"Once Upon a Time in America" ​​Memories of 20th century America depicted through the lives of gangsters

Keio's masterpiece has finally begun to move.

As expected, the scenario work was extremely difficult. Initially, Sergio Leone thought of a linear structure in which the story progresses in chronological order. However, this work, in which he and many other screenwriters including Leo Benvenuti, Piero de Bernardi, and Stuart M. It transforms into an epic story. When completed in October 1981, the script was 317 pages long.

Producer Alberto Grimaldi was puzzled when he read the script. First of all, the movie is too long! If things continue as they are, the screening time will be 5 hours, and the turnover rate of movie theaters will suffer. The character of the main character, Noodles, was also a problem. There's no way the audience would empathize with a horrible person who shoots people to death and rapes women for no reason. Grimaldi reportedly demanded that the script be rewritten or not produced.

Of course, there was no way Leone would give up on her long-awaited project so easily. While working hard on rewriting the script, he searched for the perfect location and auditioned over 3,000 actors. Star actors such as Gerard Depardieu, Al Pacino, and Jack Nicholson were considered for the role of Noodles, and there were also ideas for Paul Newman to play the older Noodles, Tom Berenger to play the young Noodles, and Dustin Hoffman to play Max. .

"Once Upon a Time in America" ​​(c)Photofest / Getty Images

In the end, Robert De Niro was chosen to play Noodles, James Woods was chosen to play Max, and the cast also included Elizabeth McGovern (Deborah), Joe Pesci (Frankie), and Burt Young (Joe). A top-notch cast has assembled. Jennifer Connelly, who was only 12 years old at the time, played the role of Deborah in Girls' Generation. Film director Dario Argento, known for `` Suspiria '' (1977), was fascinated by her fresh acting (he and Sergio Leone had worked together on ``Westerns''), and `` Phenomina '' ( 85) as the leading actress.

In June 1982, before filming began, Sergio Leone contacted Harry Gray to tell him the good news that The Hoods was finally being made into a movie. But it was his wife who answered the phone and told her that her husband had passed away several years ago. That's why ``Once Upon a Time in America'' was so many years in the planning stage.

"2 hours 24 minutes version", "3 hours 49 minutes version", "4 hours 11 minutes version"