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The Sopranos - Series 1 [VHS]
 
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The Sopranos - Series 1 [VHS]

VHS ~ James Gandolfini
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Actors: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli
  • Format: Box set, PAL
  • Classification: 18
  • Studio: Warner Vision International
  • VHS Release Date: 24 Nov 2003
  • Run Time: 680 minutes
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
  • ASIN: B00004W4HS
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,170 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

    Popular in these categories:

    #15 in  DVD > Television > Crime, Thrillers & Mystery > The Sopranos
    #16 in  DVD > Television > TV Series > The Sopranos
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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

The Sopranos, writer-producer-director David Chase's extraordinary television series, is nominally an urban gangster drama, but its true impact strikes closer to home: Like 1999's other screen touchstone, American Beauty, the HBO series chronicles a dysfunctional, suburban American family in bold relief. And for protagonist Tony Soprano, there's the added complexity posed by heading twin families, his collegial mob clan and his own, nouveau riche brood.

The series' brilliant first season is built around what Tony learns when, whipsawed between those two worlds, he finds himself plunged into depression and seeks psychotherapy--a gesture at odds with his mid-level capo's machismo, yet instantly recognisable as a modern emotional test. With analysis built into the very spine of the show's elaborate episodic structure, creator Chase and his formidable corps of directors, writers, and actors weave an unpredictable series of parallel and intersecting plot arcs that twist from tragedy to farce to social realism. While creating for a smaller screen, they enjoy a far larger canvas than a single movie would afford, and the results, like the very best episodic television, attain a richness and scope far closer to a novel than movies normally get.

Unlike Francis Coppola's operatic dramatisation of Mario Puzo's Godfather epic, The Sopranos sustains a poignant, even mundane, intimacy in its focus on Tony, brought to vivid life by James Gandolfini's mercurial performance. Alternatively seductive, exasperated, fearful, and murderous, Gandolfini is utterly convincing even when executing brutal shifts between domestic comedy and dramatic violence. Both he and the superb team of Italian-American actors recruited as his loyal (and, sometimes, not-so-loyal) henchman and their various "associates" make this mob as credible as the evocative Bronx and New Jersey locations where the episodes were filmed.

The first season's other life force is Livia Soprano, Tony's monstrous, meddlesome mother. As Livia, the late Nancy Marchand eclipses her long career of patrician performances to create an indelibly earthy, calculating matriarch who shakes up both families; Livia also serves as foil and rival to Tony's loyal, usually level-headed wife, Carmela (Edie Falco). Lorraine Bracco makes Tony's therapist, Dr. Melfi, a convincing confidante, by turns "professional", perceptive, and sexy; the duo's therapeutic relationship is also depicted with uncommon accuracy. Such grace notes only enrich what's not merely an aesthetic high point for commercial television, but an absorbing film masterwork that deepens with subsequent screenings. --Sam Sutherland



Synopsis

The complete first series in one box set.

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars THE SOPRANOS HIT A HIGH NOTE..., 15 Dec 2002
By Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)   
My son is a big Sopranos fan, so I bought him the set last Christmas. I myself had seen maybe two or three episodes on cable and had enjoyed them. So, when he began watching, I was right there watching with him. What a terrific show. It is absolutely gripping.

It is a marvelously creative series with a stellar cast. For those of you who have been visiting relatives in Antartica for the past several years, the story revolves around the mob in New Jersey. It centers on one family specifically, the Sopranos, headed by Anthony Soprano (James Gandolfini), who is married to his loyal childhood sweetheart, Carmela (Edie DeFalco). Together they have two children, Anthony, Jr. and Meadow. Tony's dangerously manipulative mother, Livia (Nancy Marchand), is bound for a retirement home, if Tony has any say.

Tony, however, has another family, comprised of a bunch of murderous henchmen, who occassionally march to the tune of a different drummer, as well as a Russian mistress. Trying to balance all this has given Tony panic attacks, so he goes to a psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi (Lorraine Bracco), whose relationship with her client alternates between fear and fascination.

The writing for this series is splendid and the interweaving of comedic and familial moments with the darker, more violent ones provides the viewer with an intelligently woven plot. James Gandolfini is outstanding as Tony Soprano, a powerful mob boss, who can also be a teddy bear of a guy and a good friend, unless you are perceived to have been disloyal. Then, you may kiss your buns goodbye. Tony is mercurial, sexy, fearful, cautious, and, given the right circumstances, deadly. He is a fascinating and beguiling character. Edie DeFalco is compelling as Carmela, who is warm, funny, loyal, and the glue that binds their immediate family together. Yet, she too has her own sting, and she knows the power that her husband has. She is not above using it herself, if necessary. The late Nancy Marchand was terrific as Livia, the manipulative, scheming matriarch. She will be missed, as she was quite a character.

All in all, this is a great show and a great video set. I have already seen the first, second, and third seasons. I now can't wait for the fourth season to come out on video.

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Gritty non hollywood view of mob life, 23 Jan 2002
By K. Foley (England.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
The Sopranos are just your average New Jersey Italian/American family.Yeah right. Tony has issues. He is a dangerous man to argue with and always gets what he wants.Meanwhile his wife is in denial. She loves the luxuries but is uncomfortable with how Tony gets to pay for them.She is seeking help from the regularly visiting priest who is in love ....with her cooking. On the other hand Tony is seeking help from a shrink. Not a good thing to let your enemies know.Tony juggles to control his emotionally problems with his problems of mob control.A bit of flexing muscle is his way of letting of steam.Good when you need to live up to the image of Boss of the New Jersey family business.But family is family and how do you handle it when your uncle believes he is the rightful Boss. Simple, flex the only muscle that Tony doesnt use often enough. His mind.
The whole series is a mixture of violent mob everyday life and volatile family life. A definate must see. But you need to take 13 hours out of life to watch coz you dont want to miss a thing.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Series, 6 Feb 2003
By Jim Baxter (Hampshire, England) - See all my reviews
By far the best series of the Sopranos, this is a fantastic box set. 5 stars is perhaps a tad generous, but since 4.5 wasn't an option I wasn't going to undersell the item.

It's the most violent of the 5 series, assuming the fifth follows trend, which is a plus for me. That sounds a little immature but hey, I don't know many guys who are fans of the organised crime genre who aren't fans of the violence factor.

I usually judge series'/seasons based on the ratio of episodes I enjoyed and episodes I didn't. Of the 13 episodes in this box sets, there were only 2 that I didn't "enjoy" and even then, they were more than watchable.

The remaining 11 (including the pilot) were fantastic. I look the Sopranos format through all series and if you do too, I recommend looking into Series 1 because the format is at its most fresh and entertaining in this box set.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars GRIPPING FUNFILLED MAFIA DRAMA
after watching tony soprano on channel 4,i couldnt wait for the repeats so i just had to go out and by it. Read more
Published on 16 Jan 2002 by johnwh@amazon.co.uk

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning
Ive never seen a gangster drama so cool. U watch the first edisode and u cant wait to see the second. This is the best purchase ive ever made!
Published on 27 Dec 2001 by xred_squirrel@hotmail.com

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, interesting, great twists
We thoroughly enjoyed the series. The idea of learning all of Ton's innermost thoughts through his discussions with the shrink was brilliant. Read more
Published on 17 Oct 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars totally addictive viewing from start to finish
The Sapranos has to be the finest series on tv,each episode leaves the viewer gagging for more.The casting is superb and the story lines exceptional,James Gandolfinis portrayal of... Read more
Published on 20 Mar 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic
Totally hilarious even if violent and foulmouthed. The best thing that has appeared on television since Scotch and Wry! Read more
Published on 19 Mar 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars Bada Bing!
The TV series that just picks up where Goodfellas et al left off (including a surprisingly large portion of the Goodfellas cast!). Read more
Published on 29 Dec 2000 by dan.rees@ntlworld.com

5.0 out of 5 stars Mindblowing!
The sopranos is just one of them programmes that grips you from the start and doesn't let go until the credits roll. Read more
Published on 24 Dec 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertainment at its very best.
The Sopranos Series has virtually taken over our house, dare any of us miss an episode. In a nutshell, its great to get excited about a tv programme, which I'm affraid to say has... Read more
Published on 13 Dec 2000 by Karen Linda Price/karenguppy@a...

5.0 out of 5 stars Probably the best TV series ever made
If Martin Scorsese made a TV series, this is what it would be like. A superb blend of sharp - often black - humour, fantastic acting, wonderful plotting and characters, this show... Read more
Published on 27 Nov 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
A TV series that puts the cinema to shame. More Goodfellas than Godfather the series has a lot of humour, but some graphic violence too. Read more
Published on 23 Nov 2000

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