It brilliantly subverts the scene in The Godfather by demonstrating Tony's ambivalence toward his mother, caring very little about how she appears during the funeral. Hilariously, Tony responded to this heartfelt promise by telling him not to ' go crazy'. The complex relationship between Tony and his mother is key to understanding his character, and the Godfather reference is perfectly executed to reveal the huge difference between the Corleone and Soprano families.Īfter the sudden death of Tony Soprano's mother in season 3, Tony and his sisters were told by the funeral director at Cozzarelli's Funeral Home that he would ' use all my power, all my skills' in a clear lift from The Godfather.
The Sopranos season 3 features a comic subversion of this scene when Tony and his sisters are preparing for the funeral of their mother Livia. He told the funeral director to use all his power and skills to restore Sonny's corpse ahead of the open casket funeral. When Sonny Corleone (James Caan) was shot to death by Barzini hitmen in The Godfather, Don Corleone was horrified at how they ' massacred' his boy.
