James Joseph Gandolfini, or maybe we should call him Giacomo Giuseppe Gandolfini, is one of those actors you can’t think about without helping a smile appearing on your face.
From his last name, it’s quite obvious he had Italian origins of which he was very proud and that took him to often travel to Italy. His mother was born in the States but raised in Naples and his father was from an Italian town near Parma. They would speak Italian at home and maybe it was because of this that Gandolfini developed such a strong sense of being Italian. Unfortunately a sad and strange destiny wanted him to be right in Italy a year ago on June 19th when he suddenly passed away.
James Gandolfini gained worldwide fame in 1999 when he got the role of the Mafia boss Tony Soprano in HBO’s smash hit series “The Sopranos”. Before that, he would often play Italian characters, but for his portrayal of Soprano he collected huge praise and many awards such as three Emmy’s, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and one Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama Series, as well as many other nominations. What was surprising and great about his performance is the sense of truth and authenticity his character had. He dodged the Italian stereotype and clichés and brought to life a real Mafia boss in the middle of an existentialistic crisis that we were all able to empathize with.
While describing himself though, he said he was nothing like “Tony Soprano” in real life, “I’m a neurotic mess. I’m really basically just like a 260-pound Woody Allen”. And this definition of his personality makes us love him even more. There was something familiar about him that made us feel as if he could be a friend of ours. He looked like a man who was down to heart and just enjoyed his job as an actor. In an interview he said, “I’m an actor, I do a job and I go home. Why are you interested in me? You don’t ask a truck diver about his job”. And that’s what we would like all actors to be like. Humble and passionate about their job.
He was also famous to be a fun guy and in an interview on “Inside the Actor Studio” he told that during the filming of “The Sopranos”, he would “moon” his co-star Lorrain Bracco to try and put her off.
In one of his last movies, “Enough Said”, released in theaters on October 2013, he played Albert a single father coming from a messy divorce who has an only daughter about to go to college.
Albert starts dating Eva, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who’s going through the same life moment.
Their relationship seams to work pretty well until she doesn’t find out that Marianne, one of her clients that she’s been massaging and becoming friends with, is Albert’s ex-wife. Eva suddenly starts looking at Albert through Marianne eyes, which means she starts to think he’s insufferable.
Gandolfini’s performance though is so powerful and charming, that the audience roots for him the whole time. Before starting the movie he wasn’t sure the public would believe him as a romantic lead. But we do, wholeheartedly.
What’s certain is that when last year word of his death spread, everyone felt deeply sad. He was in Rome with his son and he was expected to travel to Sicily a few days later to receive an award at the Taormina Film Fest, when he died of a heart attack. The reactions around the world were impressive and touching. Politicians such as John McCain and Chris Christie responded on the Internet, and all New Jersey State buildings (Gandolfini’s home state) were ordered to fly flags at half staff to honor him. The people from his hometown, Park Ridge, New Jersey, discussed to name a street after him and the day after he passed away Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed their 1975 classic Born to Run dedicating it to Gandolfini.
For a last goodbye to this talented actor, known for his unusual sense of humor and his fun and friendly personality, we recommend to rent his last movie “Enough said”. You won’t regret it.
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