‘We’re both getting old. All that we have left now are our memories…’
Between 1974 and 1984, Robert De Niro went on an incredible run of performances including The Godfather II, Taxi Driver, The Deer Hunter and Raging Bull, culminating in this astonishing turn in Sergio Leone’s final feature film Once Upon a Time in America. Tom Hanks, James Stewart and Christian Bale can all point to similar hot streaks in their respective careers, but none produced the sheer breadth and variety that De Niro was capable of during his dog days. There is no wonder Leone, himself one of the most celebrated directors of all time, turned to De Niro as the man to helm his final project. And what a collaboration it is…
Noodles (De Niro) and Max (James Woods) are just two kids from the block (played by Scott Tiler and Rusty Jacobs respectively in the flashback scenes). They cheat. They steal. They sexually assault young women. All the usual stuff that used to go on in the olden days. Growing up in the grip of prohibition and seeing their criminal empire grow changes these two men beyond recognition. Once Upon a Time in America charts their friendship as it warps and fades like dust in the wind.
Now, the word ‘epic’ is thrown around a lot in the world of cinema. But make no mistake, this is as epic as they come. Clocking in at just under four hours, Leone, a director not known for his brevity, takes his damn time to cover every aspect of Noodles and Max and their decades long struggle for dominance. The flashback sequences take up half the movie, but luckily, they also provide some of the film’s best moments. It is in these scenes that the influence of Leone’s final film becomes most striking. A Bronx Tale, Goodfellas and Sleepers all owe a debt to Once Upon a Time…, not least because De Niro appears in all of those films as well.
In terms of legacy, there are moments here that signify the peak of Leone’s long and storied career. Whether the film taken as a whole acts as a rival to The Good, The Bad and the Ugly is up for debate, but the fact that a director can make two of the most essential films ever made more than twenty years apart is an incredible achievement in and of itself. Less stylised than Leone’s spaghetti westerns and less reliant on camera trickery and closeups, Once Upon a Time… feels like the Italian director’s most personal work. This is a gritty film. An authentic film. Cinema with something important to say.
Once Upon a Time in America is not for the faint hearted, nor is it something for the casual viewer to enjoy, but for those of us obsessed with the bright lights and dazzling stars of the cinema, this is essential viewing. Utterly essential.