..loved it before I heard it was a masterpiece...

Rating: 10/10 (26 July 2007)

Like so many, I find "Once Upon a Time in America" to be about as perfect - in ALL respects - as a movie can be. EVERY actor/actress was superb....the story so convincing and true-to-life......the costuming so authentic.....the score so beautiful......each scene so well-developed...every character fully developed, etc., etc., etc., etc...
BUT - I had to read many comments here to confirm that I wasn't the only one who truly loved it. I had NO IDEA it had been chopped and there were other footages of film unreleased. I have the 4-hour VHS version and wondered if TCM would show it all at one time. Last weekend and this coming weekend, it is divided for two showings. I had already watched it several times, so decided that I would pay very close attention to the details TCM presented. Unfotunately, I did not get good reception on TV although I have satellite (too far away from the receiver; I have another TV for watching VHS and DVD), so I cut immediately to my VHS. I now realize that TCM IS showing the uncut version, even with scenes that are not in my VHS. For instance, in the first scene when the girl is shot, she is shot twice, not once. When the hoodlums are beating-up on "Fat Moe" (fabulous character played by Larry Papp), they put a gun in his mouth to get him to tell where "Noodles" (DeNiro) is hiding....that's not in the VHS....and on-and-on. Someday, I'll get the DVD, but I don't always like them. The VHS is so moody in its colors.
Read some of the other user's comments to get the full story if you've missed this great film.....I'm not saying a thing about the story. I've personally known gangsters and they are portrayed authentically in "Once Upon a Time in America" - if you think they don't still exist, you're uninformed. They are a different breed than the "gangstas" who roam our streets today.
I am terribly confused about the running-length of this movie....nearly every comment has a different time. I don't have ANY trouble with long movies....yes, I was confused the first time I saw it, but it's beauty drew me right back to it - you have to really get involved in this story, beautifully directed by Leone with crystalline cinematography. I suspect I'll watch the last half again on TCM this Saturday, good reception or not.
"Best" is a personal decision: I stand steadfastly with those who think this movie is one of the most moving films ever made. Bravo! to all involved - and I also agree with another "user" who rates it as 100-to-10.......
Other "ganster"-films do not portray the hoods as real people - they were and are.....I've been watching them since silent-film days. Better than "Godfather" ?.,....by a mile !! Every adult should watch this movie, even if only to discover they don't like it.