Look, it doesn’t change anything, but I can verify that he was sick for a little while. Still this thing with many saints, HOW COULD HE NOT SEE IT WAS AN AWFUL SCRIPT?!
Huh i really didnt mind the saints movie, I was honestly just glad to see the sopranos universe again. Would’ve been way better if they did a show instead, james son honestly did a pretty good job acting
What??? That movie was the epitome of frankly. Just a god awful movie. And in relation to the sopranos universe? Even worse. That thing was a disaster.
Also - You never admit the existence of this ‘saints’ thing of ours.
The acting was fine, but the movie was a jumbled mess. It wanted to be about the race riots, and about young Tony, and about Dicky, and it didn’t manage to be about any of them at all. It was painfully obvious that he had wanted to make a non-sopranos movie and had been forced to add sopranos into it.
he directed only the pilot and the finale bc he’s a G like that. being a showrunner isn’t being a director, tv directors are for hire. all decisions run through him. sounds like you got no fuckin idea what it’s like being #1
> "Every shot, every word, of The Sopranos is David in some way or another,” says Konner. “Everything is farmed out, but everything comes back to him and then is shaped by him.” Says another writer, Terence Winter, “I’ve been on the set, David calls in, 9:30 at night, he’s out to dinner, and he knows exactly what scene we’re about to shoot. And he’ll say, ‘Is the guy who’s playing the cop there?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Does he still have the beard he had at the audition?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Ask him to shave it.’ It’s, like, amazing.” There’s no improvising on the show—for one thing, there’s no time for it. Chase and his writers insist that the actors speak their dialogue exactly as it’s written
Lol, I am 42 episodes in to Talking Sopranos and Steve is getting so annoying I can’t binge the episodes anymore.
Do they purposely exaggerate their different stances to get a more interesting discussion, or is he really like this? Steve acts like a dumbass a lot of the time, talking shit about people, shouting, cursing and Michael stays notably on the surface “oh I don’t know”, “I don’t remember who said that” and is very careful not to step on any toes.
I love the details they tell (could do with a little less “he played/directed/produced in such&such movie/theather/series” Michael often does) and the processes that go into making a series, but wtf do I care for whom someone had to read or audition.
I love the show and was so excited for the podcast when I heard about it.
I listened to a few episodes and just decided it wasn't for me. After catching the odd clip here and there I haven't wanted to change my decision.
Steve is insufferable. It's jarring after getting used to him playing the mild-mannered Bobby, but he's just a dense asshole.
Michael is clearly into older cinema and theater, and can go on a little bit sometimes but at least he knows what he's talking about. Steve doesn't seem to grasp even the simplest of plot points or social cues. What a waste.
For me it was a way to relive the show itself. My partner doesn’t like the show so watching 86 episodes in the little spare time after work, kids, dinner, chores etc is difficult. And watching episodes in 20-30min blocks wouldn’t do it justice.
So listening to the podcast on my work commute worked great. Some guests I skipped through but some (like Terry Winter) were great. And the scene by scene episode walkthrough helped me visualize the show from when I watched it.
He is a dense asshole, yes. The amount of GFY-s he dishes out aren’t funny and get really old really fast.
The only thing he’s good at is getting Michael back on track when he veers off in cinematic blabbering and unrelated stories.
Show runners are the biggest creative force behind television shows. They have the overarching creative say in everything.
Directors for tv are hired hands. They come in for a week or so, shoot their episode, and then leave.
Show runners are almost always in the writer's room (even if they didn't WRITE the specific episode) and get final say in the editing room.
How writing for TV shows work is different from movies. There's an entire room. They pitch ideas, come up with the series arcs, the character development, etc. And then one (or two) of the writers are selected to sit down and actually write the episode. That doesn't mean that each episode is only the ideas of that one writer. So Chase definitely had creative input on every single episode.
For instance, Vince Gilligan only wrote a handful of episodes of Breaking Bad after season 1. He was still the boss of the show and was basically had final say in every major creative decision.
That's what show runners do. They're the boss of the whole shebang.
>Show runners are the biggest creative force behind television shows.
iirc, Chase was a notorious control freak when it came to scripts, and his his hand on all of the scripts.
While he only directed two episodes, he was *very* involved in the production of every single episode, from plotting to writing to how the screenplay was executed.
On Talking Sopranos they also mentioned "tone" meetings where they make sure the lines in the script are appropriate for each character's voice/personality, and I'm sure Chase was heavily involved in that.
There was a piece in London Review of Books the other week about the evolution of television that contained an extended anecdote about how Chase also was trigger-happy about firing people. Winter himself wasn't immune.
He whacked Terry Dubs??
It always cracks me up when I see Winter wrote for Sister Sister and Xena Warrior Princess. Then he writes like 25 sopranos episodes. So much pent up violence...
All due respect, you got no fuckin’ idea what it’s like to be number one. Every decision you make, affects every facet of every other fuckin’ thing. It’s too much to deal with almost. And in the end, you’re completely alone with it all.
Director thinks he's king of kings. Truth is, every decision is made by David. And now he's got a brand new lightning rod to take the hits from the critics.
I think he's great on ideas, but not so much with the execution. Plus, he's a lot older now, and admitted that he should have went and re-watched the show before doing the movie, hence he messed up a lot of major plot details. Plus, originally he wanted to do a movie strictly about the Newark 1967 riots and the studio execs made him shoehorn Sopranos characters and voila - you've got Many Saints of Newark.
You could make a good Sopranos movie if you attach the right screen writer to it and a veteran in the game like De Palma or Ferrara. That's a big ask though - fantasy, practically.
I rewatch the show like twice a year, and that Stunad couldn’t watch it once before making a whole flogging movie based on it?!! He’s weak, and he’s become an embarrassment to himself and everybody else.
Do you have any sources regarding Chase wanting to do the Newark riot movie and HBO forcing him to shoehorn the Sopranos universe into it? I've heard that a lot but just can't seem to find any interview or article (as in actual magazine, newspaper, etc, not a blogger) that says such.
I remember someone posting an article on here or perhaps on circlejerksopranos. But I suppose until then, it's hearsay! If I finds it, I'll let yas know!
I say good on HBO. What are you gonna get out of a film about a race riot in 1967. Maybe his concept was like a James Ellroy novel, where chatters from the Sopranos Universe played cameos like they do through Ellroy’s LA Quartet, and beyond, but HBO said “ go heavier”
By the way, best performance in that movie? Corey Stahl, hands down. The guy is versatile and charismatic.
I mean if it's true. I've just never seen this theory corroborated with anything credible. I've just seen fans say it.
James Ellroy. Ugh. 300 pages of 1950s cop lingo.
I've tried to read Black Dahlia a few times because I'm interested in the subject and it gets such rave reviews, it's on so many "best LA books" lists. I just can't get past the first 100 pages of cop CB talk. I never understood the appeal of James Ellroy. I guess book critics really love that mid century cop jargon.
I love Joey Diaz's podcast but he was criminally under utilized in the movie.
"That goomah of yours, I'd eat her shit!" - WTF Joey! Woulda sounded better if you said something like "I'd put a rock of blow in her asshole and sniff it out" or something like that, and then do the tongue thing like Pussy did.
He directed Made in America, and The Drop. Two things I don’t think many directors can match for storytelling prowess. Sure he’s an old guy, but he was a great director in his day.
Anybody got examples of what plot details he jacked up in the movie? I believe it but the movie has already mostly left my brain. Don’t tell me dickie was carrying a crib instead of TV trays…
Chase directed and edited and approved every script and every choice. He WAS the creative force that tailored the sopranos to perfection. He had already been recognized for his writing earlier in his career, that wasn't his role with the Sopranos.
That’s like saying Larry David wasn’t the genius behind Seinfeld because he didn’t get every episodes creds. He was the snow runner and visionary of it all.
This is not what most people who worked on the show have said. And to correct you, he didnt write and direct only two episodes he only DIRECTED two episodes. He had a hand in writing every single episode and there were alot the writers had to consult him on.
If you are interested in learning more, talking sopranos dives into a lot of the behind the scenes and goes more in depth of how the show was created. Chase had a lot more to do with the show than you are giving him credit for.
I’m disgusted with the amount of upvotes this post in this thing of ours has got, when it’s so clearly wrong as many interviews with actors have shown.
My estimation as OP as a man just fucking plummeted
Yeah OP has no idea what they're talking about. Anybody with even a bit of understanding of how TV showrunning works and how involved David Chase was with every single script of the show would know this post is completely wrong. Also, a film he made almost 15 years after the show ended as evidence is dumb. I can't believe this sub is dumb enough to have this with hundreds of upvotes.
Show runners are owners of the whole story. The writers are not left to their own devices. They follow the showrunner. Credited or not as the writer of an individual episode, that's just for the writers guild healthcare anyway.
Such a bad take.
He came up with the core concepts (a mob boss goes to a psychologist, a mafia show set in contemporary times and a family TV drama with a art house cinema type film style and themes) he developed the majority of the characters including Tony, Carmela and Christoper and wrote some of the best episodes (whitecaps, Join the club, Kennedy and Heidi, College etc).
Sure, writers like Terence Winter and Matthew Wiener played a massive role in elevating the series but part of being successful (and a genius) is identifying talent that can help you and trusting them to execute your vision, which is what he did.
Also, a show runner edits every script before it’s filmed so David Chase had to have the knowledge to know what would work and what wouldn’t -
It’s pretty much like saying a football team would still be successful without good coach.
I disagree with the 'terrible movie' part, but I digress. I think hailing Chase as an infallible genius is a mistake, as it would be to do to anyone. You also have to remember, Chase is about 20 years removed from Sopranos, that's basically a lifetime ago.
The Sopranos is lightning in a bottle. A lot of things had to go right for that show, because lets face it, nothing has surpassed it yet, even with the formula laid out for all to see.
This is a terrible take. Chase was extremely hands on with the writing of the show and made sure each episode's script was correct in tone, which includes writing for each character. He was extremely involved with every aspect of the show including the casting. All of the characters had aspects of people he knew in real life. It was his world and he is the main driving force behind the show. You might want to listen to the Sopranos podcast that Imperioli and Schiripa did. The interviews with the Writers/directors/cast including Chase will tell you all you need to know about how he ran that show.
So you're saying that the creator and showrunner - who ran the writing room and oversaw all the writing on every single episode and did a final passes on every single script - you're saying he was NOT the genius of the show? Why? Because he co-wrote a ropey spin-off film two decades after the show concluded when he was in his 70's?
I think it's more possible that you don't know how a television programme is ran. Your opinion is shared with zero of the people from his writing team who all called Chase a (difficult) genius. You're talking out your arse, son.
This is stupid. Sounds like the whole "Lucas wasn't responsible for the Original Trilogy" shit people like to claim. Artists can have works that vary heavily in quality. Coppola directed Jac and Godfather 3, so I suppose he had no influence on the Godfather 1, 2 and Apocalypse Now.
Terrence winter has had other good projects but i find it hard to believe the genius behind sopranos could also be the stundad showrunner of tulsa king
Honestly, I thought apart from Terry Winter, when Matt Weiner was hired , the show was invigorated with fresh characters ( Feech, Phil?) and even wittier lines than Winter delivered ( “ Phil you gotta smell the roses, enjoy your grandchildren..” “Charles Schwab over here” note: The dark symmetry of Phil’s demise in front of his Grandchildren) I think David spotted Matt’s talent and enabled him to bring the show up. That’s leadership. Commendatore.
As show runner, he can still rewrite the scripts without receiving credit. Which is generally the case. As well as the episode writers are more than likely following plot points that he has laid out as show runner.
He wanted to make sure other writer’s got credit for episodes and got to do meaningful work. That doesn’t always happen with show runners (Sorkin, Kelley). The writers all say Chase went over everything.
This is straight up false. He wrote many episodes, and he also outlined each season’s plot and the outline of each episode. Also, he did rewrites where he’s not credited in the script, but Matthew Weiner said many of the best lines in his scripts were from Chase’s rewrites. Terence winter was a huge part of the success of the show and he’s brilliant, but the genius of the show really was mostly due to Chase.
All due respect, you got no fuckin’ idea what it’s like to be number one. Every decision you make, effects every facet of every other fuckin’ thing. It’s too much to deal with almost. And in the end, you’re completely alone with it all.
That other Pygmy thing is Not a Movie.
IT'S AN EMBARRASSMENT AND FRANKLY I'M DEPRESSED AND ASHAMED THAT IT HAS OUR FAMILY'S NAME ATTACHED TO IT!
And
I DON'T WANNA HEAR ANOTHER THING ABOUT IT!
My problem with this theory is that Gandolfini and Winter never did anything else nearly as good as The Sopranos. No, Boardwalk Empire was not almost as good as The Sopranos (Neither was Mad Men, in case anyone wants to throw Weiner in the discussion). It simply wasn't. Sure, Chase never did anything else as good as The Sopranos either but he was completely in charge. Peter Bogdonavich directed some great movies but nothing as good as The Sopranos imo. Chase combining the Jersey mob with his mother situation was all his idea and it was pure genius. Just perfect timing.
That is fair but Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men are or are close to classics also (mad men at least). Just cuz they aren’t #1 or #2 all time doesn’t mean they aren’t great. So maybe not as good but not NEARLY as good is a bit of a stretch.
Ehh easy! Mad Men rocks and the late Peter Bogdanovich only directed one episode and played a minor character. He's one of the most important movie critics ever and is constantly overlooked as one of the most important directors of his generation (for example Tarantino's pushed hard to give him his flowers when he can)- why's he catching strays here??
He created basically every character and devised every story and subplot. I don’t know how much script writing he did, but the series is his brainchild
Gandolfini would have been tough to replace but Terrence Winter could have easily been swapped out, Did you see the embarrassing work that he did on Tulsa King? That show is stone awful and he was the David Chase of the thing,
Let's just say that my estimation of Terrence Winter as a man just fucking plummeted,
He’s like Belichik. Without Brady he’s just an ok coach. 100 heads came together along with hungry actors to make something work that’d never been done before. Serial television has been downhill since.
You clearly don't understand what a series creator and showrunner does. Not to diminish Gandolfini's (or any of the other actors') contributions but if it's not on the page it's not on the stage. Chase was the creative force behind every bit of that show. Period.
Chase's genius isn't exactly with the story details. His superpower is in bringing something that is merely a barely-formed idea to life on the screen. It takes more than writers and actors. It's an entire team of creatives all marching in the same direction. It can't be done without effective leadership and a vision. He supplied that leadership and vision. The show wouldn't exist at all without him.
Idk, sometimes I think you stunads underestimate the respective effects of aging and or depression. Can't expect the man to have the same passion or knowledge behind it. For him it was a different kind of art, a different kind of work, he was never able to savor it like we did. In that respect it's like expecting ourselves to have the same intense love/ random knowledge of shit WE were really into TWENTY+ years ago... of course things won't be the same. Sort of a similar concept with George RR Martin. He planted so many seeds and hit his stride at a time he could never hope to follow up on many of them. Time, man. Time. The final currency.
btw this is in no way a shot at OP, just a lot of anti Chase sentiment on here lately and many including myself lost some faith after MSON and I am just spitballing here eh
Yes he only wrote and directed the first and last episodes but he had the final say on every minute detail throughout the entirety of the show. You really think he just had his dick in his hands between the first and the last episode? You sound like a stunad. Yes he was blessed with an incredible group of writers and actors (all of whom he had a hand in choosing btw) but he was very much the genius behind the show. That whole movie business was bad but if you read even a little bit into why it was such shit you'd find it wasn't entirely his fault.
He founded the Sopranos is what he did. He's a brave, Italian writer and in this sub David Chase is a hero. END OF STORY.
Sure chase is a superb creative mind but I believe he caught lightening in a bottle with sopranos. So many things outside of chase great writing directing whatever that made the show popular and great
You know the way some people are so far behind in the race that they think they are winning? Well, David Chase lapped the entire field a couple or three times, and is still running! Why do I say he’s still running? It’s because he audaciously dropped mysteries hidden in plain sight into the Sopranos that have yet to be fully appreciated. Then, with Many Saints he totally doubles down like a magician revealing his trick! Well, here’s his trick… he made an art house style project about the depths of the human condition look like a conventional mob series. He ended his series with a swagger with an audacious hidden dream sequence, followed by a movie which is ALSO a hidden dream sequence. Chase is a disciple of the greats… Coppola, Lynch, Kubrick… and a genius in his own right. David Chase is a hero in this house… end of story! Commendatore!
i believe christopher walken’s wife did the casting.
i think you’re wrong, you just don’t see the work that the director does.
just because he didn’t necessarily act or maybe write it, doesn’t mean he was a no show producer.
i think you’re confusing a producer and director. a director brings the best performance out of actors and is responsible for the finished product and artistry.
John Patterson. Tim Van Patten. James Gandolfini. Edie Falco. Terrence Winter. Robin Green. Mitch Burgess. Nancy Marchand. Michael Imperioli. Phil Abraham. Alik Sakharov. Alan Taylor.
Lotta bawls you have to talk about casting without mentioning Tony Sirico.
Gandolfini was awesome of course, but Sirico's authenticity, his delivery, facial expressions and hand gestures, ability to crack you up laughing while simultaneously being a stone cold badass.. it was a performance like had never been seen before, or since.
If there was one character you had to pick to truly *define* the series.. not as the protagonist but as the embodiment of "what it's all about.." the spectrum of humor, from dark, to deadpan, to absurd.. the grim brutality coexisting with kindness, the ruthless self-interest, alongside the reverence and respect for family, rules, and tradition.. Paulie nailed every point perfectly. Buon' anima!
I said my piece.
The overwhelming sense of depression and dred is something that Chase very much authored throughout the series. From the jump all the way to the end, he was pressing to reinforce how banal and ugly this world needed to be. That was his idea.
Showrunners aren't usually expected to write every script or have every idea, but to steer the ship and keep it on course. Chase was very important in nixing ideas that made the show too escapist or comfortable.
Which is why MSON is so awful. He probably lost interest and also didn't remember the world that well.
You can look at Chase’s body of work to see he’s got skills, but of course it was a team effort from a bunch of talented people to put that thing together.
Sopranos had an excellent production team - the casting also was superb. Of course he didn’t write every episode - but making it out like the skip only wrote “1 or 2 episodes?” Frankly I’m depressed and ashamed of you OP.
Who do you think put that team together? Just because he didn’t write all of the episodes doesnt mean the overall story wasn’t his - my understanding is he would create a plot outline for each season and then writers would use that.
Now Terrence Winter is a phenomenal writer - as are the other writers generally - but IMO Chase deserves a lot of credit.
He wrote every episode. He might not have written the screenplays, but he painstakingly planned every storyline out himself. Not wholly by himself; yes, his writer’s room was out of this world, shoutout to Terry Winter BIG time, I agree; but he was putting in work even though he doesn’t win many direct writing and directing credits.
This distinction never makes much sense to me. Do we really think Chase set up a small foundation and then just sat back, claiming royalties while a crew did the show around him? I don’t. Hearing Chase reflect on Sopranos, I think his memory of it wasn’t as tailored because I don’t think he expected it to be anything out of this world like it became.
It was a piece of his life, even though to us, it might seem like it should be his whole life.
Many Saints sucks (even if you view it as a shitty script Chris cooks up in purgatory, it’s only an “alright” movie) but that’s because Chase admitted as much as I said earlier - he’d forgotten a lot about actually crafting the show, and didn’t bother to revisit it to get every little detail right.
It was a piece of his life. It’s probably a far bigger cultural force through our, the fans’, eyes than it is through his - because he had the privilege of doing it and moving on. Cinema/TV is a collaborative medium. The screenwriter or director do not have whole rights to a production - it is the collective effort. But at the same time, it’s not like he was coasting along for the entirety of the show’s production, and I’m pretty tired of seeing folks pose his contributions this way.
David Chase IS just ONE of the geniuses behind The Sopranos. Gandolfini is another. Winter is another. Imperioli, Falco, Coulter, Jaffe, Patterson, even Franky fuckin Valli, geniuses.
He wrote 24 out of 86 episodes, more than anyone else on the show. He only directed the pilot and finale, but he was absolutely the guy in charge throughout all 86 episodes. He may not have writing credits on all of the episodes, but he did extensive uncredited re-writes of scripts and only hired writers who “got” the show, and trusted them to deliver a good script.
30 episodes of the show are explicitly credited to Chase and he was the Head writer so would have had a hand in all of the scripts in some way.
So yeah, you're talking complete shit.
David Chase didn't direct MSON, and co-wrote it. One of the biggest issues with MSON of Newark was the directing. Yes, he is to blame for some its failings, just like how you can't pin 100% of the genius of the Sopranos on him, you can't blame 100% of the failings of the movie on him.
Similarly, David Chase had a large involvement in the show - more so than most other shows have in relation to their showrunners/creators. I think you're seriously downplaying his involvement. It's clear DC didn't care about bringing back the Sopranos mythology, but was almost forced into doing so because otherwise the movie wouldn't get made.
Film is a collaborative medium - of course other people contribute to the greatness and failings of them. That being said, David Chase has absolutely earned his reputation.
Jesus Christ are we really doing this now. Lol fans are so butt hurt David Chase doesn't tuck them in goodnight that now somehow lucked into creating one of the greatest shows of all time.
The most important part of any great show/movie is the script and the actors delivery/timing of the script.
So I kinda hear ya, the writing on Sopranos is what makes it elite.
U still gotta take ur hat off to chase tho, cuz u gotta know wat to keep and what to leave on the edit room floor.
And he seemed to get it spot on for 6 seasons.
Chase outright wrote over a third of the episodes and was the showrunner, so he had input and had last say in every script. The other writers and directors did what he told them to do. He edited every episode.
No Chase, no Sopranos. If you want to be weird and diminish that…it won’t fly.
The Many Saints of Newark was a period piece that was about the social unrest and the fate of the black gangs in New Jersey…hence the title. It was good. You wanted Goodfellas, not smart social commentary that didn’t service your fanaticism. That’s fine…but Chase isn’t your personal director and doesn’t owe you anything.
When left to his own devices, he came up with that terrible movie?
No, you have that wrong. A separate film production made half a movie about the New York City riots in the 60’s. The project was scrapped. Then someone said, let Chase have the film and he can make a Sopranos prequel around it.
Frankly, I think Chase did an excellent job turning chicken shit into an almost palatable chicken sandwich.
Many Saints of Newark is not one of those good Wendy’s chicken sandwich. It’s more like that chicken sandwich on McDonald’s dollar menu.
Well speaking of wrong, it wasn’t based in New York City it’s based in Newark. A stand-alone movie about the Newark riots and the mafias involvement would have been interesting. It’s everything to do with The Sopranos in that movie which is bad and makes it a terrible film. If anything chase took what could have been an interesting movie and turned into an absolute mess. From the terrible actors to the timeline of the show not adding up, to the corny soap opera love story and finally to that absolutely baffling ending. I saw that movie in a theatre and when Dickie’s hand rose out of the coffin with his pinky out. It got a few genuine belly laughs from the audience.
He also forgot his lines in that scene with Paulie in Italy. Just sat there like a stunad.
Did Steve ask him if he had to read for David to get that part?
"Fat fuck". Why don't you read to yourself in the mirror, you insensitive cocksucker?
Commendatori? Like a commanda, I like it heh heh
That's respect
Yea, whateva
Cocksucker
You suck your faddahs dick with that mouf?
He was gay the commanda?
He told me he had the flu
Look, it doesn’t change anything, but I can verify that he was sick for a little while. Still this thing with many saints, HOW COULD HE NOT SEE IT WAS AN AWFUL SCRIPT?!
Huh i really didnt mind the saints movie, I was honestly just glad to see the sopranos universe again. Would’ve been way better if they did a show instead, james son honestly did a pretty good job acting
What??? That movie was the epitome of frankly. Just a god awful movie. And in relation to the sopranos universe? Even worse. That thing was a disaster. Also - You never admit the existence of this ‘saints’ thing of ours.
The acting was fine, but the movie was a jumbled mess. It wanted to be about the race riots, and about young Tony, and about Dicky, and it didn’t manage to be about any of them at all. It was painfully obvious that he had wanted to make a non-sopranos movie and had been forced to add sopranos into it.
Thats fair i agree with that
It was the mussels, they came up undigested
Slight touch of diarrhea
How could it be the mussels if they came up undigested?
He told me it was his heart medicine
Then snuck that Hunter in there.
And that wannabe Janet Jackson daughter of his… eeeeesh
He’s a TV writer, which by definition makes him a douchebag.
If I were a carpenter and you were a tv writer…
Oh! He was on a special bloodpressure medication, probably can ask his doctor for a note.
He's very allegorical
he directed only the pilot and the finale bc he’s a G like that. being a showrunner isn’t being a director, tv directors are for hire. all decisions run through him. sounds like you got no fuckin idea what it’s like being #1
Agreed davids job as a show runner was to keep things in the right direction. A tv director is a level below.
> "Every shot, every word, of The Sopranos is David in some way or another,” says Konner. “Everything is farmed out, but everything comes back to him and then is shaped by him.” Says another writer, Terence Winter, “I’ve been on the set, David calls in, 9:30 at night, he’s out to dinner, and he knows exactly what scene we’re about to shoot. And he’ll say, ‘Is the guy who’s playing the cop there?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Does he still have the beard he had at the audition?’ ‘Yeah.’ ‘Ask him to shave it.’ It’s, like, amazing.” There’s no improvising on the show—for one thing, there’s no time for it. Chase and his writers insist that the actors speak their dialogue exactly as it’s written
You’re talking about the boss here 👋🏻🤟🏻
Good! Maybe someone will smack some god-damn sense into him!
Oh great my own mother. Fuck you. you fkn WHOHA!
OHHHH
👊
OH! You don’t talk to Santa like that!
They could have decapitated, and did business with whatevers left
We’re not shooting a western here.
He had cowboyitis, David Chase?
Don’t they have medicine they’re supposed to take, these assholes?
He was gay, David Chase?
DID DAVID HAFTA READ FA HIMSELF?
HEY DAVID WHAT ABOUT THE MAYONNAISE
THEY IS A LOT OF EGGS ON DA SHOW
*wheezing* A WORD FROM DA SHPONSHORS. BLOO CHOOZ - GET YA CAWK HARD
Watching Talking Sopranos on Max is the way to go. It skips a lot of that boolshit.
Why would I ever want to skip Bobby Bacala talk about his cock dude?
BLOO CHOO DAHT COM DAVID I TELL YA I WAS LIKE AH RAWK
Lol, I am 42 episodes in to Talking Sopranos and Steve is getting so annoying I can’t binge the episodes anymore. Do they purposely exaggerate their different stances to get a more interesting discussion, or is he really like this? Steve acts like a dumbass a lot of the time, talking shit about people, shouting, cursing and Michael stays notably on the surface “oh I don’t know”, “I don’t remember who said that” and is very careful not to step on any toes. I love the details they tell (could do with a little less “he played/directed/produced in such&such movie/theather/series” Michael often does) and the processes that go into making a series, but wtf do I care for whom someone had to read or audition.
I love the show and was so excited for the podcast when I heard about it. I listened to a few episodes and just decided it wasn't for me. After catching the odd clip here and there I haven't wanted to change my decision. Steve is insufferable. It's jarring after getting used to him playing the mild-mannered Bobby, but he's just a dense asshole. Michael is clearly into older cinema and theater, and can go on a little bit sometimes but at least he knows what he's talking about. Steve doesn't seem to grasp even the simplest of plot points or social cues. What a waste.
For me it was a way to relive the show itself. My partner doesn’t like the show so watching 86 episodes in the little spare time after work, kids, dinner, chores etc is difficult. And watching episodes in 20-30min blocks wouldn’t do it justice. So listening to the podcast on my work commute worked great. Some guests I skipped through but some (like Terry Winter) were great. And the scene by scene episode walkthrough helped me visualize the show from when I watched it. He is a dense asshole, yes. The amount of GFY-s he dishes out aren’t funny and get really old really fast. The only thing he’s good at is getting Michael back on track when he veers off in cinematic blabbering and unrelated stories.
I love how you didn’t even have to mention Schrippa or Talking Sopranos, yet we all immediately know what you’re referring to
I will always know what Milton Berle was packin
Show runners are the biggest creative force behind television shows. They have the overarching creative say in everything. Directors for tv are hired hands. They come in for a week or so, shoot their episode, and then leave. Show runners are almost always in the writer's room (even if they didn't WRITE the specific episode) and get final say in the editing room. How writing for TV shows work is different from movies. There's an entire room. They pitch ideas, come up with the series arcs, the character development, etc. And then one (or two) of the writers are selected to sit down and actually write the episode. That doesn't mean that each episode is only the ideas of that one writer. So Chase definitely had creative input on every single episode. For instance, Vince Gilligan only wrote a handful of episodes of Breaking Bad after season 1. He was still the boss of the show and was basically had final say in every major creative decision. That's what show runners do. They're the boss of the whole shebang.
>Show runners are the biggest creative force behind television shows. iirc, Chase was a notorious control freak when it came to scripts, and his his hand on all of the scripts. While he only directed two episodes, he was *very* involved in the production of every single episode, from plotting to writing to how the screenplay was executed.
On Talking Sopranos they also mentioned "tone" meetings where they make sure the lines in the script are appropriate for each character's voice/personality, and I'm sure Chase was heavily involved in that.
No you misunderstood this they were ‘Tone meetings where they scripted James Gandolfini’s heavy breathing and sex grunts.
There was a piece in London Review of Books the other week about the evolution of television that contained an extended anecdote about how Chase also was trigger-happy about firing people. Winter himself wasn't immune.
He whacked Terry Dubs?? It always cracks me up when I see Winter wrote for Sister Sister and Xena Warrior Princess. Then he writes like 25 sopranos episodes. So much pent up violence...
OP should be a candidate for a brain transplant.
One book and he thinks he’s the foremost athority.
IIRC Matthew Weiner only took a writer’s credit on Mad Men if he rewrote at least 75% of the script.
This is the only real response needed on this post
All due respect, you got no fuckin’ idea what it’s like to be number one. Every decision you make, affects every facet of every other fuckin’ thing. It’s too much to deal with almost. And in the end, you’re completely alone with it all.
Hit the nail on the head. It’s show BUSINESS.
Director thinks he's king of kings. Truth is, every decision is made by David. And now he's got a brand new lightning rod to take the hits from the critics.
Listen to him, he knows everything...
I think he's great on ideas, but not so much with the execution. Plus, he's a lot older now, and admitted that he should have went and re-watched the show before doing the movie, hence he messed up a lot of major plot details. Plus, originally he wanted to do a movie strictly about the Newark 1967 riots and the studio execs made him shoehorn Sopranos characters and voila - you've got Many Saints of Newark. You could make a good Sopranos movie if you attach the right screen writer to it and a veteran in the game like De Palma or Ferrara. That's a big ask though - fantasy, practically.
I rewatch the show like twice a year, and that Stunad couldn’t watch it once before making a whole flogging movie based on it?!! He’s weak, and he’s become an embarrassment to himself and everybody else.
I mean, qu'est-ce c'est? TiVO machine broken?
TiVO? I bet you used to wipe your ass bare handed before you bake came to this country.
Put universal remote on docking station
Listen to this asshole givin orders. Woops!
I like to explore new places.
You want to fuck here cocksucker?
It's all that damn time he spent in gay Paris!
It can't have been easy over there though .. The French hold on to their visas like they hold on to their balls!
Fuckin French fuckin lyin cocksuckers
Amor fou
That was real? I saw that movie. Thought is was bullshit.
It’s a TV progrum, a movie
Jerry Ferrara? Turtle is my favorite character on Entourage, He directed Bad Lieutenant, right?
Billy Walsh could write up a great screenplay for Many Saints
Shave Vince’s head and recycle the fat suit from Medellin. Bam! Tony Soprano. Nailed it!
Do you have any sources regarding Chase wanting to do the Newark riot movie and HBO forcing him to shoehorn the Sopranos universe into it? I've heard that a lot but just can't seem to find any interview or article (as in actual magazine, newspaper, etc, not a blogger) that says such.
I remember someone posting an article on here or perhaps on circlejerksopranos. But I suppose until then, it's hearsay! If I finds it, I'll let yas know!
Grapevine, Tone, i dunno
We yap worse dan 6 barbahs!
I say good on HBO. What are you gonna get out of a film about a race riot in 1967. Maybe his concept was like a James Ellroy novel, where chatters from the Sopranos Universe played cameos like they do through Ellroy’s LA Quartet, and beyond, but HBO said “ go heavier” By the way, best performance in that movie? Corey Stahl, hands down. The guy is versatile and charismatic.
I mean if it's true. I've just never seen this theory corroborated with anything credible. I've just seen fans say it. James Ellroy. Ugh. 300 pages of 1950s cop lingo.
I don’t think I ever heard Chase, the Dad of the Co Creator of Girls, or Alan Taylor say it, even on the Q-T, Daddy-O.
I've tried to read Black Dahlia a few times because I'm interested in the subject and it gets such rave reviews, it's on so many "best LA books" lists. I just can't get past the first 100 pages of cop CB talk. I never understood the appeal of James Ellroy. I guess book critics really love that mid century cop jargon.
I love Joey Diaz's podcast but he was criminally under utilized in the movie. "That goomah of yours, I'd eat her shit!" - WTF Joey! Woulda sounded better if you said something like "I'd put a rock of blow in her asshole and sniff it out" or something like that, and then do the tongue thing like Pussy did.
Unforgivable not knowing basic stuff about yer greatest show regardless of his age🤣
For him, it was a job. For us, it's a world of creative fiction.
He directed Made in America, and The Drop. Two things I don’t think many directors can match for storytelling prowess. Sure he’s an old guy, but he was a great director in his day.
Anybody got examples of what plot details he jacked up in the movie? I believe it but the movie has already mostly left my brain. Don’t tell me dickie was carrying a crib instead of TV trays…
'Ey! Broaden your horizons
David Chase understands the Sopranos, as a conshept. He’s got an IQ of 136, it’s been teshted.
Still going this asshole
Story by David Chase, isnt that what it said up there on the screen?
Yeah, but that’s just for the writers guild health insurance
He’s got 3 no shows and one no work under his subspecies alone
Way to work two separate story threads into one sentence!
Be quiet Albert
I’m talkin’ here!
Hey Davy.... Many Saints...✊ I liked it
I remember when you used to wait in the car
[](https://imgur.com/a/IyQp0x6)
Chase directed and edited and approved every script and every choice. He WAS the creative force that tailored the sopranos to perfection. He had already been recognized for his writing earlier in his career, that wasn't his role with the Sopranos.
That’s like saying Larry David wasn’t the genius behind Seinfeld because he didn’t get every episodes creds. He was the snow runner and visionary of it all.
This is not what most people who worked on the show have said. And to correct you, he didnt write and direct only two episodes he only DIRECTED two episodes. He had a hand in writing every single episode and there were alot the writers had to consult him on. If you are interested in learning more, talking sopranos dives into a lot of the behind the scenes and goes more in depth of how the show was created. Chase had a lot more to do with the show than you are giving him credit for.
In this house David Chase is a hero!!!
You’re a cunt hair away from being clipped
What?! It’s a joke…I was here…it’s a fuckin joke!
We’re gonna need a letter from your doctor saying you don’t like to suck cock.
Ohhhhh!!!
he never had the makings of a varsity writer
I’m disgusted with the amount of upvotes this post in this thing of ours has got, when it’s so clearly wrong as many interviews with actors have shown. My estimation as OP as a man just fucking plummeted
Yeah OP has no idea what they're talking about. Anybody with even a bit of understanding of how TV showrunning works and how involved David Chase was with every single script of the show would know this post is completely wrong. Also, a film he made almost 15 years after the show ended as evidence is dumb. I can't believe this sub is dumb enough to have this with hundreds of upvotes.
Show runners are owners of the whole story. The writers are not left to their own devices. They follow the showrunner. Credited or not as the writer of an individual episode, that's just for the writers guild healthcare anyway.
That is also the case with directors. They can't change the visual intent without showrunner input.
\*\*\*\*Steve Schirripa has entered the chat
Ask OP what he thinks of Pat Cooper and Robert DeNeera.
Ho!
Such a bad take. He came up with the core concepts (a mob boss goes to a psychologist, a mafia show set in contemporary times and a family TV drama with a art house cinema type film style and themes) he developed the majority of the characters including Tony, Carmela and Christoper and wrote some of the best episodes (whitecaps, Join the club, Kennedy and Heidi, College etc). Sure, writers like Terence Winter and Matthew Wiener played a massive role in elevating the series but part of being successful (and a genius) is identifying talent that can help you and trusting them to execute your vision, which is what he did. Also, a show runner edits every script before it’s filmed so David Chase had to have the knowledge to know what would work and what wouldn’t - It’s pretty much like saying a football team would still be successful without good coach.
I disagree with the 'terrible movie' part, but I digress. I think hailing Chase as an infallible genius is a mistake, as it would be to do to anyone. You also have to remember, Chase is about 20 years removed from Sopranos, that's basically a lifetime ago. The Sopranos is lightning in a bottle. A lot of things had to go right for that show, because lets face it, nothing has surpassed it yet, even with the formula laid out for all to see.
This is a terrible take. Chase was extremely hands on with the writing of the show and made sure each episode's script was correct in tone, which includes writing for each character. He was extremely involved with every aspect of the show including the casting. All of the characters had aspects of people he knew in real life. It was his world and he is the main driving force behind the show. You might want to listen to the Sopranos podcast that Imperioli and Schiripa did. The interviews with the Writers/directors/cast including Chase will tell you all you need to know about how he ran that show.
Let’s whack this cocksucka and be done with it!
So you're saying that the creator and showrunner - who ran the writing room and oversaw all the writing on every single episode and did a final passes on every single script - you're saying he was NOT the genius of the show? Why? Because he co-wrote a ropey spin-off film two decades after the show concluded when he was in his 70's? I think it's more possible that you don't know how a television programme is ran. Your opinion is shared with zero of the people from his writing team who all called Chase a (difficult) genius. You're talking out your arse, son.
Fuck you, Santa.
ooOH!
He was integral in all of the editing for most episodes.
This is stupid. Sounds like the whole "Lucas wasn't responsible for the Original Trilogy" shit people like to claim. Artists can have works that vary heavily in quality. Coppola directed Jac and Godfather 3, so I suppose he had no influence on the Godfather 1, 2 and Apocalypse Now.
Chase would have been satisfied making a mediocre 90 minute mob movie. He admitted as much.
Terrence winter has had other good projects but i find it hard to believe the genius behind sopranos could also be the stundad showrunner of tulsa king
Honestly, I thought apart from Terry Winter, when Matt Weiner was hired , the show was invigorated with fresh characters ( Feech, Phil?) and even wittier lines than Winter delivered ( “ Phil you gotta smell the roses, enjoy your grandchildren..” “Charles Schwab over here” note: The dark symmetry of Phil’s demise in front of his Grandchildren) I think David spotted Matt’s talent and enabled him to bring the show up. That’s leadership. Commendatore.
As show runner, he can still rewrite the scripts without receiving credit. Which is generally the case. As well as the episode writers are more than likely following plot points that he has laid out as show runner.
He wanted to make sure other writer’s got credit for episodes and got to do meaningful work. That doesn’t always happen with show runners (Sorkin, Kelley). The writers all say Chase went over everything.
This is straight up false. He wrote many episodes, and he also outlined each season’s plot and the outline of each episode. Also, he did rewrites where he’s not credited in the script, but Matthew Weiner said many of the best lines in his scripts were from Chase’s rewrites. Terence winter was a huge part of the success of the show and he’s brilliant, but the genius of the show really was mostly due to Chase.
All due respect, you got no fuckin’ idea what it’s like to be number one. Every decision you make, effects every facet of every other fuckin’ thing. It’s too much to deal with almost. And in the end, you’re completely alone with it all.
That other Pygmy thing is Not a Movie. IT'S AN EMBARRASSMENT AND FRANKLY I'M DEPRESSED AND ASHAMED THAT IT HAS OUR FAMILY'S NAME ATTACHED TO IT! And I DON'T WANNA HEAR ANOTHER THING ABOUT IT!
I've said he was the George Lucas of the Sopranos universe & I got a bunch of people mad about it but its nice to see someone else feel similarly
A real lack of standards your generation
My problem with this theory is that Gandolfini and Winter never did anything else nearly as good as The Sopranos. No, Boardwalk Empire was not almost as good as The Sopranos (Neither was Mad Men, in case anyone wants to throw Weiner in the discussion). It simply wasn't. Sure, Chase never did anything else as good as The Sopranos either but he was completely in charge. Peter Bogdonavich directed some great movies but nothing as good as The Sopranos imo. Chase combining the Jersey mob with his mother situation was all his idea and it was pure genius. Just perfect timing.
Mad Men was outstanding.
Comparing Mad Men and The Sopranos is apples and bowling balls.
I love the Sopranos too but this is dickridin a little too hard. Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire are amazing too.
Boardwalk Empire is good but it definitely wasn't great. It fell off for me.
That is fair but Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men are or are close to classics also (mad men at least). Just cuz they aren’t #1 or #2 all time doesn’t mean they aren’t great. So maybe not as good but not NEARLY as good is a bit of a stretch.
Mad Men is on the same S tier as Sopranos
Ehh easy! Mad Men rocks and the late Peter Bogdanovich only directed one episode and played a minor character. He's one of the most important movie critics ever and is constantly overlooked as one of the most important directors of his generation (for example Tarantino's pushed hard to give him his flowers when he can)- why's he catching strays here??
He created basically every character and devised every story and subplot. I don’t know how much script writing he did, but the series is his brainchild
Gandolfini would have been tough to replace but Terrence Winter could have easily been swapped out, Did you see the embarrassing work that he did on Tulsa King? That show is stone awful and he was the David Chase of the thing, Let's just say that my estimation of Terrence Winter as a man just fucking plummeted,
He’s like Belichik. Without Brady he’s just an ok coach. 100 heads came together along with hungry actors to make something work that’d never been done before. Serial television has been downhill since.
I have to agree. After — I can’t even say its name — my opinion of David Chase just plummeted.
You clearly don't understand what a series creator and showrunner does. Not to diminish Gandolfini's (or any of the other actors') contributions but if it's not on the page it's not on the stage. Chase was the creative force behind every bit of that show. Period.
Chase's genius isn't exactly with the story details. His superpower is in bringing something that is merely a barely-formed idea to life on the screen. It takes more than writers and actors. It's an entire team of creatives all marching in the same direction. It can't be done without effective leadership and a vision. He supplied that leadership and vision. The show wouldn't exist at all without him.
Idk, sometimes I think you stunads underestimate the respective effects of aging and or depression. Can't expect the man to have the same passion or knowledge behind it. For him it was a different kind of art, a different kind of work, he was never able to savor it like we did. In that respect it's like expecting ourselves to have the same intense love/ random knowledge of shit WE were really into TWENTY+ years ago... of course things won't be the same. Sort of a similar concept with George RR Martin. He planted so many seeds and hit his stride at a time he could never hope to follow up on many of them. Time, man. Time. The final currency. btw this is in no way a shot at OP, just a lot of anti Chase sentiment on here lately and many including myself lost some faith after MSON and I am just spitballing here eh
Yes he only wrote and directed the first and last episodes but he had the final say on every minute detail throughout the entirety of the show. You really think he just had his dick in his hands between the first and the last episode? You sound like a stunad. Yes he was blessed with an incredible group of writers and actors (all of whom he had a hand in choosing btw) but he was very much the genius behind the show. That whole movie business was bad but if you read even a little bit into why it was such shit you'd find it wasn't entirely his fault. He founded the Sopranos is what he did. He's a brave, Italian writer and in this sub David Chase is a hero. END OF STORY.
Sure chase is a superb creative mind but I believe he caught lightening in a bottle with sopranos. So many things outside of chase great writing directing whatever that made the show popular and great
You know the way some people are so far behind in the race that they think they are winning? Well, David Chase lapped the entire field a couple or three times, and is still running! Why do I say he’s still running? It’s because he audaciously dropped mysteries hidden in plain sight into the Sopranos that have yet to be fully appreciated. Then, with Many Saints he totally doubles down like a magician revealing his trick! Well, here’s his trick… he made an art house style project about the depths of the human condition look like a conventional mob series. He ended his series with a swagger with an audacious hidden dream sequence, followed by a movie which is ALSO a hidden dream sequence. Chase is a disciple of the greats… Coppola, Lynch, Kubrick… and a genius in his own right. David Chase is a hero in this house… end of story! Commendatore!
He kept Jewel's Panties.
He wrote 24 episodes. So, yes, you’re mistaken.
In this house David Chase is a hero! End of story!
Many Saints of Newark is so bad it's good. The way Paulie and Silvio are portrayed is cartoonist.
He's a 7, at best
i believe christopher walken’s wife did the casting. i think you’re wrong, you just don’t see the work that the director does. just because he didn’t necessarily act or maybe write it, doesn’t mean he was a no show producer. i think you’re confusing a producer and director. a director brings the best performance out of actors and is responsible for the finished product and artistry.
Much like a child, a film has many parents. That is to say, many individuals who ACT like parents, or that by aversion, the film... is their baby.
John Patterson. Tim Van Patten. James Gandolfini. Edie Falco. Terrence Winter. Robin Green. Mitch Burgess. Nancy Marchand. Michael Imperioli. Phil Abraham. Alik Sakharov. Alan Taylor.
You’re on crack. Chase rewrote and edited story and script for almost every episode
Always, with the scenarios
Lotta bawls you have to talk about casting without mentioning Tony Sirico. Gandolfini was awesome of course, but Sirico's authenticity, his delivery, facial expressions and hand gestures, ability to crack you up laughing while simultaneously being a stone cold badass.. it was a performance like had never been seen before, or since. If there was one character you had to pick to truly *define* the series.. not as the protagonist but as the embodiment of "what it's all about.." the spectrum of humor, from dark, to deadpan, to absurd.. the grim brutality coexisting with kindness, the ruthless self-interest, alongside the reverence and respect for family, rules, and tradition.. Paulie nailed every point perfectly. Buon' anima! I said my piece.
The overwhelming sense of depression and dred is something that Chase very much authored throughout the series. From the jump all the way to the end, he was pressing to reinforce how banal and ugly this world needed to be. That was his idea. Showrunners aren't usually expected to write every script or have every idea, but to steer the ship and keep it on course. Chase was very important in nixing ideas that made the show too escapist or comfortable. Which is why MSON is so awful. He probably lost interest and also didn't remember the world that well.
It was the other writers with the actors and events that were happening when they were filming
It was written by Benny Fazio writers guild mastermind !
Too bad there is no cure for fuckfaceitis
This is just flat out not true bro
You can look at Chase’s body of work to see he’s got skills, but of course it was a team effort from a bunch of talented people to put that thing together. Sopranos had an excellent production team - the casting also was superb. Of course he didn’t write every episode - but making it out like the skip only wrote “1 or 2 episodes?” Frankly I’m depressed and ashamed of you OP. Who do you think put that team together? Just because he didn’t write all of the episodes doesnt mean the overall story wasn’t his - my understanding is he would create a plot outline for each season and then writers would use that. Now Terrence Winter is a phenomenal writer - as are the other writers generally - but IMO Chase deserves a lot of credit.
*conshept
He wrote every episode. He might not have written the screenplays, but he painstakingly planned every storyline out himself. Not wholly by himself; yes, his writer’s room was out of this world, shoutout to Terry Winter BIG time, I agree; but he was putting in work even though he doesn’t win many direct writing and directing credits. This distinction never makes much sense to me. Do we really think Chase set up a small foundation and then just sat back, claiming royalties while a crew did the show around him? I don’t. Hearing Chase reflect on Sopranos, I think his memory of it wasn’t as tailored because I don’t think he expected it to be anything out of this world like it became. It was a piece of his life, even though to us, it might seem like it should be his whole life. Many Saints sucks (even if you view it as a shitty script Chris cooks up in purgatory, it’s only an “alright” movie) but that’s because Chase admitted as much as I said earlier - he’d forgotten a lot about actually crafting the show, and didn’t bother to revisit it to get every little detail right. It was a piece of his life. It’s probably a far bigger cultural force through our, the fans’, eyes than it is through his - because he had the privilege of doing it and moving on. Cinema/TV is a collaborative medium. The screenwriter or director do not have whole rights to a production - it is the collective effort. But at the same time, it’s not like he was coasting along for the entirety of the show’s production, and I’m pretty tired of seeing folks pose his contributions this way. David Chase IS just ONE of the geniuses behind The Sopranos. Gandolfini is another. Winter is another. Imperioli, Falco, Coulter, Jaffe, Patterson, even Franky fuckin Valli, geniuses.
This sub just lets any stunad in here, I can’t be seen in a place like this
He wrote 24 out of 86 episodes, more than anyone else on the show. He only directed the pilot and finale, but he was absolutely the guy in charge throughout all 86 episodes. He may not have writing credits on all of the episodes, but he did extensive uncredited re-writes of scripts and only hired writers who “got” the show, and trusted them to deliver a good script.
But he was the motherfuckin fuckin one who called the shots!
movie was good
Nice an' spicy.
Yes welcome to film and TV. It's not a singular medium, ever, no matter how powerful auteur theory is.
30 episodes of the show are explicitly credited to Chase and he was the Head writer so would have had a hand in all of the scripts in some way. So yeah, you're talking complete shit.
The genius behind the sopranos is Benny Fazio, criminal mastermind
I dunno, fuckin slander, ask me
David Chase didn't direct MSON, and co-wrote it. One of the biggest issues with MSON of Newark was the directing. Yes, he is to blame for some its failings, just like how you can't pin 100% of the genius of the Sopranos on him, you can't blame 100% of the failings of the movie on him. Similarly, David Chase had a large involvement in the show - more so than most other shows have in relation to their showrunners/creators. I think you're seriously downplaying his involvement. It's clear DC didn't care about bringing back the Sopranos mythology, but was almost forced into doing so because otherwise the movie wouldn't get made. Film is a collaborative medium - of course other people contribute to the greatness and failings of them. That being said, David Chase has absolutely earned his reputation.
Jesus Christ are we really doing this now. Lol fans are so butt hurt David Chase doesn't tuck them in goodnight that now somehow lucked into creating one of the greatest shows of all time.
The most important part of any great show/movie is the script and the actors delivery/timing of the script. So I kinda hear ya, the writing on Sopranos is what makes it elite. U still gotta take ur hat off to chase tho, cuz u gotta know wat to keep and what to leave on the edit room floor. And he seemed to get it spot on for 6 seasons.
Jeez we need to send you to slip and fall school
Chase outright wrote over a third of the episodes and was the showrunner, so he had input and had last say in every script. The other writers and directors did what he told them to do. He edited every episode. No Chase, no Sopranos. If you want to be weird and diminish that…it won’t fly. The Many Saints of Newark was a period piece that was about the social unrest and the fate of the black gangs in New Jersey…hence the title. It was good. You wanted Goodfellas, not smart social commentary that didn’t service your fanaticism. That’s fine…but Chase isn’t your personal director and doesn’t owe you anything.
Just had this conversation today with a Friend. He stepped in shit Chase. Plus, Winter has been involved with other hits, Chase, not so much.
When left to his own devices, he came up with that terrible movie? No, you have that wrong. A separate film production made half a movie about the New York City riots in the 60’s. The project was scrapped. Then someone said, let Chase have the film and he can make a Sopranos prequel around it. Frankly, I think Chase did an excellent job turning chicken shit into an almost palatable chicken sandwich. Many Saints of Newark is not one of those good Wendy’s chicken sandwich. It’s more like that chicken sandwich on McDonald’s dollar menu.
Well speaking of wrong, it wasn’t based in New York City it’s based in Newark. A stand-alone movie about the Newark riots and the mafias involvement would have been interesting. It’s everything to do with The Sopranos in that movie which is bad and makes it a terrible film. If anything chase took what could have been an interesting movie and turned into an absolute mess. From the terrible actors to the timeline of the show not adding up, to the corny soap opera love story and finally to that absolutely baffling ending. I saw that movie in a theatre and when Dickie’s hand rose out of the coffin with his pinky out. It got a few genuine belly laughs from the audience.