Whitecaps (The Sopranos)
"Whitecaps" | |
---|---|
The Sopranos episode | |
Episode no. | Season 4 Episode 13 |
Directed by | John Patterson |
Written by | David Chase Robin Green Mitchell Burgess |
Cinematography by | Phil Abraham |
Production code | 413 |
Original air date | December 8, 2002 |
Running time | 75 minutes |
"Whitecaps" is the 52nd episode of the
Starring
- James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano
- Dr. Jennifer Melfi
- Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano
- Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti
- Dominic Chianese as Corrado Soprano Jr.
- Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante
- Tony Sirico as Paulie Gualtieri
- Robert Iler as Anthony Soprano Jr.
- Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Meadow Soprano
- Drea de Matteo as Adriana La Cerva
- Aida Turturro as Janice Soprano
- Artie Bucco
- Johnny Sack
- Steven R. Schirripa as Bobby Baccalieri
Guest starring
- Hugh De Angelis
- Bruce Altman as Alan Sapinsly
- Liz Larsen as Patricia "Trish" Reingold-Sapinsly
- Randy Barbee as The Judge
- Ginny Sack
- Little Paulie Germani
- Benny Fazio
- Dan Castleman as Prosecutor Castleman
- Patsy Parisi
- Svetlana Kirilenko
- Finn DeTrolio
- Carmine Lupertazzi
- Larry Barese
- Bruce MacVittie as Danny Scalercio
- Jeffrey M. Marchetti as Petey
- Harold Melvoin
- Joe Pucillo as Beppy Scerbo
- Irina Peltsin
- Credenso Curtis
- Universal as Stanley Johnson
- Cynthia Darlow as Virginia Lupo
- Dr. Cusamano
- Agent Robyn Sanseverino
- Agent Grasso
- Agent Harris
Synopsis
With the Esplanade project shut down,
Thanks to juror intimidation,
Adriana is once again questioned by federal agents after Christopher returns from rehab. She passes on false information about Ralphie which she has heard from Christopher.
Tony takes Carmela on a surprise trip to "Whitecaps," a house on the Jersey Shore he is thinking of buying. At first hesitant, Carmela is eventually delighted; she and Tony walk on the beach and kiss. Tony meets the house's owner, Alan Sapinsly, an attorney, and offers cash in the shortest possible time allowed by law. Sapinsly calls the current buyer, who is having difficulty obtaining a mortgage, and threatens and negotiates his way out of their contract.
Meadow argues with her mother about the separation, asking her how she could "eat shit" from Tony for so many years. Tony returns home and becomes violent when Carmela tells him to leave; she threatens to call a lawyer and get a restraining order. A.J. helps Tony clear the home theater so that he can stay there.
As Tony lies in the pool, Carmela confronts him about a minor annoyance, which escalates into another argument in which she reveals her feelings for
Tony calls Dr. Melfi, but hangs up when she answers. She tries to call him back but his number is blocked. He tells the family he has decided to move out completely. He embraces his children. Meadow cries in her bedroom.
Sapinsly calls Tony and tells him that he will release him from the sale but will keep the $200,000 deposit. He offers to negotiate, but Tony declines.
Deceased
- Peter LaRosain the Meadowlands to ensure their silence about the canceled Carmine hit.
Title reference
- "Whitecaps" is the name of the property Tony plans to buy for his family.
- Whitecaps also refers to the crest of waves that break into sea foam. Like the choppy waters, Tony and Carmela's marriage has become unstable.
Production
- "Whitecaps" is the longest episode of the series, running 75 minutes.
References to past episodes
- Tony brings up Carmela's telling him he was going to hell when he was first being examined for an MRI for his collapses (this occurred in the show's pilot episode).
- Carmela mentions that Tony told her Svetlana came from an agency, which happened in "Mr. Ruggerio's Neighborhood." She also says they drank vodka on the night Tony's mother died, which was in "Proshai, Livushka."
- Meadow has a flashback to when she complained about there not being food in the house in "University."
Cultural references
- When Johnny Sack and Tony meet at an OfficeMax to discuss potentially assassinating Carmine Lupertazzi, Johnny paraphrases a line from The Beatles' song, "Hey Jude," saying, "I'll take a sad song and make it better."
- Johnny Sack intimates that with Carmine's assassination there would be "differences between this and Castellano," in reference to the assassination of New York Gambino crime family Boss Paul Castellano by John Gotti, who subsequently became boss in 1986.
- When Tony first sees Christopher after the latter's release from rehab, he says, "Hey, Jack Lemmon! How's Lee Remick?" This refers to the film Days of Wine and Roses (1962), which deals with alcoholism and recovery.
- While in the pool, Tony responds to Carmela's complaint about the seats being left on the lawn being bad for the grass by quoting the Mulwray's Chinese groundskeeper's line about "very bad for grass" from the film Chinatown.
- When fighting with Tony in the pool house, Carmela says angrily, "Who knew? All this time, you really wanted Tracy and Hepburn."
- Carmine goes mall walking in Kings Plaza, Brooklyn, entering at the "Macy's entrance, Avenue U and Flatbush." In reality, there is a Macy's entrance at the intersection of Avenue U and East 54th Street; Flatbush and U intersect at the west corner of the mall.
- Johnny Sack says to Tony angrily, "Creeps on this petty pace...", misquoting Shakespeare's Macbeth (Act 5, Scene 5, line 20).
- When explaining his decision to call off the hit on Carmine, Tony warns Johnny Sack they need to avoid causing a "shootout at the OK Corral," referencing the infamous 1881 gunfight.
Music
- "Layla" by Derek and the Dominos is playing in Tony's truck when he runs over his golf clubs in his driveway.
- The song played while Tony and Christopher are at Nuovo Vesuvio is "Oh, What A Night" by The Dells.
- The song playing in the background at the Bada Bing back office is "Camouflage of Righteousness" by Little Steven. Little Steven is Steven Van Zandt, who plays Silvio Dante.
- When Janice and Bobby are dancing in Junior's kitchen, they sing/hum part of Sonny and Cher's "I Got You, Babe."
- The song played over the end credits is "I Love Paris (Vegas)" by Dean Martin. It is followed by the instrumental piece, "I Have Dreamed" from the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical The King and I, performed by Fantastic Strings.
Reception
Critical response
Entertainment Weekly placed "Whitecaps" #3 on their list of the 10 greatest The Sopranos episodes;[2] TIME placed it at #4.[3]
Awards
- James Gandolfini won his third Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his performance in this episode. Gandolfini also won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series for his work in the fourth season as well.
- The Good Wifein 2010.
- Mitchell Burgess, David Chase, and Robin Green won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for their work on this episode.
- John Patterson won the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series for his work on this episode.
References
- ^ Ryan, Maureen (2006-03-14). "The comeback". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
- ^ Fonseca, Nicholas. "The Hit Parade - 3. WHITECAPS (Season 4)". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2008-04-30. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
- ^ Poniewozik, James (2007-04-04). "Whitecaps - The Sopranos - TIME". TIME. Archived from the original on April 8, 2007. Retrieved 2008-02-26.
External links
- "Whitecaps" Archived 2016-08-18 at the Wayback Machine at HBO
- "Whitecaps" at IMDb