A quality gangster movie

Rating: 8/10 (10 February 2009)

Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in America" was ruined for American audiences at the time of its release due to heavy editing at the studio's insistence. It wasn't until years later that the film was seen in its original form and it now has a sizable following.
The story, which is based on a novel by Harry Grey titled "The Hoods", follows a group of gangsters from their days as young punks to their demise in a botched liquor run. All of this is told in flashback as the one remaining member of the crew returns to his old neighborhood to take care of some unfinished business.
It should be noted that the film is nearly four hours long, so those with short attention spans need not apply. That being said, those hours go by fairly quickly and, if anything, it seems like there are parts that could have used elaboration. However, this is probably just a result of Leone trying to do too much.
The cast is well-assembled with Robert De Niro in the central role and James Woods in the next most prominent role. The rest of the cast is pretty solid though some of the supporting characters are underdeveloped. The only performance that I thought wasn't on par with the rest was Elizabeth McGovern as De Niro's love interest.
Leone's direction is expertly handled, giving the film a polished, yet realistic, look. The editor deserves credit as well since he does an admirable job of keeping the narrative flowing, even when switching between three different time periods. Ennio Morricone's score is good for the most part but the motifs get a bit repetitive by the end. Also, there are a few questionable choices, such as the use of the Beatles' "Yesterday" and the pan-flute playing of Zamfir.
Even considering the film's faults, I think that it has to be considered a classic gangster movie. While the current IMDb rating is, in my opinion, overly generous (as is the case for a number of Leone's films) I wouldn't begrudge it a spot somewhere in the top 250.