Category Archives: Once Upon a Time in America

Top 5: Films to Watch on the Fourth of July

This list was almost going to be a list of the top 5 “America Movies.” It made sense in my head, but not on paper. Then, it was going to be the most patriotic movies. However, every movie that came to mind seemed to involve Mel Gibson. Instead, I’ve decided to make a list that is a little bit of both. The following list contains films that may either evoke a deep sense of patriotsism, or just portray everything America is capable of in the best way possible (that can be in either a positive or negative light). Some involve criminals, bloodshed, and comically excessive vomiting. Here is a list of five great movies (presented in alphabetical order) to watch on the Fourth of July:

Back to the Future

“Roads? Where we’re going, we don’t need roads.” And so “Back to the Future” ends with the greatest sequel teasing line of all time. This sci-fi comedy from 1985 has only improved over the years into what people do not feel ashamed to label as a masterpiece. “Back to the Future” is a fine example of just how good American storytelling can be, and shows off our ability to create smart genre benders (Tarantino wasn’t the first one, apparently). It provides a great, finely detailed view of how this country changed from the 1950s to the 1980s, and we get to beat the Libyans. Plus, there are a few very good jabs that are still very relevant today. For example, the farmland being replaced with a shopping mall, and Marty McFly being mistaken for Calvin Klein because the brand name is written on his underwear. Great Scott, indeed.

Once Upon a Time in America

It’s got the name of our home and native land right in the title. “Once Upon a Time in America” is a time commitment, and you may not have enough time to see it all and have a barbecue all in one day. But sit through it at least once in your life, it is well worth the four and a half hours of your time that must be invested in it. I include it above many other American gangster movies, even those that I believe are superior, because this one challenges everything that feels right about a film. Through its span, it chronicles the rise and fall of criminals, and the rising and falling cycle of America. I guess it took an Italian director to best capture this idea.

Rocky

I talk about a lot of downers on this website, but “Rocky” deserves a spot on this list because it actually follows the basic premise of the American Dream: in America, if you work hard enough, you can become successful. However, it shows that success doesn’t always come in the form of winning, something that underdog stories tend to forget. Call it a lot of blind optimism, but “Rocky” still has the power to make you want to run up the steepest staircase you can find.

The Sandlot

This might be an odd choice. However, it follows the Fourth of July theme quite well. And what’s more American than Baseball? After all, it is our national past time. Baseball is to America what Cricket is to England: it’s a long, slow game with a lot of rules that don’t make a lot of sense, yet people still love it. That is why I’m happy that this childhood classic is more about a group of kids trying to get their ball back from a supposedly monstrous dog. There’s also a nice little Independence Day scene here, and a hilarious one involving chewing tobacco. Not to mention, Squints (Chauncey Leopardi) pulling the moves on a lifeguard by pretending to drown. This is a bold and admirable pickup line that no one should ever attempt to repeat.

Team America: World Police

It’s hard to believe how overlooked this was when it first debuted in theaters. I think it was misunderstood as merely a gross-out picture, rather than the extremely sharp skewering of both bloated patriotism and apologetic liberalism that it is. It does so only in a way that “South Park” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker could, by going as far as possible and making no stops along the way. “Team America” has only gotten better with time. It is the perfect American satire, but it is also at its best when it is sending up the entire movie formula itself. Everyone remembers “America F**k Yeah” from its soundtrack, but the tracks “Montage” as well as “The End of an Act,” which questions why “Pearl Harbor” was made, show that you can draw in seemingly irrelevant pop culture references without distracting from the story at hand.

The Reel Deal Goes To Cannes Update #5: Screenin’ in the Rain

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Some people say that Cannes is like the Florida of France. While I haven’t found a shuffleboard court or an old Catskills comedian yet, i’m starting to think it is because of the unpredictable weather. The bright and sunny morning quickly morphed into, hyperbolically speaking, a mini Monsoon. It has been this way for the past few days, and it seems to be showing no signs of slowing down.

This means that it is perfect weather for a movie.

Unfortunately, the day got off to a bad start, as I was swiftly rejected from a screening of “Safety Not Guarenteed,” despite having a ticket. This movie was a market screening, which is meant for buyers (usually from foreign markets) first, and patrons second. Guess I will have to deal with seeing it in the States when it opens later this summer.

Last night, however, was marked with a fantastic screening of the director’s cut of Sergio Leone’s gangster epic “Once Upon a Time in America.” Unfortunately, I missed the screening in which Robert de Niro and Ennio Morricone introduced the film. But if attending film festivals has taught me anything, it is that life will be full of rejections and expectations not fulfilled, so it is best to relish what lies in front of us. And how beautiful this film looked on the big screen. This version contained a newly restored print, which looked as magnificent as ever.

If anything, time has only made “Once Upon a Time in America” a better film. I was probably too young when I last watched “Once Upon a Time in America” in full (as with most films). I forgot how funny this film was. The scene in which Noodles (De Niro) and the gang switch out the babies at the hospital is like a master class at humor achieved without dialogue. Leone always showed a subtlely funny side in his past films, but it comes out here in full force.

“Once Upon a Time in America” was Leone’s last film before his untimely death in 1989. It is his “Blade Runner,” as several director’s cuts have been released throughout the years. The original cut fell just under four hours. However, a butchered version was released in the U.S. in 1984 that ran at just 139 minutes. That version flopped and was panned by critics. A release of the original version established the film as a masterpiece. The latest director’s runs just over four hours.

The newly restored version looks as if it could have been made today. However, the new scenes added in could not be fully restored, and look grainy and aged. However, the real significance in them is that they were found and could be added.

“Once Upon a Time in America” is just about long enough as is, and some of the new scenes don’t necesarilly need to be there. A few have purpose and provide good background, but others, like the cemetary scene, break from the film’s smooth rhythm. Let me add that this may be the fastest four hours you ever spend at the movies. Some might argue that a lot could have been chopped down and this story could have been told effectively with a shorter running time. Some stories just need to be told with as much depth and detail as possble, and “Once Upon a Time in America” earns every minute of its running time.

Leone has always been one of my favorite directors. I always saw him as a purely visual one, and a man who put in so much close detail into his backdrops above all else. That is not entirely true, he just finds out how to reveal character motivations and emotions without saying a single word. Leone was a maestro, a true artist, and one of the last directors from an era long gone. And while this was his last film, he most certainly ended his career in film with an unforgettable bang. See it, and on the biggest screen possible if you can.