The Sopranos

Over spring break I started watching The Sopranos, and I was instantly addicted.

The show is about a mafia family in New Jersey, led by the Soprano family. The opening sequence that plays at the beginning of every episode introduced the setting, New Jersey, and then the protagonist, Tony Soprano.

I am a huge editing nerd, so interesting editorial choices grab my interest quickly, and montages and opening sequences are my favorite things to watch and edit together myself. I loved that the camera was never completely steady and that it was shot while Tony was on the move, driving on the turnpike and through the town. Tony is always on the move, and there are always a lot of things happening with each one of the several characters on the show. An opening sequence that was very steady and calm would not fit with the movement and the dynamics of the show.

Directly after the opening sequence in the pilot episode, it cuts to a very still and quiet shot of Tony Soprano in a psychiatrist's office. This greatly contrasts with the feel of the opening sequence, but it grabs your attention because it is unexpected. Opening in the psychiatrist's office was an excellent choice, because it introduced you to the character of Tony Soprano, and because his appointments and relationship with the psychiatrist are some of the most important aspects of the first season.

The characters and the relationships between them are critical to any show, but they do it extremely well on this show. On a show with this many characters, character development is important. If a character isn't developed fully in a reasonable amount of time, he or she will get lost and seem irrelevant. In this show, each character - each member of the mafia family, each member of the Soprano family, the psychiatrist, and each short-term character - is there for a reason, and their personality and their relationship to each character they interact with is critical to the story.

Coming from an Italian family, I may be biased toward the show because I understand and enjoy the culture of an Italian family and the language they use in the show. However, even without knowing what certain words mean and without understanding every cultural aspect of the families, the characters and the storyline are so well-developed that the show is still completely enticing and addicting.