David Remnick on James Gandolfini

David Remnick:

“The Sopranos” remains the best television series since the beginning of the medium, dramatically terrifying, comically richer than “The Honeymooners,” a series that began with a premise, a milieu, and a cast that, unlike “Mad Men,” never exhausted itself. Gandolfini was not the creator of “The Sopranos” — David Chase was the author of this novel in every way — nor was he a solo act, like Alec Guinness in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy” and “Smiley’s People.” Chase populated his series with actors, like Edie Falco, and amateur actors, who gave the cast a Fellini-esque variety and depth. But Gandolfini was the focal point of “The Sopranos,” the incendiary, sybaritic neurotic who must play the Godfather at home and at the Bada Bing but knows that everything — his family, his racket, his way of life — is collapsing all around him.

★ Thursday, 20 June 2013