The Sopranos

Atenció: no m'agradaria que algú penses que això és una entrevista real que he copiat i enganxat d'alguna web. No és així , si us la llegiu veureu que és una "obra original" de l'autor, aquí presente, adaptant (suprimint frases, afegint comentaris, canviant preguntes, inventant respostes... el que he volgut vaja) una entrevista que surt a la web oficial de Los Soprano amb Peter Bogdanovich (director de cinema que fa d'actor a la sèrie i que n'ha dirigit algun capítol). Si és un tostón o no, m'ho podeu dir vosaltres: bonus per qui ho faci en anglès.

Interview with Jeffrey Abbot
Die hard The Sopranos fan, Pulp fan.

One of the most faithful fans of his generation ('The Sopranos Season 1 to 6) talks about watching the show, and the impact of the Sopranos in his day to day life

HBO: How did you first got involved with 'The Sopranos?'

JEFFREY ABBOT: It was probably around 2004 or 2005. I had been watching episodes from time to time when they were broadcasted in C+ but never followed the show, so when I saw the first season DVD on the shelves I decided to do things properly and started the series from the beginning (one of the best decisions in my life)

HBO: Hmm.

JEFFREY ABBOT: Yeah, really. The Sopranos has given me the best moments in front of a TV along with reduced group of movies. But the edge is for The Sopranos, because it's like a 70 hours movie.

HBO: Did you know much about the part before you went in?

JEFFREY ABBOT: No. Just what they told me. Had heard some good reviews, and knew the show had won some Emmies, but not much really.

HBO: So what took so long for you to buy Season One? It seems so obvious.

JEFFREY ABBOT: I don't know. I really was not into this "series" thing. I preferred to watch a movie at night. But yeah, was a good step forward. I wish I had done it before.

HBO: And what was the experience like, crossing over from the movies side.

JEFFREY ABBOT: Wonderful. Because the material is so good, the script is so good. And it never ends, it's like watching a movie for ages, the characters are really evolving, the script goes deep in every character cause you have a lot of time to do that. Time is one of the biggest constraints for regular movies: when you have to explain everything in less than two hours because otherwise the producer is going to ask you to cut scenes (or cut them himself) to make it digestible for the mass audiences you have a big constraint for you creativity.

HBO: Is it very difficult to get in?

JEFFREY ABBOT: You know it's usually difficult to start with The Sopranos, it's not a regular show. You have to be patient, start knowing the characters, appreciate every little detail they give to you in every episode: silences, thoughts, actors playing at the highest level of intensity.. there's a lot of stuff going on that you have to be aware of.

HBO: Is it very different from a film?

JEFFREY ABBOT: Well, I think the biggest difference is that you have somebody who has a central, long term creative vision-- in this case, it's David Chase's show. You're sharing his vision. And when you're doing a television film or a feature, you know, usually it's the director's vision.

HBO: Hmm.

JEFFREY ABBOT: As a creator, David Chase has had the opportunity to develop a plot 30 or 40 times bigger than a standard movie.

HBO: It's an interesting thing about television series that directors are alternated during the season. Do you think that benefits the show?

JEFFREY ABBOT: I think probably if they had the same director, it'd be easier. But I don't know how you do that; it'd be pretty tough. You know, you're doing an awful lot of stuff in a short amount of time.

Also, all the directors will share the same vision, because they'll work following David's long term plot line. I think in fact that gives richness to the show, since you have different ways of directing for different episodes, and that gives David the option to choose which vision will adapt better to what has to be shown in that specific episode.

HBO: Do you find yourself drawn to any of the characters, in particular?

JEFFREY ABBOT: Well, Christopher Moltisanti, I'm very fond of, very interested in.

HBO: Hmm.

JEFFREY ABBOT: I like all the characters, but I think Chritopher has had one of the better story arcs surrounding him with Adriana La Cerva and all the drugs stuff. I think the story arcs of Christopher, Richie Aprile (what an addition to Season Two!) and A.J Soprano have been the most catching for me. Even though it might sound surprising, I think in The Sopranos is only structured around Tony Soprano, but the main support characters are almost as important as Tony himself.

HBO: There have been a lot of popular mob movies and series: is there something different about 'The Sopranos' that you think resonates?

JEFFREY ABBOT: Yeah, because it's not really a mob show, even though it's about a guy who's in the Mafia. I don't think it's really a mob film in the way that 'The Godfather' or 'GoodFellas' was. I think it's more about America. It's more about a kind of slightly-more-violent-than-normal family.

But it's a dysfunctional family that I think represents a cross section of a certain kind of American public that isn't involved with the Mafia. That's why I think it resonates with people. It isn't just a mob show. It's more down to earth. It's about you and me and your neighbors. It's not about some people that you read about in the newspapers.

I think it has enormous cultural relevance to life at the end of the twentieth century, the start of the twenty-first.



Si voleu llegir l'entrevista original a Peter Bogdanovich, sense modificar, a la web oficial dels Soprano - HBO aquí teniu el link: Entrevista Original
- Només recomanable per a fans de la sèrie o pels que tingueu curiositat en veure com l'he adaptat com m'ha sortit dels nassos -

A les fotos es pot veure en aquest ordre: el logo de la sèrie, una foto a on es pot veure a davant del Satriale's Pork Store d'esquerra a dreta a Sal "Pussy" Bompensiero, Tony Soprano, Chris Moltisanti, Paulie Walnuts, Hesh Rabkin, Silvio Dante i Furio Giunta, una altra foto amb un primer pla de Tony Soprano i darrera Chris Moltisanti i Paulie Walnuts, i finalment una foto de Tony Soprano gaudint de les vistes al llac.