The Many Saints of Newark

There’s a bittersweet shadow hanging over The Many Saints of Newark, and not just because it’s been 14 years since The Sopranos ended its award-winning run.

For legions of devotees of the seminal gangster saga, this evocative big-screen prequel makes for a fun diversion, even if it provides only a fraction of the emotional depth and moral complexity of the source material.

Immersing us into a gritty urban milieu, the opening shot tracks slowly through a cemetery — appropriately enough considering the forthcoming body count — before sliding effortlessly into the New Jersey suburbs in the late 1960s.

Instead of front and center, young Tony Soprano (expressively played as a teenager by Michael Gandolfini, son of the late James Gandolfini, who immortalized the role on television) is more of a periphery character observing intently from the sidelines. The film doesn’t lay the foundation for Tony’s future as a Mafia boss much as establish the world he grows to inhabit.

Instead, the focus is more on other relationships between the Soprano and Moltisanti families as they gain power and influence in a city torn apart by racial unrest. Tony’s uncle Dickie (Alessandro Nivola) is a glorified bookie whose old football buddy (Leslie Odom Jr.) acts as an enforcer.

Things turn unstable with the arrival of Dickie’s father (Ray Liotta) and his young trophy wife (Michela De Rossi) from overseas. Likewise, when Tony’s father, Johnny (Jon Bernthal), is released from prison, it causes friction with Tony and his mother (Vera Farmiga).

Mostly featuring characters mentioned only casually in the show, the sharp-tongued dialogue carries over in the screenplay co-written by series creator David Chase.

Its uneven and episodic nature prevents the film from sustaining tension throughout, although there are instances where it certainly sparks to life, frequently punctuated by witty one-liners or outbursts of nonchalant violence perpetrated by its many ill-tempered hooligans.

As directed by Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World) — who helmed nine episodes of the show — the film becomes more tightly focused in the second half, finding hints of sympathetic grounding amid its collection of unscrupulous schemers and cold-blooded killers.

In addition to its nostalgic fan service, The Many Saints of Newark stands alone reasonably well as an introduction for newcomers into this world of ruthless brutality and dysfunctional family dynamics. It can’t match the best Sopranos installments and smartly, it doesn’t try.

Rated R, 120 minutes.