Once Upon a Time in America (1984)
Grade: 90
There are people who believe that most movies should be ninety minutes or less in length. Anything more, and the storyline and tension becomes diluted.
Perhaps that is the case for most directors, but definitely not for Sergio Leone, who was a master at making films that challenged the audience's kidneys. His best movies: "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly", "Once Upon a Time in the West", and "Once Upon a Time in America", all take their time, with the focus on cinematography rather than script.
"Once Upon a Time in America" was his last direction, and it could be his best. It tells the story of the rise and fall of New York Jewish mobsters, covering a time period from the early 1920s to the late 1960s. Robert De Niro and James Woods have the leading roles, with Elizabeth McGovern and Tuesday Weld playing their girlfriends.
The film goes on and on for nearly four hours. This led to heavy cuts by the studio that damaged the continuity, but most of the film's length has since been restored. There are some scenes that are drawn out. For example, De Niro spends a few minutes stirring the coffee while his fellow gangsters impatiently wait for him to speak his mind. But mostly the length is due to the depth of the story, which is really three films in one: the mobsters as adolescents, young adults, and middle aged men.
De Niro and Woods are the leaders of their gang. They may be lifetime friends, but they are also rivals, with differing ambitions. Woods is looking for the big score at any cost, while De Niro is content with a local fiefdom that plays by his rules, valuing friendship and avoiding giving control to strangers. This leads to inevitable conflicts between Woods and De Niro, and it doesn't help that Woods is unstable while De Niro is prone to depression.
For an Italian director, Leone had a great interest in American mythology, especially the West. His attempt at capturing the Prohibition era results in an outstanding film.
kollers@mpsi.net http://members.tripod.com/~Brian_Koller/movies.html
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