What made James Gandolfini’s portrayal of Tony Soprano so great?
Throughout the series we saw so many elements and sides to his personality and in every one Gandolfini was totally believable.
Even if you put aside his “business dealings” I can’t think of any other character in recent TV history who had such a complicated series of family relationships that we were able to witness in intimate detail. We saw Tony as a happily married man family man, separated husband and then penitent husband again. We saw him as the troubled son of a mother who never loved him and the nephew of a man who he admired but hated in equal doses. We got to see him as the Father of a son who was a constant disappointment and a daughter he never truly understood. We saw him as a brother to a sister he felt a family duty towards but struggled to find genuine affection for. We also watched him as an Uncle determined to put his wayward nephew on the right path despite the obvious flaws in his personality. We saw him as a cousin to someone he grew up idolising but overtook in the pecking order much to their mutual discomfort.
Gandolfini portrayed all of these extremely complicated relationships and frequently did so with minimal dialogue. The writers knew they didn’t necessarily need to put words in Tony’s mouth, Jim would convey the message just as effectively in silence.
Professionally we saw him as a loyal friend and ruthless killer. We watched him scheme and plot, react in terror and explode in anger. We saw a totally believable mob boss who at heart was a deeply flawed human being in an incredibly stressful position.
At a deeper level we watched him struggle with his inner demons in private and in the presence of his therapist with whom he had a fraught and difficult relationship.
Throughout it all Gandolfini played a realistic character who always felt incredibly real. We know what Tony Soprano is like. He’s a playful guy who likes a laugh and a joke at other’s expense but struggles when there’s any humor at his expense. He doesn’t relish violence but he’s not afraid to commit murder without remorse if the situation demands it. He knows he’s weak but hates to admit the weakness to anyone else and especially to himself. He loves being the most important person in the room but he hates making the big decisions and prefers to let problems sort themselves out. He knows deep down that he’s part of an institution that is reluctant to change but is clinging to 1950’s values in a modern world.
The strength of the Sopranos was that James Gandolfini was capable of making a deeply unpleasant character someone that you actually supported throughout the show. Tony is at heart a sexist, mysoginist, racist, homophobic, sociopath arsehole who cheats on his wife, resents his own children and thinks nothing of murdering his own friends and family if it will make his life easier or richer. He’s a complete and utter bastard but you can’t help but love him. Gandolfini’s natural charm comes through and turns a complete prick into something closer to a loveable rogue. It’s an incredible performance and he gave us the best character we’ve ever seen on TV.
