One of the best films I have seen in over 70 years of film watching

Rating: 10/10 (28 October 2007)

Actually this is one of the 5 best films I have ever seen.
This comment I made 20 years or so ago, when I compiled a new 10 best or (most liked list.
I saw this again last night & I am even more convinced of this
This tale of Jewish gangsters of before and after the end of Prohibition in New York City was directed by Sergio Leone, who is neither from New York,Jewish & definitely not a gangster.
Mr.Leoni had an eye for detail that very few can match,
The production is superb in every department, The acting is as about flawless as can be. The film has a large cast headed by Robert Deniro, James Woods,Burt Young, Tuesday Weld, Elizabeth McGovern, Joe Pesci ( a cameo only), Danny Aiello playing a Police Captain of same name,(his scenes are about the only real humorous scenes in this drama). & the debut performance of one of todays leading actresses Jennifer Connally (you can see her talent then when she was still a teenager.
The running time is a short 226 minutes (yes I said short). The scenes just fly by.. The original film ran 6 hours long, I sure would love to have seen that version. When first released in the U.S. it ran way under 3 hours & was a botched up job.
NOTE (spoiler alert) be sure to stay through the credits, as there is one final scene, that may suggest that what we saw was something else.
There are 2 rape scenes, one very explicit, BUT well done. This is an Adult film for adults & viewers that want top see a masterful film by a master craftsman.
ratings **** (out of 4) Points 99 (out of 100 *) IMDb 10 (out of 10)
* I no longer rate any film with 100 points