Tony Soprano is Dead.
Via Master of Sopranos comes the best explanation I have seen to date for what happened in the final episode of The Sopranos.
What follows is a brief excerpt — you really need to read the entire thing — but this gives you a flavor of the film analysis:
THE PATTERN THEN BEGINS:
(1) Bell rings, We cut to a shot of Tony’s face looking up to see who is coming through the door (this shot is about 1-2 seconds). We then see who is coming through the door from Tony’s POV. It is a tall woman with dark hair who enters Holsten’s. We then cut back to Tony’s face to see his reaction.
(2) Bell rings, We cut to a shot of Tony’s face looking up to see who is coming through the door (this shot is about 2-3 seconds). We then see who is coming through the door from Tony’s POV (same shot as (1)) It is an older man wearing a “USA” cap who enters Holsten’s. We then cut back to Tony’s face to see his reaction.
(3) Bell rings, We cut to a shot of Tony’s face looking up to see who is coming through the door (this shot is about 1-2 seconds). We then see who is coming through the door from Tony’s POV (same shot as (1) and (2)) It is Carmela who enters Holsten’s. We then cut back to Tony’s face to see his reaction.
(4) Bell rings, We cut to a shot of Tony’s face looking up to see who is coming through the door (this shot is about 1-2 seconds). We then see who is coming through the door from Tony’s POV (same shot as (1), (2) and (3)). It is “Man in Member‘s Only Jacket” (hereafter “MOG”) followed by AJ who enters Holsten’s. We then cut back to Tony’s face to see his reaction.
(5) Bell rings, We cut to a shot of Tony’s face looking up to see who is coming through the door (this shot is about 2 seconds). According to the pattern, we should then see who is coming into the diner from Tony’s POV (this should be Meadow as we see her about to enter the diner a few seconds before the bell rings). Instead, the screen cuts abruptly to black mid-scene (at the exact spot where we should see Meadow from Tony’s POV) and the audio cuts off.
All the viewer sees is “blackness” where Tony’s POV should be. This is Tony’s POV because he is dead. We no longer hear Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” because Tony no longer hears it. If this was a normal ending we would see a fade to black followed immediately by the credits and we would probably still hear the music. Instead, the blackness and silence lingers for 10 seconds before we see the credits. This emphasizes the blackness, nothingness and eternal nature of death.
That works for me . . .
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Source:
The Sopranos: Definitive Explanation of “The END”
masterofsopranos, May 11, 2008
http://masterofsopranos.wordpress.com/the-sopranos-definitive-explanation-of-the-end/
“Blackness” is the nature of death. Anyone who has come close to it but returned can’t help but remember the “blackness”.
Any talk of bright lights or whatever else is nonsense. Maybe a brief return from the blackness for an instant of tunnel vision but then … blackness again.
You’re here until you aren’t.
I’m sorry for interrupting. I may be the only person in America who has never watched the Sopranos.
I loved the Sopranos ending for the very reason that it pissed everyone off and left things unanswered.
The fact that people are still discussing it a year later both fascinates and saddens me. There is no way of knowing if Tony is dead or not short of Case showing it on the air. So that it “works for you” is complete nonsense. Get over it and accept that you will never know. Short of that you are not being honest to anyone including yourself.
Thanks for the link. Quite a read at 21,860 words!
The essay does a good job of pointing out the filming segments (which you excerpted) and other logistical matters (e.g. bathroom in relation to where TS is sitting).
Of particular interest is Chase’s comment that “Tony Soprano had been people’s alter ego” and his feelings about the viewers: “They had gleefully watched him rob, kill, pillage, lie, and cheat. They had cheered him on. And then, all of a sudden, they wanted to see him punished for all that. They wanted “justice.” They wanted to see his brains splattered on the wall. I thought that was disgusting, frankly. But these people have always wanted blood.”
Chase didn’t want to give the viewers an easy “out”.
Bullshit. I just saw him yesterday on Bloomfield Avenue.
On Tony’s way to the undisclosed location in the sky – once the blackness passed – you think he noticed J.D Rockafeller spinning like a GOP mouthpiece on FOX after word got out that Exxon/Mobil’s getting out of the “self-service” business? How dumb, getting out a business where people do it themselves, I mean not since Bob Guccione…
…anyway the grandkid’s darn haranguing is going to turn XOM into a giant long-only spec, another USO. Kids drop dime on Rex and his ‘life pardner’ Rex… and then sure’s shootin’, Tillerson caves and goes all financial on ‘em. JD musta’ asked Tony, “Is this any way to run a racket?”
Fuck that. Who shot JR?
Barry,
This is total plagiarism… with a capital P!
http://www.bobharris.com/content/view/1406/1/
This article appeared on June 15, 2007 – which, if my memory serves me correct, was less than a week after the finale…
Great reading for sure – but imo, Bob Harris deserves the Barry nod more than this guy ;)
So I guess if they do decide to eventually do a big screen version Tony will have to come back a la Dallas or All My Children…
Tony was in on the wrong racket…he shoulda gotten his education!
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121305922859459465.html?mod=todays_us_page_one
Talk about an exit strategy…
The writer has pulled off a true brilliancy. He killed Tony, but in a way that permits him to do a sequel, a movie, a new series, with plausible deniability of Tony’s death. A very clever dupe of the masses that conserves all the money vectors. The man is a genius. And this link with the reality of the biz provides even more support for the theory. Personally, I think it’s one of the more clever stunts ever in series TV.
No, no, no. If Tony was dead prior to Meadow’s entrance, there would have been comotion by the time Meadow approached that portion of Broad Street. Even if the cops had yet to arrive, there would have been chaos.
From a biz point of view, slackful hit it dead on.
From an artistic point of view, I think the simple answer is that Tony’s fate is what you wanted it to be. There is no right answer – just a lot of room for great debate about whether he should be dead or alive.
The Greek
“There is no right answer – just a lot of room for great debate about whether he should be dead or alive.”
Which is exactly what david Chase said.