper gown to the sounds of “A World Without Love.” However, rather than feeling precious, there is more than a hint of frailty and even menace in a seemingly benign sequence.
Anya Taylor-Joy, left, and Thomasin McKenzie in a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Parisa Taghizadeh / Focus Features
While anxious to have a career in high fashion to which her mother aspired, scholarship student Ellie finds the cutthroat university world overwhelming. Her roommate, mean girl Jocasta (Synnøve Karlsen, doing the best she can with the caricature), drives her out of their shared student housing.
Ellie rents a top-floor apartment from the no-nonsense Ms. Collins (the final performance of the great Diana Rigg). Once ensconced in the bedsitter, Ellie begins having visions of Sandie (The Queen’s Gambit’s Anya Taylor-Joy, radiant and disturbed in equal measure). Sandie is a self-assured would-be singer in an idealized, peripatetic 1960s London.
Whether Ellie is transported back to 1965 or is having visions (or both) is part of the premise. Sometimes she sees herself reflected as Sandie. Other times, Ellie is outside Sandie, watching her. In any case, she experiences what Sandie does. At first, Ellie is delighted, finding joy in the new feelings. But quickly, the encounters turn. A talent manager, Jack (Matt Smith, oily and dangerous), engages Sandie. But Jack is a vicious, manipulative pimp, and Sandie’s life becomes a nightmare from which Ellie cannot escape.
Terence Stamp makes the most of a mysterious gentleman who seems to straddle both worlds, haunting Ellie in the pub where she has taken a job as well as the neighborhood itself. Michael Ajao’s John is warm and fully present as the fellow student who has feelings for Ellie. He owns the tricky balance of supporting Ellie but not furthering what he perceives as her delusions.
Rigg mines depth in the wry and knowing landlady, with a final scene that skirts predictability through a dimensional, effortless, and mesmerizing performance.
The film is strongest when it leans into the psychological elements of the story. The screenplay, by director Wright, along with Krysty Wilson-Cairns, presents two conflicted heroines.
Ellie battles with inner demons that prevent her from adjusting to city life. The struggles are fully awakened—and acerbated—by her presence in the room where Sandie lived. Sandie fights the terrors of her horrific day-to-day life of fear and forced prostitution. Wright has created a relationship that is complementary and symbiotic and that somehow runs parallel and intersects.
Both McKenzie and Taylor-Joy give extraordinary, textured performances, showing two individuals in search of identity. (There are some obvious but nonetheless telling moments dealing with names.) Both actors palpably manifest a powerful connection in their disconnected worlds.
Wright has used his soundtrack to great advantage, using the songs as commentary on the narrative. The nearly two dozen numbers include “Wishin’ and Hopin’,” “You’re My World,” “Puppet on a String,” “(Love Is Like a) Heatwave,” “Don’t Throw Your Love Away,” and Taylor-Joy’s acapella rendition of Petula Clark’s signature “Downtown” which is simultaneously alluring and chilling.
Clearly, Roman Polanski’s Repulsion has inspired Wright; the 1965 Catherine Deneuve film dealt with sex, violence, and a descent into madness. Where Last Night in Soho is weakest is in the horror department. The spirits take on an almost creature-feature appearance and undermine the more cerebral, edgier aspects. Cinematographer Chung-hoon Chung presents a muted present-day London while the flashbacks are initially vivid and colorful before shifting to darker hues as Sandie’s world crumbles.
While by no means a perfect film, Last Night in Soho is an excellent antidote for mindless slasher films (Halloween Kills) that seem to spring up this time of year. The film offers strong performances and an entertaining, twisty addition to the world of psychological thrillers.
Rated R, Last Night in Soho is now playing in local theaters.
Nick Castle as Michael Myers in a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures
Reviewed by Jeffrey Sanzel
The Halloween franchise boasts eleven films, including seven in the first series (with the third an unconnected entry), a reboot, and a continuation of its premiere track. The most recent, Halloween (2018), is now joined by Halloween Kills.
Jamie Lee Curtis and Judy Greer in a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures
While falling into the category of “slasher movie,” Halloween (1978) remains one of the finest thrillers. Taut, brooding, and atmospheric, it relied on shadows, tension, and an unforgettable score to create its horror. John Carpenter directed and co-wrote the film that remains definitive in the genre. In addition, the film catapulted its lead, Jamie Lee Curtis, to Scream Queen stardom. She presented Laurie Strode as a self-actualized and resourceful heroine. Curtis would reprise the role four more times in addition to Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends (projected for release in 2022).
Ignoring much of the mythology developed during the progressively less inspired sequels, the well-received Halloween (2018) picked up forty years after the original film, with institutionalized killer Michael Myers (once again Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney) escaping while being transferred to a maximum-security prison. After returning to Haddonfield and embarking on a killing spree, he “dies” in Laurie’s burning home. The film emphasized Laurie as a wounded survivor, finding the inner strength to confront her living nightmare. The script—by Jeff Fradley, Danny McBride, and David Gordon Green—honored the story’s roots. Carpenter praised the outing, noting the strength of the screenplay and Green’s direction.
It would be easy to say things like Halloween Kills … an hour and forty-six minutes of your life. Or Halloween Kills … the desire to go to the movies. Or Halloween Kills … a franchise. It would be easy to pick this low-hanging fruit. So, I won’t say any of those things.
Halloween Kills is a movie cobbled together with brutal violence and an absence of actual conflict. It serves as a placeholder between the first film, which reintroduced the characters, and the third (and hopefully final) chapter that concludes Laurie’s journey. That Michael Myers must survive to complete the trilogy is a given. Nevertheless, it does not need to be so painfully generic. In the first fifteen minutes, Michael slaughters an entire team of first responders. What follows is one meaningless killing after another.
The film makes the egregious error of showing flashbacks to the Halloween (and Halloween) of 1978. However, these newly shot scenes lack the meditative, shadowed world of the original. Instead, they are overwrought, introducing information with only the slightest nod towards character development. Additionally, the use of footage of Donald Pleasance (the powerful, understated Dr. Loomis of the source film) is a reminder of the complete absence of style and substance in this newest incarnation.
Having been stabbed in the abdomen, Laurie spends almost the entire film in a hospital bed (shades of Halloween II’s hospital location). Sidelining the strongest character is a mistake. Saddling an actor of Jamie Lee Curtis’s caliber with embarrassingly clumsy dialogue is a crime.
The roster of townspeople is a mix of new characters and shout-outs to minor characters in the original. Some of the 1978 cast returns to play themselves forty years later; others are the grown-up versions of the children hunted that fateful night.
Anthony Michael Hall is the adult Tommy, the boy Laurie was babysitting. The role edges to slightly more than one dimension. At a bar talent night(!), Tommy shares the story of “The Bogeyman,” who terrorized the town. His character misfires on every level, trading trauma for campfire whimsy and rally-round-the-pitchfork-boys. Among the new victims for the stalk-dispatch-repeat are an African American couple (she’s a doctor; he’s a nurse) and a gay couple (Big John and Little John). Please don’t get too invested in the diversity; they are all undefined fodder for the knife.
Worst of all, in a nod to topicality, the creators introduce the dangers of mob mentality and vigilante justice. “Evil dies tonight!” they chant. Multiple times. Declarations such as “No, he’s turning us into monsters,” “The more he kills, the more he transcends,” and “He is the essence of evil” don’t elevate the situation.
The performances never overstep the awkward script. Judy Greer (as Karen Nelson, Laurie’s daughter), Andi Matichak (as Allyson Nelson, Laurie’s granddaughter),and Will Patton (as Deputy Frank Hawkins) continue their paths from Halloween (2018). Greer, a talented actor, is a cipher. It is also hard to believe that her husband was murdered by Michael this same night. It is as if the year between the release of the films has allowed her to accept it. The storyline and timeline are bizarrely disconnected.
For those looking for a predictable, sadistic bloodbath, Halloween Kills might be for you. But, for those hoping for plot, motivation, thought, tone, and engagement … well, there’s always next Halloween. Rated R, the film is now playing in local theaters.
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Other seasonal fair to consider: the Candyman reboot; Malignant, the twisty thriller from James Wan; Lamb, the story of a human/sheep hybrid; Last Night in Soho, a psychological time-travel film with a horror overtone; malevolent forces in Shepherd; and the supernatural creature-feature Antlers, starring Keri Russell. (Please note: These films have not been reviewed by TBR News Media.)
Featuring Exclusive Interviews With Actors Behind Iconic Horror Movie Characters
Showcase Cinemas, a world leader in the motion picture exhibition industry, is excited to bring back its popular “Halloween Horror Month” event throughout the month of October at participating theaters in Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island and Ohio.
Showcase Cinemas invites guests to get into the Halloween spirit with special screenings of Halloween cult classics and fan-favorite horror films. As a special add-on that can’t be found anywhere else, Showcase interviewed the actors behind some of the most iconic characters in all of horror history, including Alec Baldwin (“Beetlejuice”), Heather Langenkamp (“A Nightmare on Elm Street”), Nick Castle (“Halloween”), Patrick Wilson (“The Conjuring”) and Oliver Robins (“Poltergeist”).
Exclusive interviews will accompany the films below:
· Oct. 13: “Halloween” (1978) at 7:30pm
· Oct. 19: “Poltergeist” at 7:30pm
· Oct. 27: “Nightmare on Elm Street” at 7:30pm
· Oct. 28: “The Conjuring” at 7:30pm
“Back by popular demand, we’re thrilled to once again kick off October with Halloween Horror Month at Showcase Cinemas, complete with exclusive interviews with the actors who played Halloween legends, which can’t be found anywhere else,” said Mark Malinowski, VP of Global Marketing for Showcase Cinemas. “There’s nothing like the experience of watching a spine-tingling classic horror film in the movie theater, as you feel the adrenaline rush of fighting the monsters together with the characters on the big screen. We invite all horror buffs to join us and celebrate the spooky season with their friends and family this October.”
Participating theaters include Showcase Cinema de Lux locations in Dedham, Randolph, Foxboro, Blackstone Valley and Lowell in Massachusetts, along with Showcase Cinema de Lux Warwick (Quaker Lane) and Showcase Cinema de Lux Providence Place in Rhode Island. Participating theaters in New York include Showcase Cinema de Lux locations in Holtsville (Island 16), Farmingdale, Yonkers (Ridge Hill), White Plains (City Center), and College Point Multiplex Cinemas, along with Showcase Cinema de Lux Springdale in Ohio.
With movie theaters now open at full capacity, Showcase Cinemas continues to implement health and safety protocols from the “Be Showcase Safe” program implemented last year for all Showcase Cinemas locations, including the installation of air-purifying systems for all US theaters.
Showcase Cinemas is a world leader in the motion picture exhibition industry, operating more than 828 movie screens in the U.S., U.K., Argentina and Brazil under the Showcase, Cinema de Lux, SuperLux and UCI brands. With 22 theater locations in the United States, Showcase Cinemas delivers the finest entertainment experience, offering the best in viewing, comfort and dining. For more information about Showcase Cinemas please visit our website at www.showcasecinemas.com.
In celebration of its 30th anniversary, ‘The Silence of the Lambs’ returns to select theaters nationwide on Sunday, Oct. 17 and Wednesday, Oct. 20, courtesy of TCM Big Screen Classics and Fathom Events.
With a psychopath named Buffalo Bill is murdering women and believing it takes one to know one, the FBI sends Agent Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster) to interview a demented prisoner: Dr. Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins), a cannibalistic psychiatrist whose fascination with the young agent is as great as his hunger for murder. As their relationship develops, Starling is forced to confront not only her own demons, but also an evil so powerful she may not have the courage to stop!
Invite an old friend for dinner and to see this event that includes exclusive insights from Turner Classic Movies.
In our neck of the woods, the film will be screened at AMC Stony Brook 17, 2196 Nesconset Highway, Stony Brook on Oct. 17 at 3 and 7 p.m. and at Island Cinema de Lux, 185 Morris Ave., Holtsville on Oct. 17 at 3 p.m. and Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. and Showcase Cinema de Lux (formerly Farmingdale Multiplex), 1001 Broadhollow Road, Farmingdale on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
To order tickets in advance, visit www.fathomevents.com.
Michael Gandolfini as a young Tony Soprano and Alessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti in a scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
By Jeffrey Sanzel
“It’s not T.V. It’s HBO.”
This promotional phrase captured the viewing public’s attention, promoting a shift in the nature and caliber of the small screen. With Oz, Six Feet Under, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Wire, Sex and the City, and Game of Thrones, the subscription service elevated quality and expectations.
But, perhaps the show that truly launched the revolution was The Sopranos (1999-2007). And no anti-hero captured imaginations more than Tony Soprano, vividly brought to life in an award-winning performance by the late James Gandolfini. For eighty-six episodes, over six seasons, the New Jersey mob boss struggled with personal and professional demons.
The Sopranos transformed the gangster/crime genre into an event that was perpetually brutal, darkly humorous, and almost always surprising. The ensemble cast, headed by Gandolfini and Edie Falco, was nothing short of flawless. Yet, even when it strayed from its strengths, it was still the most watchable and addictive show on television.
A scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
Sopranos creator David Chase has co-penned the screenplay (with Lawrence Konner) for The Many Saints of Newark, a prequel spanning 1967 to the mid-70s. Focusing on Dickie Moltisanti (father of The Sopranos’ Christopher, played by Michael Imperioli, who narrates from beyond the grave), the story draws on the same well as its source: allegiances and betrayals, violence, and family.
Once again, it is a realm of street shootings, hypocritical funerals, heaping trays of pasta, neglected wives, and abused mistresses. Adding texture and weight to the narrative are the race riots of Newark, as seen through the eyes of Harold McBrayer (Leslie Odom, Jr., making every moment count), an African American associate of the crime family. Though not fully realized, the unrest reflects our contemporary turbulent times.
While Tony’s father, Johnny (Jon Bernthal), is shown going to and returning from prison, the film keeps him surprisingly in the periphery. Dickie’s relationship with his father (a slightly over-the-top Ray Liotta), his father’s immigrant wife (Michela De Rossi, finding depth), and Tony (played by William Ludwig as a boy and James Gandolfini’s son, Michael Gandolfini, as a teenager) are the driving forces.
As Dickie, Alessandro Nivola embodies bravado affected by doubt and guilt. Some of the strongest moments featured his father’s imprisoned twin brother (played with a fascinating edge and subtlety by Liotta). Like The Soprano’s Tony, the shadow of doubt and the battle with moral conflict enrich Nivola’s hoodlum.
The draw in The Many Saints of Newark comes from familiarity with the world Chase created. Saints is, in theory, a standalone film, but the mythology is rooted in what comes next. It is unlikely that people new to The Sopranos will be intrigued enough to explore the original; the film is fan-centric and for devotees.
The most entertaining moments are the ones that reference the characters’ latter selves. John Magaro, as Silvio Dante, finds Steven Van Zandt’s peculiar walk and definitive speech pattern. While given very little to say, Samson Moeakiola’s Big Pussy is a ringer for a young Vincent Pastore. However, with their screen time, these almost feel like cameos or Easter Eggs.
A scene from the film. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
Glimpses of Janice, Carmela, Jackie Aprile, and Artie Bucco are more a Where’s Waldo? than resonating additions to the overall landscape. (Corey Stoll as Junior Soprano fails to capture the essence of Dominic Chianese’s eccentric second fiddle.) The result is recognition of familiar lines or reactions rather than engrossment in the complexity of character.
Vera Farmiga is the exception. She consistently evokes Tony’s elder monster-mother Livia (the indelible creation of Nancy Marchand). Farmiga finds the broad strokes as well as the nuance in the mercurial Soprano matriarch. A simple kitchen interaction with the teenage Tony (Gandolfini) embodies the relationship core to the entire series.
The film conjures the era, shot with a brisk pace and an eye for detail by veteran Sopranos director Alan Taylor, and the gritty, period cinematography of Kramer Morgenthau (whose work has included Boardwalk Empire and Game of Thrones).
If anything, the movie offers new life to a departed show that was universally mourned by its faithful followers. It is less a driving narrative and more meditative (though violently so): Chase offers a slice of Mafia life. And while there is an arc, there is no sense of finality.
Without James Gandolfini, a return of the television show seems unlikely. So rather than a reboot, Saints heralds a possible film series exploring what led up to where The Sopranos began. Whether these come to fruition remains to be seen. In the meantime, The Many Saints of Newark compellingly sheds some light on what came before.
Rated R, the film is now playing in local theaters and streaming on HBO Max.
Tickets are free and members of the public are encouraged to attend the premiere to show support and gratitude for the Men and Women within our community who served in protection of our Nation’s freedoms. Residents are encouraged to bring non-perishable items for donation, which will be delivered to the United Veterans Beacon House Pantry.
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