Once Upon A Time In America DVD Review:


"Today, he asks you to take care of Joe. Tomorrow, he asks me to take care of you. You got a problem with that? Because I do." - Noodles

Synopsis

Ten years in planning, Sergio Leone's epic Once Upon A Time In America portrays 50 years of riveting underworld history and offers rich roles to a remarkable cast. Robert De Niro and James Woods play lifelong Lower East Side pals whose wary partnership unravels in death and mystery. Strong support comes from Tuesday Weld, Joe Pesci, Jennifer Connelly, Elizabeth McGovern and the young actors playing the central characters as ghetto kids. The film is offered for the first time in the full version that premiered at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival.

Critique

I remember the first time watching Once Upon a Time in America in its uncut version on Turner Classic Movies (TCM) sometime last year. Before it I enjoyed all three of Sergio Leone’s The Man with No Name films (namely A Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More and The Good, The Bad and The Ugly). Leone’s style and way of making films really transformed me and I realized that this man is one hell of a director. It’s just the way he shoots his film which is so amazing and mesmerizing. One of his signature moves is the extreme close-up, beginning with Clint Eastwood as the man with no name.

Released in North America sometime in 1984, but in production for longer than three years, Once Upon a Time in America received negative reviews. However, it should be noted that the version released that year did not contain the hour of footage that was included in the film’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Perhaps that was a reason for the negative reactions, but I don’t know.

The fact remains, though, this film is terrific and of epic proportions. I think it’s fair to say, however, the film’s pace is something of a problem. Any film running close to four hours is hard to watch (Dances With Wolves, for one). Despite that, the running time should not dictate the outcome or feelings towards a film. In my case, all of the 229 minutes of this film are worth watching. This is Leone’s full version and completes the film perfectly.

Robert DeNiro and James Woods star in the film that’s almost like The Godfather, although much more in-depth and moving. Despite running longer, Once Upon a Time in America has advantages over Francis Ford Coppola’s gangster epic. For one, the story begins in the early days and tracks the lives of the four buddies from teenagers to adults in a more emotional and caring way. That’s not to say these guys are okay to sympathize with, not really, but seeing them grow up and moving up in the business world is rewarding.

The actors playing Robert DeNiro and James Woods as teenagers really carry the film well until it is time for the transition. Overall, the acting is magnificent. DeNiro is simply great. Woods is equally superb. The main supporting actors, Elizabeth McGovern, Joe Pesci, Treat Williams, Tuesday Weld, Burt Young and Jennifer Connolly (yes, that’s right), all give great performances.

Much of the film uses flashbacks to tell the story, but that’s perfectly fine because it works so well. It’s the writing of the action, characters and dialogue that makes it all worthwhile. Plus a gorgeous score by famous composer Ennio Morricone, Once Upon a Time in America is the epic of gangster films in my eyes. I don’t consider the film subjected to only that genre, because much of the film is also a drama and life story. Sure, it’s a gangster drama, if you want to call it that. On the other hand, the film is many things, not just one or two.

I think the most important part to realize is that this is really Sergio Leone’s film and a young Robert DeNiro and James Woods are the supporting players. I don’t think this is selfish in any way, so when there is someone as artistic and visually captive as Leone it’s fine to admit to it. That’s my opinion, anyway.

Despite a production spanning over more than a few years, Once Upon a Time in America should be considered Leone’s most comprehensive and emotionally satisfying film (not to mention his longest).

10 out of 10

The Video

Warner Bros. presents Once Upon a Time in America in an all-new digital 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer. This is a very nice upgrade to DVD standard quality. Previously only available on laserdisc and lowly VHS, Sergio Leone’s classic gangster film finally gets the quality it deserves. Still present are instances of dirt and grain, but that’s to be expected. The film’s color palette is very rich and color detail is accommodating, albeit inconsistent in some instances. Dark tones and black level are good, but not exceptional.

Overall, Once Upon a Time in America looks deserving and alive, creating a very nice viewing experience.

8 out of 10

The Audio

Warner Bros. presents Once Upon a Time in America in remastered English Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound. Ah, the great thing about this transfer is the high volume and soundfield distribution of Ennio Morricone’s beautiful score. Dialog scenes are clear and easy to understand. The overall surround usage is just decent, with little punch and dramatic use of the rear speakers. There are a few instances when the noise penetrates the soundfield from all areas. Most of the noise is concentrated on the front speakers, however, which makes sense.

All in all, Once Upon a Time in America sounds better than ever, for obvious and deserving reasons. Overall, the transfer makes for a pretty good experience.

Once Upon a Time in America is also available in a French Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack.

7 out of 10

The Extras

Commentary by Film Critic Richard Schickel – His previous foray into commentaries, on the Unforgiven special edition DVD, seemed decent enough. For this special edition, Warner Bros. again selects Schickel to perform the duty of commenting on one of their films. His comments range from the film’s good and bad, among other things. He often times refers to the film’s length and pace. Overall, his comments are valid and sometimes quite informative. While I don’t think he’s the most viable person to comment on the film, he does a preferably good job. It would have been a classic to either get Robert DeNiro, James Woods or Joe Pesci to record something, or get them all together.

The Making of Once Upon A Time in America (~20 mins) – This segment comes from the 2002 Documentary Profile entitled Once Upon A Time: Sergio Leone. While only an excerpt, the segment provides a really cool and interesting behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film. It covers a lot of ground, beginning with the writing process. Some of the interviews are in Italian and dubbed in English (in Italian accents no less). Other participants are Arnon Milchan, relatives of Leone, James Woods, the editor, the writers, Quentin Tarantino, James Coburn, and others. While it would have been great of Warner Bros. to just include the entire documentary on the second disc, the excerpt on the making of Once Upon A Time in America is very good in its own right.

There’s also a "Photographic Memories" still gallery, which is just what it says, full of photos showing some of the cast, crew, locations, scenes in the film, etc. It’s an overall nice still gallery, but not something you’ll necessarily view again. This is basically it, except for one more extra, Leone Highlights. These bonus features are nice, but a bit unfulfilling. You also get the Theatrical Trailer (in fullscreen format) on the second disc.

You can select to view the film with optional English, French and Spanish subtitles. The DVD’s menus are interactive and composed to Ennio Morricone’s beautiful score, but not animated. The 229-minute feature is organized into 59 chapters over two discs.

7 out of 10

Overall

Once Upon a Time in America is a great film. It’s a joy to finally have another Sergio Leone classic on DVD. This treatment is different from his other films, however, such as his Spaghetti Westerns. Warner Bros.’ two-disc special edition is not fantastic, but very deserving. The special features lack content, but the documentary excerpt is very nice. Anyone out there who’s never seen a Leone picture should pick up this film, or any other, and get ready to be amazed. Once Upon a Time in America comes highly recommended.

RATINGS SUMMARY

THE MOVIE 10
THE VIDEO 8
THE AUDIO
7

THE EXTRAS
7

OVERALL (not an average)
9

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