Once Upon a Time in America

What Sergio Leone delivers here is almost perfect. Amazing atmosphere and storytelling, and flawless performances. The brilliant script and its three timelines are a testament to genius. Leone was originally meant to direct The Godfather, but he knew why to wait. This film is better. (18/05/2004)

[251 minute extended] Leaving aside the scale of the work and the incredible set and camera work, there remains a bit of a taste on the palate that Leone has sold out his previous revisionist approach to film genres here for a purely academic perspective, which is most evident in his work with the characters, which isn't very well developed due to the fact that they aren't given as much space as the sets. With de Niro's endless silent and melancholic glances at the recollection of his mafia youth, after a while I just saw... well, de Niro staring. And apart from that the story, namely building a giant sophisticated mafia saga on a restrained, yet actually stupid gangster, seems good to me. The heretic in me can almost imagine a good 140-minute cut of that film, except there would be cutting not of scenes but within scenes. (18/07/2021)

Once Upon a Time in America was a film that Sergio Leone had been preparing for many years and was supposed to be the culmination of his work. In reality, it turned out to be a major disaster and probably shortened Leone's life by a few years. Finding a producer was already extremely difficult because, with Leone's well-known meticulousness, the costs were dangerously high. Moreover, the film was incredibly long, especially for the standards of the early 80s. The producer simply couldn't imagine that a four-hour epic would be acceptable to the audience, and since in the United States the producer is practically the owner of the film, he dealt with it in his own way. He cut it in half and released this butchered version in movie theaters. Because Leone's story takes place in multiple time frames, the crude interventions resulted in a debacle that the critics tore apart and the audience jeered. The film became one of the worst flops of the decade and, considering the high costs, it meant the actual end of Leone's directing career. He never experienced rehabilitation until his death, which came six years later with the release of the original director's cut. Yes, it is very long, but at the same time, it is very captivating, professionally shot, and grandiose. Over time, film fans and professional critics have evaluated Leone's film as one of the most significant in American cinema. For many actors, it was the pinnacle of their film careers, although in some cases, admittedly, somewhat premature (Elizabeth McGovern). Overall impression: 90%. (09/01/2008)

Once Upon a Time in America is a capriciously simple and fragmented film. And yet I was greatly impressed by it. Whenever I think of Morricone’s central motif, a feeling of warmth washes over me joined by visions of the silhouette of the greying Robert De Niro, the young and beautiful Jennifer Connelly and the enormous Brooklyn Bridge. Once Upon a Time in America is both tough and tender, but is primarily a beautifully poetic film that will slowly unfold in your thoughts and take on greater importance with each passing day. (05/07/2004)

Although many comments try to do it, Leone's gems with the poetic "Once upon a Time" in the title are completely incomparable. In his masterpiece, the Master has included almost every genre. I found classic crime schemes, tough gangster action, heart-wrenching drama, and despite its harshness, also a strong and sincere romance, all with a subtle veil of social criticism. When watching the director's cut, I cannot imagine a single scene that I could miss. I am listing the individual aspects here, but the power of this monument cannot be described with words. (14/04/2006)