A very conflicting film. The first half is astounding, a sweepingly poetic landscape of nostalgia for the past and excited hope for the future. The production design and cinematography are predictably breathtaking- I've thought fondly about that shot on the poster ever since I first laid eyes on it. Ennio Morricone delivers his best Leone score, second only to Once Upon A Time In The West.

Yet almost immediately after we're reintroduced to our adult gang of characters, the film falls apart, becoming largely tedious and lacking a coherent direction. Then our principal character commits two horrific rapes, almost completely without motivation.

From where I stand, this isn't nearly as polished as Leone's two western masterpieces, and it certainly doesn't earn its absurd runtime.

I’m so annoyed at myself for putting this film off. 

Everyone should see this film. The camerawork, the editing (especially the transitions), the acting and the story telling is just too good. It’s what all films should be like. 

I wish there was more of Joe Pesci but we got a shit load of Robert De Niro so we good. 

I enjoyed the crap out of this film and I’ll probably be thinking about it for a very long time.

Before I say anything about the movie, I just wanna acknowledge how dope this Letterboxd community is. I never thought I’d really care enough to get too into it, but talking movies with everyone is a lot of fun, and I quickly got sucked in by everyone’s incredibly friendly and inviting nature. So thank you guys, y’all are awesome.

This movie is beautiful. There’s definitely some career defining work in here from multiple different people. De Niro was incredible, James Woods was really good, the score was stunning, the camerawork was incredible. Not too much to say that hasn’t already been said, but I loved it. I still prefer The Good the Bad and the Ugly over this, but this is still some of Leone’s best work.

Also, I don’t know about you guys but baseball is finally back tonight and I’m VERY excited.

there's a lot that could be said about this film, but one thing's for sure: these men were most definitely not good fellas

"You're in no position to exercise your will."

freedom is a trap, destiny is a fluke. you can do anything you want except escape yourself.

[251m version]

I really can't say much about Once Upon a Time in America.
The first half is perfect and the filmmaking is top-notch, the second half drags a little but remains engaging. I thought I would like it but I just didn't connect to anything that was happening or any of the characters. A fitting send-off for Leone but not my favorite.

CAPOLAVORO, nient'altro da dire

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.
Despite the length it was awesome sometimes slow but it's all worth it.

A new film a day, for a year: 112

84/100

A really well crafted film. You can tell so much effort went into every scene. Some of the shots were really great and the music was excellent. It was alot sadder than I expected but then again I didn't really know what to expect going into this giant of a film.

The ending felt slightly anti climactic and it leaves you very conflicted on what you should be thinking of the main character because of some of the things he does.

Also there were a few story beats that were left unresolved near to the end that needed to be tied up in a film that is nearly 4 hours long, but great film nonetheless.

80s Ranked 👍

Luxurious as a post-Godfather gangster movie, Once Upon a Time in America ascends gracefully on a less extreme narrative that is explicit and cautious as it continuously shifts its contrasting timelines skillfully with a heart-rending tone and finale.

With a grandiose theme and an extensive, overarching story, Sergio Leone doesn’t shy away on putting an end on the romantic anti-hero of the gangster as he exclusively unveils their moral bankruptcy and unconditional repulsiveness that they’ve exerted unto an already nauseating world. It’s as tragic as it can be but the end result is still immensely satisfying for its notable care in its characters who are a microcosm of the “american dream”, where growth and change are obscure as greed and hatred will always triumph over anything else.

A masterpiece.

Watched: The 251-minute Extended cut.

There’s a whole lot of nostalgia in this, every bit of it feels like it’s yearning for simpler times — like a 4 hour long eulogy mourning the loss of innocence. And for the most part it pulls off all of its ideas within its broad scope pretty well. I just think the misogynistic aspects throughout this film were rather off putting.

Putaquepariu eu acabei de ver 3 horas e 40 de filme.
É basicamente o poderoso chefao 2 e 3, mas com um pouco menos de personalidade

This has to be the most gangster movie I've ever seen, literally. Iconic cast, iconic score, iconic story, iconic director. Easiest 3h 49m I've ever sat down and watched. Sergio Leone was a master at making films and this movie shows why. I honestly could have watched even more of this legendary film.

Definitely the best gangster film of all time. The close up on noodles eyes on the transition from old to young noodles and the scene near the end where noodles is looking at the gun, thinking about killing Mr Bailey with the most powerful flashback in film history happens are not just my favourite scenes from the film but are also my  favourite scenes I’ve ever seen out of all the films I’ve ever watched. I relate to the films themes so much like wishing you could go back to the past to you favourite period and relive your favourite memories again.

Also the fact people give this film a low rating or bring there rating down because of the rape scenes make me laugh, it’s only a film chill

O filme começa bom pra cacete no início. Mas depois de uma parte do filme a taradisse do Leone se torna insuportável a ponto de eu ter que parar de assistir por um tempo.

I loved it. I thought the first half was definitely the best and I loved the scenes of them as children. The soundtrack was top notch too! If I hadn't got a little confused in the final 45 minutes then it would have been a 5 star for me but overall a great pick this week in the lebronese film club from Iggy

Disclaimer - writing this review 2 weeks after watching the film so a little generic - also had half a xan.

Ce film ne fait preuve d'aucun égard envers les femmes. On peut mettre ça sur le compte de l'époque mais rien ne justifie que les scènes de viols soient si longues et graphiques. Ce n'était vraiment pas nécessaire et ça a laissé un goût amer pour la dernière heure que je me suis forcé à regarder pour les 3 premières passées devant ce film.
Cela dit le début était bien et je passais un bon moment, entendre les musiques de Ennio Morricone est un régal.

Merci a ce film de m'avoir rappelé pourquoi je n'aime pas les vieux films (et pourtant 1984 quand même...)