100 Kick-Ass Female Characters: #59
59. Dr. Jennifer Melfi, as seen on The Sopranos, portrayed by Lorraine Bracco
Look, I know it's a stereotype that all Italians/Sicilians are in the mob; my aunt loudly complains about that every time a new movie/television show debuts. But I love mob stories, not because they paint my family as mobsters (though we do wonder about Grandpa Iorfida) but because, like it or not, I have yet to meet someone of Italian descent who doesn't have a mob story. Whether it's "I knew a guy once" or "My grandpa used to talk about a guy," mob stories have always been a big part of my experience as someone of Italian/Sicilian descent. So when The Sopranos started, I was all about it.
For those who don't know, The Sopranos is the story of Tony Soprano and his two families: his actual family (wife Carmela, children Meadow and AJ) and his family (the crime family he has recently ascended to running in the wake of his best friend Jackie's death.) At the start of the series, Tony has begun having panic attacks and seeks out therapy in hopes of controlling them. The sessions begin to serve as framing devices for episodes and allows Tony to narrate situations without employing irritating voice overs. Dr. Melfi is his psychiatrist and they have a complicated relationship to say the least.
Dr. Melfi prides herself on being a professional. She tries to erect firm boundaries between herself and Tony, and she often wrestles with the moral issues of treating a mob boss. There are times when you can see that she genuinely likes Tony and other times where she is so horrified by who he is and what he does, she can hardly stand it. But even in the worst of times, Melfi never seems particularly afraid of Tony; there is a strange rapport between the two of them which is fascinating to watch.
What makes Dr. Melfi such a compelling character is the conflict she has throughout the series. She wants to help Tony and even seem to harbor some sense of pride that she is Tony Soprano's psychiatrist. However, the more she learns about Tony's business and what it truly means to be a mobster, the more she realizes that this charismatic man is a monster. And yet, for all her conflict about it, there is a strange sense of power which comes with it. When Dr. Melfi is brutally raped by a stranger in the stairwell of her office, she lies to Tony about how she got the bruises on her face. When she breaks down in a session, Tony is the one to comfort her. By pure accident, she encounters her rapist as a worker at a fast food place; while in her own therapy session, she tells her therapist she knew with absolute clarity that, if she told Tony what happened and where he was, he could/would have that man killed. Though Melfi never tells Tony this, it gives her peace to know, if she wanted, she controlled whether her rapist lived or died, the first real inkling of the power Tony Soprano really wields. Dr. Melfi ultimately realizes it is not healthy to continue treating Tony, and, unlike many of those in Tony's life, she is able to leave without any real damage. Dr. Melfi is one of the few "good guys" in The Sopranos universe, but her goodness isn't absolute.
And that's a compelling kind of kick-ass.
Look, I know it's a stereotype that all Italians/Sicilians are in the mob; my aunt loudly complains about that every time a new movie/television show debuts. But I love mob stories, not because they paint my family as mobsters (though we do wonder about Grandpa Iorfida) but because, like it or not, I have yet to meet someone of Italian descent who doesn't have a mob story. Whether it's "I knew a guy once" or "My grandpa used to talk about a guy," mob stories have always been a big part of my experience as someone of Italian/Sicilian descent. So when The Sopranos started, I was all about it.
For those who don't know, The Sopranos is the story of Tony Soprano and his two families: his actual family (wife Carmela, children Meadow and AJ) and his family (the crime family he has recently ascended to running in the wake of his best friend Jackie's death.) At the start of the series, Tony has begun having panic attacks and seeks out therapy in hopes of controlling them. The sessions begin to serve as framing devices for episodes and allows Tony to narrate situations without employing irritating voice overs. Dr. Melfi is his psychiatrist and they have a complicated relationship to say the least.
Dr. Melfi prides herself on being a professional. She tries to erect firm boundaries between herself and Tony, and she often wrestles with the moral issues of treating a mob boss. There are times when you can see that she genuinely likes Tony and other times where she is so horrified by who he is and what he does, she can hardly stand it. But even in the worst of times, Melfi never seems particularly afraid of Tony; there is a strange rapport between the two of them which is fascinating to watch.
What makes Dr. Melfi such a compelling character is the conflict she has throughout the series. She wants to help Tony and even seem to harbor some sense of pride that she is Tony Soprano's psychiatrist. However, the more she learns about Tony's business and what it truly means to be a mobster, the more she realizes that this charismatic man is a monster. And yet, for all her conflict about it, there is a strange sense of power which comes with it. When Dr. Melfi is brutally raped by a stranger in the stairwell of her office, she lies to Tony about how she got the bruises on her face. When she breaks down in a session, Tony is the one to comfort her. By pure accident, she encounters her rapist as a worker at a fast food place; while in her own therapy session, she tells her therapist she knew with absolute clarity that, if she told Tony what happened and where he was, he could/would have that man killed. Though Melfi never tells Tony this, it gives her peace to know, if she wanted, she controlled whether her rapist lived or died, the first real inkling of the power Tony Soprano really wields. Dr. Melfi ultimately realizes it is not healthy to continue treating Tony, and, unlike many of those in Tony's life, she is able to leave without any real damage. Dr. Melfi is one of the few "good guys" in The Sopranos universe, but her goodness isn't absolute.
And that's a compelling kind of kick-ass.