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Actors: Robert De Niro, James Woods, Elizabeth McGovern, Treat Williams, Tuesday Weld, Joe Pesci, Burt Young, Danny Aiello
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| Review Summary and Plot Commentary about Once Upon a Time in America |
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This is an epic crime story of a young Jew in 1930's and later the 1950's named Noodles. Set during Prohibition, Noodles and his Jewish buddies start a gang in their teens. Noodles is arrested for the murder of a rival gang leader and after his release he and his friends start a life of crime again.
--Tony Lucas, Resident Scholar
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ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA is a movie cowritten and directed by Sergio Leone in 1984. Initially released in the U.S.A. in a 139 minutes version, the masterpiece of the italian director can now be seen in its original 238 minutes version.
The picture tells the story of Robert -Noodles- De Niro and his Jewish friends in the NYC of the beginning of the thirties, how they grew up in Brooklyn and become wealthy during the prohibition by staying together and defending their independence against their rivals in crime. In love with Elizabeth McGovern who'll become a famous actress, Noodles will have to leave her when his three friends are killed by the police. Accused of having denounced them to the authorities, De Niro will have to disappear for a 35 years period before coming back in order to discover what has really happened during the night his friends died.
--Daniel Staebler, Resident Scholar
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| Analysis of Once Upon a Time in America |
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of movie:
- 1930's-1950's
Crime & Scandal
Yes
Story of
- criminals killing each other
Ethnic/Regional/Gender story?
Yes
Main Char. ethnic: (if not US Caucasian)
- Jew, regular
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
Profession/status:
- accused criminal
- criminal
Age:
- 20's-30's
Eccentric:
Yes
- obsessed
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Hair color?
- brunette (Black)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard straight
Body type
- (man) average
Events of movie makes character more...
- sad
- tougher
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Jewish
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
- hard edged
Sense of humor?
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- average physique
Secondary Main Character
Identity:
- Male
- Female
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair style
- (man) very short/crewcut
- (woman) medium/shoulderlgn curly
Body type
- (man) average build
Unclothed?
- full frontal
How much in movie?
- 40%
- 80%
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Jewish
Main Adversary
Identity:
- none
- Male
Age:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- criminal
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- 80%
Hair color
- brunette (Brown)
Hair type
- (man) short/standard wavey
Body type
- (man) average
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Jewish
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
City?
Yes
City:
- New York
- dirty, grimy (like New York)
- dangerous
- rude people
Misc setting
- fancy mansion
- bar
Style
Accounts of torture and death?
- explicit references to deaths
- very explicit references to deaths and torture
Movie makes you feel...
- concerned
- depressed/sad
Sex/nudity in movie?
Yes
What kind of sex:
- kissing
- actual description of sex
- seeing breasts
- seeing nude female butt
- seeing nude male butt
- seeing full frontal--women
Any profanity?
- Some foul language
If soundtrack VERY NOTICEABLE...
- Orchestra/classical
Is this movie based on a
- book
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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