Once Upon a Time in America-1984
Director Sergio Leone
Starring Robert De Niro
Top 250 Films #85
Scott’s Review #218
Reviewed January 19, 2015
Grade: A
An epic film, the extended director’s cut of 1984’s Once Upon a Time in America is more than four hours in length and a directed by Sergio Leone, who also directed the 1968 masterpiece Once Upon a Time in the West and numerous other westerns starring Clint Eastwood.
This particular film is in a different vein and not to be confused as any sequel or related to the aforementioned film- this time Leone explores the crime drama genre rather than the western, and does so in remarkable fashion.
The film tells the story of a group of Jewish friends who became involved in organized crime in New York City during the 1920s.
The main story is told via flashbacks as the central character, Noodles, played by Robert De Niro, returns to Brooklyn thirty years later to reunite with his former mobster friends.
In this way, the film is sectioned- the group of youngsters and kids, and the same characters as adults.
Once Upon a Time in America has been met with considerable controversy since its release. At the time of its release, the film was butchered, with over an hour of footage cut by the studio heads, leaving it largely uneven.
Fortunately, the restored version, over three hours long, is available for viewing. Furthermore, the director’s cut clocks in at well over four hours and is the best version to watch. Due to so many cuts, other versions appear shoddy and out of order, making the viewing experience difficult.
Once Upon a Time in America is largely underappreciated, except among die-hard cinema lovers, most of whom are patient with the film, and it deserves mention as an excellent crime epic drama.
The film shares many similarities with The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, and the role De Niro plays is not too different from that of Vito Corleone in Part II.
However, the greatest contrast is that Once Upon a Time in America is more visually artistic than The Godfather films.
The film centers on Noodle’s perspective as he enjoys his youth in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, where he meets his lifelong friends.
The focal point is his friendship with Max, the adult character played by James Woods, and his undying love for Deborah, played by Elizabeth McGovern as an adult.
As kids, they are worry-free but gradually fall in with a group of older mobsters, first doing their dirty work, then venturing out on their own.
The film’s themes are loyalty, childhood friendship, betrayal, and greed, as all the characters change (or die) over the course of the film.
When a mysterious letter forces Noodles to resurface in Brooklyn, we begin to understand the backstory and the history between the friends as layers are slowly peeled back.
The film drags slightly in the middle section, but the first and last parts are very well made and absorbing.
Leone has a way of pacing the film that works- it is methodical and nuanced, with wonderful set pieces and each period explored- 1920s, 1930s, and 1960s seem equally as authentic as the next one does.
I especially enjoyed the 1920s art direction- it revealed such a state of genuineness and felt like truly being there in that period.
The relationship between Noodles and Deborah is an interesting one worth mentioning. Falling in love as youngsters (when a very young Jennifer Connelly played Deborah), they had an innocent puppy-love relationship.
As adults, they are ruined by a violent, disgraceful act, and one might argue that one of the characters becomes quite unsympathetic.
Once Upon a Time in America (1984) is a sprawling epic film sure to be enjoyed by intelligent fans of the crime epic drama genre and specifically Sergio Leone fans- an underappreciated gem.
