Once Upon a Time in America (1984)

A former Prohibition-era Jewish gangster returns to the Lower East Side of Manhattan over thirty years later, where he once again must confront the ghosts and regrets of his old life.

Director:

Sergio Leone

Writers:

Harry Grey (novel), Leonardo Benvenuti,

Stars:

Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern

Top 250 #79 | Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 13 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert De Niro	...	David 'Noodles' Aaronson
James Woods	...	Maximilian 'Max' Bercovicz
Elizabeth McGovern	...	Deborah Gelly
Joe Pesci	...	Frankie Manoldi
Burt Young	...	Joe
Tuesday Weld	...	Carol
Treat Williams	...	James Conway O'Donnell
Danny Aiello	...	Police Chief Vincent Aiello
Richard Bright	...	Chicken Joe
James Hayden	...	Patrick 'Patsy' Goldberg
William Forsythe	...	Philip 'Cockeye' Stein
Darlanne Fluegel	...	Eve (as Darlanne Fleugel)
Larry Rapp	...	'Fat' Moe Gelly
Richard Foronjy	...	Officer 'Fartface' Whitey (as Richard Foronji)
Robert Harper	...	Sharkey

Storyline

Epic tale of a group of Jewish gangsters in New York, from childhood, through their glory years during prohibition, and their meeting again 35 years later.

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Plot Keywords:

new york | jewish | gangster | prohibition | friend | 

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Taglines:

Sergio Leone's three-hour, forty-minute epic masterpiece starring Robert de Niro. [Australia Theatrical]

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong violence, sexual content, language and some drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Italy USA

Language:

English Italian French

Release Date:

28 September 1984 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Érase una vez en América

Filming Locations:

Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$5,300,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ladd Company, The, Embassy International Pictures, PSO International

Technical Specs

Runtime:

229 min 139 min (re-cut) 259 min (2012)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Writer Stuart Kaminsky was brought in as he was Jewish himself and had written many 1940s mystery tales, and so could realistically tie the film to the Jewish culture and still maintain the mystery surrounding Noodles' life. Kaminsky was also an admirer of Sergio Leone and his work.

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Goofs

When Deborah removes her theatrical make-up, her hands get covered a mix of greasepaint and make-up remover. When she says "I thought you might know why"- "Me? Why me?" they're clean.

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Quotes

[first lines]
[In 1933, two goons rudely question a young woman]
Beefy: Where is he? Where's he hiding?
Eve: I don't know... I've been looking for him since yesterday.
[second goon slaps her harshly; she falls onto the bed]
Beefy: I'm gonna ask you for the last time: Where is he?
Eve: I don't know... What are you gonna do to him?
[Two shots are heard]
Beefy: [to his partner] Stay here in case that rat shows up...

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Crazy Credits

For his cameo, Joey Faye is listed in the credits as playing the "adorable old man."

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Connections

Referenced in The Reapers (2004)

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Soundtracks

"St. James Infirmary Blues"
(uncredited)
Written by Irving Mills

User Reviews

Make sure you get the director's cut!

Many people compare "Once Upon a Time in America" with "The Godfather". In my opinion these two movies can't be compared. Both are masterpieces in their own way, but each of them has a different style. You don't compare a Picasso to Michelangelo's Sixteen Chapel either, do you?

What is it that makes this movie a masterpiece? Well, first of all there is the director. Sergio Leone is a real master when it comes to creating a special atmosphere, full of mystery, surprises and drama... He's one of the few directors who understands the art of cutting a movie in such a way that you stay focused until the end.

The way the movie was cut is also the reason why a lot of Americans don't think this movie is very special. There are three versions, but only the European version is how the director imagined it to be. He didn't want his movie to be shown in chronological order (1910's - 1930's - 1960's), but wanted to mix these three periods of time. The studio cut the movie in chronological order, loosing a lot of its originality and therefor getting a lot of bad critics. If you want to see this film the way Sergio Leone saw it, you have to make sure you get the director's cut.

The second reason why this movie is so great is the music. Ennio Morricone, who is seen as the greatest writer of film music ever, did an excellent job. Together with the images, the music speaks for itself in this movie. From time to time there isn't said a word, but the music and the images on their own tell the story. He understood perfectly what Sergio Leone wanted and composed most of the music even before the movie was shot.

Last but not least there is also the acting and the script. The actors all did an excellent job. But what else can you expect from actors like Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci... They helped making this movie as great as it is by putting there best effort in it. The script helped them with it. It took twelve years to complete, but it hasn't left any detail untouched. The writers really thought of everything when creating it.

I can really recommend this movie to everyone, but especially to people who like the gangster genre. When you want to see the movie, you better be sure that you will have the time for it. This isn't a movie that is finished after 90 minutes. You'll have to be able to stay focused during 3 hours and 47 minutes, which will certainly not be easy during the first 20 to 30 minutes. Some scenes at the beginning only make sense when you have seen the end of the movie. But when you are able to stay focused, you'll find this one of the best movies you've ever seen. I certainly did and I rewarded it with a well deserved 10/10.