OldSchoolWrestling 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 'Mafia Class of 2004' hits streets of 'Sopranos' January 12, 2004 BY PHIL ROSENTHAL TELEVISION CRITIC Advertisement When a mobster vanishes for 15 months at a pop, he's either been busted, turned, whacked ... or he's on HBO. Tony Soprano and his pay-cable gang, last seen in early December 2002, are set to remain out of sight for another 55 days with the fifth (and reportedly penultimate) season of HBO's "The Sopranos" not scheduled to debut until March 7. Till then, "Soprano"-philes, who ought to be used to this routine by now, will just have to quietly serve their time and trust they'll live long enough to enjoy what they hope awaits them, and that's completely appropriate. Turns out a major storyline of this latest long-awaited batch of 13 shows will deal with a bunch of just-freed Soprano associates who were swept into prison with the first wave of racketeering prosecutions in the 1980s. "The show begins with what we call 'the Mafia Class of 2004' hitting the streets," series creator David Chase said late last week. Speaking by satellite hookup from Paris, Chase told television critics gathered with his show's cast in Los Angeles late last week that he was inspired by a newspaper article about real-life made men convicted through the RICO statutes who just now are getting out of prison. Among those recent graduates of the penal system, he said, will be Tony Blundetto, a cousin of James Gandolfini's Tony played by film star (and two-time "Sopranos" director) Steve Buscemi. Asked about Blundetto's long-term future on the series, Buscemi alluded to the short-lived "Sopranos" character of Ralphie Cifaretto, a flashy turn that earned actor Joe Pantoliano an Emmy in part because he exited the series with his bean in a bowling-ball bag. "I'll keep my head if that's what you mean," Buscemi joked. Also set to appear this season are Robert Loggia, Frank Vincent, Joe Santos, David Strathairn, Polly Bergen, Patty D'Arbanville, Tim Daly and singer Frankie Valli. Tony and his wife, Carmela (Edie Falco), whose all-out shoutfest brought the series' fourth season to an adrenaline-fueled, emotionally taut climax, still will be separated when the season begins. Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio), Tony's henchman and Carmela's crush -- who returned to Italy last season just as it seemed he might be coming to terms with his feelings for his boss' wife -- will not return this season. The overriding theme this year will be "the limitations of family relationships and friendships in a materialist world," Chase said. "And Tony Soprano is kind of a mature boss. He's not quite a lion in winter, but he's been doing this for quite a while now." Gandolfini's uncanny knack for conveying the strain and stress within Tony has been one of the series' strong points since its 1999 debut. And the actor, unshaven for his role in the John Turturro-directed feature film, "Romance & Cigarettes," reflected on the toll exacted in playing out the disintegration of the Sopranos' marriage while engaged in a bitter real-life split from his wife, Marcy. "It was a little difficult to have to dredge those things up sometimes," said Gandolfini, 42, who recently got engaged to Lora Somoza, a woman he met four years ago on the set of "The Mexican." "In terms of acting ... it just makes you think real deep." Mustering up the rage to play Tony "eight or nine months a year, 14-hours a day, it starts to take its toll after a while," he said, but it's a role he's not quite ready to divorce himself from just yet, notwithstanding his threat last year to walk away from the career-making part unless he pried more money out of HBO. In the end he agreed to this fifth season and the 10-episode sixth season Chase said he need to bring his tale to a satisfactory end. "I'm not ready to say goodbye to the character, but I'm not gonna miss him. Does that make sense?" Gandolfini said. "I want to end this the right way. ... When it's over the right way, I'll see you later." And Chase seems ready to say, "See you" right back. Though the auteur several times earlier has said he would end the series, only to reconsider, Chase now maintains that the still-to-be-produced sixth season will be the "final act" and a rumored feature-film extension of the series no longer holds much interest for him. "I wouldn't say no to it completely," Chase said. "But I think this last 10 episodes will be that movie. That's the plan." Only one thing is certain: Tony and his extended families are going to go away for quite a while in any case. Production of that sixth "Sopranos" season, regardless of whether it's truly the end, isn't scheduled to even begin until a year from now. At the earliest. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest OctoberBlood Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Awesome!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Mosaicv2 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Steve Buscemi rulz... nuff said Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Krazy Karter Report post Posted January 12, 2004 So the final season won't air until 2006-2007. Damn. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Corey_Lazarus 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 I may have to watch the show now, just to see Buscemi. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Youth N Asia 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio), Tony's henchman and Carmela's crush -- who returned to Italy last season just as it seemed he might be coming to terms with his feelings for his boss' wife -- will not return this season. BOOOOO!!! While I didn't care much for the story with Tony's wife. Furio was great. Looking forward to this season. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2GOLD 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Great, they would do this AFTER I lose HBO. Let me see, I'll need to pay an additional 20 dollars a month for absolute nothing but Sopranos....god dammit. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
OldSchoolWrestling 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Let me see, I'll need to pay an additional 20 dollars a month for absolute nothing but Sopranos....god dammit. I am doing the same damn thing. But I'm happy about it. I can't wait to see the Sopranos and maybe catch some Curb Your Enthusiasm. And I have directv so its only $11 more per month. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 "Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio), Tony's henchman and Carmela's crush -- who returned to Italy last season just as it seemed he might be coming to terms with his feelings for his boss' wife -- will not return this season." Wait....what the fuck? I was betting money that Furio and Tony were going to have a show down over Carmela or SOMETHING. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HarleyQuinn 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Awesome, always loved Buscemi's roles Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mole 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Of course the new season starts when I am at school and there is no HBO. The good thing is that I will have graduated from college when the new season starts, so that is good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zetterberg is God 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 I'm very angry that Furio is not coming back this season. He was one of the best characters on the show and his storyline with Carmela was one of the few bright spots of Season 4. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest El Satanico Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Well they didn't say that he wouldn't be back for season 6. Since 6 is suppose to give closure, it would make more sense to save the Furio/Tony confrontation until then. Isn't Buscemi joining the show on camera old news? I could've swore they were talking about him joining the show on camera next season towards the end of season 4. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BlackFlagg 0 Report post Posted January 12, 2004 Sweet, Buscemi rawks the casbah Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Anglesault Report post Posted January 13, 2004 "Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio), Tony's henchman and Carmela's crush -- who returned to Italy last season just as it seemed he might be coming to terms with his feelings for his boss' wife -- will not return this season." Wait....what the fuck? I was betting money that Furio and Tony were going to have a show down over Carmela or SOMETHING. Methinks they mercy killed the most brutally boring storyline of the worst season of the show. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Baron 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 this show just simply rules all now since Steve Buscemi is now part of it Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HollywoodSpikeJenkins 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 "Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio), Tony's henchman and Carmela's crush -- who returned to Italy last season just as it seemed he might be coming to terms with his feelings for his boss' wife -- will not return this season." Wait....what the fuck? I was betting money that Furio and Tony were going to have a show down over Carmela or SOMETHING. Methinks they mercy killed the most brutally boring storyline of the worst season of the show. Yeah, the story sucked.....but at least let Tony kill the fuck, or SOMETHING. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vern Gagne 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 Are there Steve Buscemi clones running around? The guy seems to be in everything. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jobber of the Week 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 I thought this was already known. Here's another article that appeared in the paper last week with more on this stuff: HBO could fill you in on 5th season of 'Sopranos,' but they'd have to kill you Peter Hartlaub, Chronicle Staff Writer Los Angeles -- Steve Buscemi joins the cast as a Soprano cousin, Tony and Carmela's torrent of spiteful language for each other continues, and the acts-of- violence-per-episode equation for "The Sopranos" may be on the rise again. The plot points surrounding the fifth season of the HBO hit, which begins its 13-episode run on March 7, are television secrets of the highest order -- and the cable channel didn't unleash any major spoilers on Thursday during its twice-a-year meeting with television critics at the Hollywood Renaissance hotel. But HBO did provide a revealing 150-second trailer for the fifth season. And only 85 percent of the comments that "The Sopranos" architect David Chase made to critics were cryptic or evasive (usually it's closer to 95 percent), leaving anxious fans with a rough outline of the coming season. (While nothing huge was revealed -- who gets whacked, etc. -- television purists who want to enter Season 5 knowing nothing should skip straight to the final three paragraphs.) As the question-and-answer session began, an HBO executive said the season will begin with Tony Soprano's newspaper sitting untended in his driveway (Tony and his wife, Carmela, split at the end of last season). Series creator Chase expanded on the new season while fielding questions. "Well, I'll tell you that the taking-off point of the fifth season is based on an article I read in the Newark Star Ledger,'' said Chase, referring to the New Jersey paper that shows up frequently in "The Sopranos." "The highly publicized RICO cases of the '80s ... I read an article that a lot of those guys are now getting out of jail. They've served their time and they're hitting the streets again. So the show begins with the Mafia class of 2004 hitting the streets.'' One of those "graduates" will be Tony's cousin on his mother's side, Tony Blundetto, an old running buddy played by Buscemi who has recently been released from a long stretch in prison. Buscemi, who directed the infamous "Pine Barrens" episode of "The Sopranos" where the Russian guy escaped into the woods (no word from Chase on whether that will be resolved in 2004), is one of several inspired casting choices in the new season. Robert Loggia, David Strathairn, Tim Daly and Frankie Valli also have roles. Chase, who had said the fourth season would concentrate on Tony and Carmela's relationship, offered a theme for the fifth season -- but it seemed like more of a riddle than his past preseason summaries. "I guess I'd say it has to do with the limitations of family and friendship ... in a sort of materialist world," Chase said. "And also the fact that Tony Soprano is sort of a mature boss -- I don't want to say "The Lion in Winter," it isn't winter for him -- but he's been doing this for quite a while now. And it's about what it takes to be a leader, I suppose, despite your feelings.'' Under the Orwellian visage of Chase, whose upper body was projected by satellite from France on a giant screen, series stars Buscemi, James Gandolfini, Michael Imperioli and Drea de Matteo sat on the stage and dodged questions about their character arcs. ("I keep my head,'' Buscemi joked, referring to the decapitation of Joe Pantoliano's character in a recent episode.) That left the contents of the HBO teaser trailer to be deciphered and analyzed, and with montages of images in no particular order, it could have been deceiving. But the preview was still noteworthy for the surprisingly high amount of video snippets that include firearms: Tony raising a shotgun, Silvio (Steve Van Zandt) and Christopher (Imperioli) waving handguns, and a hard-to- identify cast member hefting what looks like an AK-47 rifle. In the trailer, Tony and Carmela also continue to explore their decaying relationship, appearing to pick up where they left off at the end of the fourth season. "The only reason you have anything is because of my f -- sweat,'' Tony Soprano bellows, confronting his wife in an even-scarier-than-usual voice. "And you knew every step of the way exactly how it works.'' As for the series, Chase said there will be 13 episodes in the fifth season and 10 more in the sixth and final season, which should air some time in 2005. Chase said there will be a resolution at the end of the sixth season and he has no current plans to continue the series or carry on the saga into a movie -- a possibility that was mentioned in earlier interviews. "I probably wouldn't say no to that completely, but I think this last 10 episodes will be that movie,'' Chase said. "I believe that's the plan.'' Also on Thursday, HBO execs announced that "The Wire" is coming back for a third season later this year, centering on the drug trade during an election year in Baltimore. Several novelists including Dennis Lehane ("Mystic River") have been added to the writing team. ... Ellen DeGeneres and Mena Suvari will both be guest stars in this summer's season of "Six Feet Under." ... HBO has renewed "Carnivale" for 13 more episodes. It will probably return in late 2004. ... Chris Rock will return to HBO in April with a new stand-up comedy event from his current tour, which recently passed through the Bay Area. 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Guest Choken One Report post Posted January 13, 2004 didn't he direct the classic Pine Barrens Episode? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zetterberg is God 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 didn't he direct the classic Pine Barrens Episode? Indeed he did and it is a classic episode, probably one of the best in the whole series. My only problem with that episode is that what happened to the Russian was never resolved but in the end it didn't hurt the episode or the series so whatever. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Youth N Asia 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 didn't he direct the classic Pine Barrens Episode? Indeed he did and it is a classic episode, probably one of the best in the whole series. My only problem with that episode is that what happened to the Russian was never resolved but in the end it didn't hurt the episode or the series so whatever. "I'll leave you here, you one-shoe'd cocksucker!" I love that episode. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
2GOLD 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2004 Let me see, I'll need to pay an additional 20 dollars a month for absolute nothing but Sopranos....god dammit. I am doing the same damn thing. But I'm happy about it. I can't wait to see the Sopranos and maybe catch some Curb Your Enthusiasm. And I have directv so its only $11 more per month. I'd pay the extra nine for the Cinemax add on. Just because bad b movies late at night are much better than whatever infomercial is on. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
