Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #677 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-06-23
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Box set, Dubbed, PAL, Special Edition, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French, Italian
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 220 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Once Upon a Time in America has a chequered history, having been chopped from its original 229-minute director's cut to 139 minutes for its theatrical release. The longer edition presented here benefits from having the complete story (the short version has huge gaps) about turn-of-the-century Jewish immigrants in America finding their way into lives of crime, as told in flashback by an ageing Jewish gangster named Noodles (Robert De Niro). On the other hand, it's almost four hours long, and this sometimes-indulgent Sergio Leone film is no Godfather. Still, it is notable for the contrast between Leone's elegiac take on the gangster film and his occasional explosive action, as well as for the mix of the stoic, inexpressive De Niro and the hyperactive James Woods as his lifelong friend and rival. --Marshall Fine

Special Features
229-minute version
Feature-length commentary by Film Critic/Historian Richard Schickel
Revealing Once Upon a Time: Sergio Leone documentary
Filmographies
Photo gallery
Theatrical Trailer
1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Dolby Digital 5.1 English, French
Subtitles: English, French, Spanish

Special Features

• 229-minute version
  
• Feature-length commentary by Film Critic/Historian Richard Schickel
  
• Revealing Once Upon a Time: Sergio Leone documentary
  
• Filmographies
  
• Photo gallery
  
• Theatrical Trailer

DVD Technical Information:

• 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
  
• Dolby Digital 5.1 English, French
  
• Languages: English, French
  
• Subtitles: English, French, Arabic, Dutch

Customer Reviews

The best film of all time
THIS IS THE GREATEST FILM EVER MADE!!! BOLD STATEMENT I KNOW, BUT IT REALLY IS !!! MY FAVOURITE DIRECTORS ARE: STANLEY KUBRICK, INGMAR BERGMAN, SERGIO LEONE, QUENTIN TARANTINO, ROMAN POLANSKI, STEVEN SPEILBERG (ONLY "SCHINDLERS LIST", "JAWS" AND "SAVING PRIVATE RYAN" AND THE BRILLIANT DAVID LYNCH. IF YOU LIKE THESE DIRECTORS FILMS, YOU WOULD BE AN IDIOT NOT TO WATCH AND LOVE THIS. THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD THROUGH CINEMA DIRECTED IN THE CLEVEREST WAY, AND A SOUNDTRACK TO MATCH.

Leone's final epic
OUATIA is an epic film in every sense. It follows the life of 'Noodles' (Robert De Niro) from early adolesense to adult and then as an older man discovering the truth about his past that he thought was dead and buried.

The cast are superb with DeNiro and James Woods as Max (at his most charismatic) playing the two leading roles roles. In the fact if anything the sections with the younger actors playing the adolesent Noodles and Max were probably even better.

Leone's view of the American gangster era is a little more poetic than say Goodfellas and The Godfather. The pace of this film is more measured. Its beautifully shot and a wonderful looking film. When the violence happens though, it is as viseral as anything you will find in those other two great gangster films. In particular there are two rape scenes, which whilst not that explicit tell you a lot about 'Noodles' attitude to women.

One of the characters in the film is called James Conway O'Donnell (as displayed in the cast list), but he is referred to as Jimmy Conway in the film. Interestingly Jimmy Conway was DeNiro's character in Goodfellas.

For me its just short of 5 stars. The reason is the length. At three hours and 40 minutes its just too long. I felt that it could have been trimmed a little (say 20 mins) and the film would have a little sharper. But this is a very minor critcism of what is otherwise a superb film.

Just a bit naff really
Difficult to follow, a bit boring in places, and very irritating directorial moves; what's with all the pan pipe music?!