Among the most famous films in the filmography of Sergio Leoneand the entire history of cinema, there is Once upon a time in America (review here), gangster movie with epic tones that consecrated Leone as one of the greatest authors of world cinema. Despite the limited public success upon its release, over the years the film has been unanimously defined as one of the best ever, almost always positioning itself in the rankings of the favorite films of the public and critics.
Here are 10 things you might not know about Once Upon a Time in America.
The plot of Once upon a time in America
The events of the film take place over forty years, and follow the dramatic vicissitudes of the criminal David “Noodles” Aaronson and his friends, from their progressive passage from the Jewish ghetto to the environment of organized crime in Prohibition and post-Prohibition New York.
Once upon a time in America It’s based on a book
1. There is a literary inspiration behind the film. Once upon a time in America It is based on the novel The Hoodspublished by the writer Harry Grey in 1952. The novel is based on the experiences of Gray himself, a criminal in the first decades of the twentieth century and his was one of the few autobiographies of a gangster ever published. Leone, who has long wanted to create a gangster moviewas very impressed by the book and chose to draw inspiration from it for his film, going so far as to define it as the plot he had been looking for for a decade now.
Once upon a time in America: the cast of the film
2. It has a cast of great actors and young debutants. Having a rather large budget at his disposal, Leone made use of a mixed cast, made up of big international stars and debuting actors. The protagonist of the film is Robert De Niroin the role of David Aaronson, who is joined by the actor James Woods in the role of Maximilian Bercovicz. Among the actors who achieved fame with the film are included Tuesday Weld, Elizabeth McGovern And Jennifer Connelly. The actor also participated in the film Joe Pesci in a small role.
3. Pisces was ready for a more important role. The actor Joe Pesci, a close friend of De Niro, had proposed for the role of Maximilian Bercovicz, but Leone did not consider him suitable for the part. He therefore proposed that he choose any other character and Pesci thus chose the part of Frankie, originally larger in the script and drastically scaled down in the final version of the film.
4. Jennifer Connelly became famous thanks to the film. Jennifer Connelly, very young at the time, was noticed by a casting officer for another film, who knew that the Italian director was looking for a girl to dance in front of the cameras. After seeing Connelly dance, she decided to propose her to Leone, who immediately signed her up, starting her film career. Connelly is today one of the most popular actresses of her generation and is also an Oscar winner.
5. De Niro tried to meet a real crime boss. As usual, Robert De Niro he tried to prepare and delve into his character as much as possible. To do so, among other things, she repeatedly asked to meet the crime boss Meyer Lansky, but he never received a positive response and therefore had no opportunity to meet him. His intention was to be able to get some details from him about his life, his ways of doing things, thus drawing inspiration for the character of his character.
Once upon a time in America: the locations of the film, from the USA to Italy
6. The film was shot in different parts of the world. For the filming of the film, Leone chose the neighborhood Brooklyn Of New Yorkthen also moving into New Jersey and then go in Floridawith some shots taken on St. Pete Beach of the Don Cesar Hotel. The scenes in the fictional Riverdale cemetery were instead filmed in Woodlawn Cemetery In the Bronx. There are also several European locations: in France to Paris the scene where Noodles witnesses Deborah’s departure on the train took place, while in Italy many scenes were filmed (especially those set in the twenties and thirties) on the sets of Cinecittàto Romebut also to Lido of Venice for Noodles and Deborah’s restaurant dinner scene atExcelsior hotel.
Once upon a time in America: the soundtrack of the film
7. The soundtrack was entrusted to Ennio Morricone. Leone never had any doubts about who to hire to create the film’s soundtrack, entrusting this role to Ennio Morricone, his long-time collaborator. The film’s music was commissioned so far in advance that it was heard, albeit not in an orchestrated version, on set during filming. Today, this is considered among Morricone’s greatest masterpieces. However, the film also contains songs composed by others, such as Yesterday Of Paul McCartney or a piece from the famous opera symphony The magpie Of Gioachino Rossini.
Once upon a time in America was not nominated for an Oscar
8. He did not receive any nomination for the famous award. Although it is remembered as one of the greatest masterpieces in the history of cinema, Once upon a time in America did not receive any Oscar nominations. The film had received several BAFTA nominations and nominations for Best Director and Best Soundtrack at the Golden Globes, leading one to imagine that the film could also be nominated for an Oscar in these categories, but this was not the case. However, this “lack” does not detract from the unquestionable value of the film.
Once upon a time in America: the versions of the film
9. There are three versions of the film. Theatrical version lasts 139 minutes, International version lasts 229 minutes And Extended director’s cut version of 251 minutes: These are the existing copies of the film. The first sees him deprived of many scenes and characterized by a montage that follows the chronological order of events. The second, distributed throughout the world except in the United States, is universally recognized as the true version, i.e. more closely adhering to Leone’s original project. Finally, in 2012, the extended director’s cutwhich includes previously cut scenes.
Once upon a time in America: the explanation of the Theory of Dreams
10. Leone had his say on the famous Theory of Dreams. The film begins and ends with the same scene as in 1933, with Noodles hiding in an opium den. For this reason, some interpret the story as a dream or drug-induced fantasy, with Noodles remembering his past and imagining his future. Opponents of this theory, however, cite the fact that the 1968 sequence includes various anachronisms: the music of the Beatles, television, and references to the Vietnam War, the hippies in the station discussing Jimi Hendrix, which obviously did not exist in 1933 and so Noodles wouldn’t be able to dream about them.
Supporters claim that various scenes support the dream theory: for example, the telephone ringing obsessively in Noodles’ mind is the symptom of an obsessive hallucination caused by opium and he is immediately helped by an attendant in the smoke shop who hands him the pipe again making him immerse himself in the story again. At the end of the film, Noodles’ smile is interpreted as relief at realizing that he had only been dreaming, even though Noodles smiles little after starting to smoke opium. Leone himself stated that according to his vision of the story Noodles, thanks to opium, actually has a vision of his future.
Once upon a time in America: the most beautiful phrases of the film
The film has also become famous for its numerous phrases that have entered the history of cinema, which encapsulate the meaning and atmosphere of the film and its characters. Here are some of the most beautiful phrases.
– No one will ever love you like I loved you. There were desperate moments when I couldn’t stand it anymore and then I thought of you and said to myself: “Deborah exists, she’s out there, she exists!”. And with that I got over everything. Do you understand now what you are to me? (Noodles)
– Time cannot make a dent. (Noodles)
– I love the smell of the street, my lungs open up when I smell it. And she pulls me even more. (Noodles)
– I stole your life and lived it in your place. I took everything from you. I took your money, your woman, I left you with only 35 years of regret. For my death. Wasted remorse. (Max)
– Noodles, we only have good memories left and if you walk out that door now you won’t even have those. (Deborah)
– Noodles, what have you been doing all these years? – I went to bed early. (Fat Moe and Noodles)
The trailer of Once upon a time in America and where to watch it in streaming and on TV
You can benefit from Once upon a time in America thanks to its presence on some of the most popular streaming platforms on the internet today. This is in fact available in the catalogues Rakuten TV, Google Play, Apple TV, Now, Netflix And Prime Video. To see it, once you have chosen the reference platform, simply rent the single film or sign up for a general subscription. You will thus be able to watch it in total comfort and at excellent video quality. The film is also present in the television schedule of Tuesday 30 April at 9.20pm On the canal Rai 4.
