Commendatori

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“Commendatori”
The Sopranos episode
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 17
Written by David Chase
Directed by Tim Van Patten
Guest stars see below
Production no. 209 (2-4)
Original airdate February 6, 2000 (HBO)
Episode chronology
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Episode chronology

"Commendatori" is the seventeenth episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and was the fourth of the show's second season. It was written by David Chase, directed by Tim Van Patten and originally aired on Sunday February 6, 2000.

Contents

[edit] Guest starring roles

[edit] Episode recap

While attempting to watch a bootleg version of The Godfather, Part II, Tony Soprano announces to his crew that he will be traveling to Naples, along with Paulie Walnuts and Christopher Moltisanti, to make a deal with a local Camorra family (distantly related to the Sopranos) over the smuggling of stolen cars. Although Tony is excited by the prospect of the trip, he downplays its appeal to Carmela, who is upset that Tony will go abroad with his mob associates but not his family. Tony tries to explain to Carmela that it is a business trip and there will not be enough time for leisure activities.

Over lunch with Rosalie Aprile and Gabriella Dante, Carmela asks Angie Bonpensiero how her transition with Pussy is going now that he is home. Angie regrets having Pussy home and that she has been sick ever since. Angie then tells the wives that she had recently undergone a test for a tumor and Pussy had little sympathy for her. As the other wives listen in horror, she confesses that she has contemplated suicide but instead will pursue divorce when the results come back. Angie's tests soon come back negative, but she begins to file for the divorce papers as soon as the legal firms return from the upcoming Jewish holiday. Carmela, obviously taking the matter personally, reminds Angie that Pussy is a doting father, and persuades her to stay with him for the sake of their children, who although grown, are in precariously transitional stages in their lives. Angie tells Carmela that when Pussy arrived home after many months of absence, she felt depressed and angry. As she leaves, Carmela seems ambivalent about the reasoning she has presented to her friend. When Pussy arrives home and silently presents flowers to Angie, she smiles for a moment but then swats him with them.

However, the state of his marriage has been the least of Pussy's concerns lately: he has been preoccupied by the pressures of his cooperation with the government, and growing increasingly paranoid. Pussy is unnerved when he is spotted by Jimmy Bones, a professional Elvis impersonator and acquaintance, during a meeting with his FBI handler, Agent Skip Lipari. The pair are forced to concoct a cover story on the spot, claiming that Skip is a mob associate from Dover, Delaware. Skip insists that Pussy is doing well and has not attracted suspicion, but to no avail. To ensure that Jimmy remains quiet, Pussy visits his house and beats him to death with a ball-peen hammer.

Tony, Christopher and Paulie arrive in Naples and meet Furio Giunta who will be their translator throughout the trip. Furio then informs him that they will be dining with several capos in the Naples family and that Don Vittorio, boss of the family, will be present. Paulie and Tony go to the dinner but find that they are doing business with another made man, Nino, whom Tony does not want to talk to. However, upon meeting the Don, it becomes abundantly clear that Vittorio is now senile and incapable of conducting business. Frustrated, Tony is informed that the Don's son-in-law, Mario Zucca, stepped in to replace him, but is in prison serving a life sentence. Tony is surprised to learn that Mario's wife and Vittorio's daughter, Annalisa, has assumed control of the family. On leaving the restaurant, Tony and Paulie are shocked to see Furio and his cohorts mercilessly beat a boy who set off firecrackers as the Don passed to gain attention and respect, and even punch his mother when she tries to intervene. The next day, Tony meets Annalisa, but he still has reservations about dealing with a woman, and tensions are further raised by the bosses' mutual sexual attraction. Tony's companions from back home prove incapable of offering support; Christopher has spent his time locked in his hotel room, secretly indulging his heroin habit with local prostitutes and junkies, and Paulie has been on a mission to rediscover his roots, only to uncover a distaste for Neapolitan hospitality, cuisine, and plumbing.

The following day, Annalisa calls for Tony and says that they still have some unfinished business to discuss. Tony reluctantly agrees to finish talking to Annalisa and states that in order for their arrangement to work, she has to transfer Furio to his family. Annalisa scoffs at the suggestion, saying that Furio is one of her best men. Tony agrees to trade her the stolen cars at a reduced price in exchange. She agrees and the pair relax, visiting several city landmarks. She comes on to Tony, but tension is also resolved when Tony reluctantly informs Annalisa that to have a sexual relationship with a business partner would be to "shit where he eats." At Newark Airport, Pussy drives up to take the returning trio home; Paulie describes his trip as "fabulous", although he is clearly very happy to be back in New Jersey as he looks through the window on the drive home. Tony is still brooding over his unfulfilled attraction to Annalisa, and Christopher, finally waking from his heroin-induced stupor, is busy buying Adriana a gift from the local airport shop.

When Tony enters his home and announces his return home, Carmela is in her bedroom and tries to pull herself together as she goes down the stairs to see him.

[edit] First appearances

  • Furio Giunta: a made man from the Naples Mafia headed by Don Vittorio and Annalisa Zucca. Furio is sent to America after a successful trade between Tony and Annalisa.
  • Annalisa Zucca: Head of the Neapolitan famiglia in Naples.
  • Angie Bonpensiero: Pussy's wife.
  • Gabriella Dante: Silvio's wife.

[edit] Deceased

  • Jimmy Bones: an Elvis impersonator and mafia associate who accidentally sees Pussy with his FBI contact. Jimmy Bones was whacked on his head with a hammer by Pussy.

[edit] Title reference

  • The episode's title is plural of the Italian language word for commendatore, which is an honorable title in Italian society. Tony and his crew are given this greeting in Italy, which Paulie hears and then tries to use throughout the episode.

[edit] Production

  • Series creator, David Chase, is seen in the episode at an Italian patisserie where Paulie Walnuts says "commendatori" to him.
  • Although the episode was the fourth of season two, it was the ninth to be produced.
  • The scene where Paulie attempts to make conversation with the locals on the waterfront was not scripted: Tony Sirico was simply filmed interacting with passers-by. In the scene where Paulie tells a passer-by that he is from America, and is asked whether he is in NATO, he claims that one of his planes cut their ski lift cable. This is a reference to the 1998 Cavalese cable-car disaster.
  • In the scene where Tony walks in the surf with Annalisa, James Gandolfini ruined a $500 pair of Italian shoes.
  • Vittorio Duse, who played Zi Vittorio, also played Don Tommasino in The Godfather Part III.
  • The final exchange between Tony and Annalisa was filmed in the archeological ruins of Cumae.

[edit] Music

  • The song "Con te partirò" by Andrea Bocelli is played three times throughout the episode.
  • The song played over the end credits is "Piove" by Jovanotti.
  • When Tony is driven to Annalisa Zucca's villa the Napulitalian song Core 'N Grato is played (without the vocals).
  • The song "Certamente" by the Italian rock band Madreblu is played when Christopher is taking drugs in the hotel.
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