"Once Upon a Time in America" is nearly 4 hours long. When the movie ended, I didn't feel it was tedious at all. Instead, I marveled that the sun was shining outside the window just now, and the sun was setting when I raised my head. People sat on the sofa for a long time, and couldn't take any longer.
The movie has been rated as a gangster movie by many movies, but it is not. Even if the movie does tell the life of a group of gangsters, it does have bloody, torn scenes; the trailer of the movie says this is a film about friends, but it’s not true. The movie does portray the love and hatred, betrayal and revenge between friends. When I turned out this "Once Upon a Time in America" again today and re-read the taste, I saw more. This film relies on a group of outstanding actors and a perfect story structure. It finally far surpasses the director's initial treatment of it. Expectations.
Noodles and Deborah
In the 1920s, in the Jewish neighborhoods of the United States, a group of small gangsters lived by robbery every day. Noodles was one of them, but it was also the most special one. It was different from other gangsters because he would hide in the toilet by himself. Jack London’s "Martin Eden" is also because he cherishes a pure love in his heart. Peeking at Deborah’s dancing has almost become the best part of Noodles’ daily dirty and nasty life. He is actually a clever boy and a little overbearing, but in front of Deborah, he is like a devout believer. She is high and he is inferior. . When Deborah let him look in the mirror with his head high and disdainful, Noodles stared at himself in the mirror with loss for a long time. Deborah is the daughter of a restaurant owner. The proud Deborah practices dancing every day and dreams of becoming a star one day. Deborah is a lofty person. She aspires to get rid of reality and own everything in the upper class. Whenever the younger brother who is busy with restaurant customers calls her for help , She always refused to answer, so I continued to dance. Despite this, Deborah loves Noodles. She indulges him to watch her dance and undress in front of him; she deliberately left the door unlocked and expressed love to Noodles through the Bible.
My beloved is white and ruddy.
His skin is as the most fine gold.
His cheeks are as a bed of spices.
Even though he hasn't washed since last December.
His eyes are as the eyes of doves.
His body is as bright ivory.
His legs are as pillars of marble.
In pants so dirty they stand by themselves.
He is altogether loveable.
But he'll always be a two-bit punk.
So he'll never be my beloved.
What a shame.
This contradictory confession is actually a portrayal of Deborah's ambivalent love for Noodles throughout his life. Noodles are cute, righteous, and innocent, so Deborah loves him, but at the same time arrogant and vain Deborah doesn’t allow herself to fall in love with such a destined little bastard. She tries to restrain her love, although there have been two. I kissed Noodles again, but in the end her so-called dream defeated her love for Noodles. She resolutely left Noodles and went to Hollywood to realize her dream. At their last dinner, she once again expressed to Noodles the same love she had for him over the years. You are the one I ever cared about. But then Deborah successfully put away her love again, I've to go where I am going...to the top. She wants to become a star that attracts worldwide attention, she wants to be promoted to the top The society, and Noodles, as a gangster, can't give this. In the final farewell, Noodles raped Deborah under great pain and accumulated possessiveness over the years. However, the Noodles who "got" Deborah were not happy. On the contrary, when he watched Deborah go away disheveled. , His heart was extremely desolate, and he realized that the only pure love cherished in his heart for so many years had also left him.
35 years later, when Noodles, who had fled away, returned to New York to meet Deborah, who was already a star, they had mixed feelings in their hearts, but their faces were calm after years. Noodles looked at Deborah, who was still beautiful and young, and sighed with age. cannot wither you. However, Deborah is already a politician's lover. The noble Deborah finally betrayed his love for fame and status. Deborah sadly said to Noodles that age can wither me. The life of Noodles at this time is already full of flaws. For 35 years, he has been burdened with deep guilt and self-blame, and has to escape the pursuit of his enemies, changed his name and changed his surname to run away from home, no friends, no love, no peace, Until an invitation to the ball from New York politician Bailey, he saw the hope of breaking away from the past. After arriving in New York, he knew that Deborah's politician lover was Bailey, but he didn't know that Mr. Bailey was Max. Deborah advises Noodles not to participate in the dance, because if he does, then Noodles's only wealth-all his good memories of the past will be subverted and disappeared.
Noodles and Max
The fond memory Deborah refers to is the young years that Noodles shared with Max and some other brothers. Noodles and Max met on the streets of the Jewish ghetto in New York in the 1920s, and they both knew how to cherish each other and safeguard their common interests. The only difference is that Noodles is a person who yearns for a peaceful life, while Max is ambitious and deliberate. In the age of prohibition, they smuggled and sold alcohol and worked together to eliminate hostile forces. When the youngest of their brothers, Dominic, died in retaliation by the hostile forces, Noodles stabs the murderer frantically. In exchange for a 12-year prison life, they waved to him in front of their friends outside the iron gate. Saying goodbye, Noodles was not depressed, but smiled contentedly. When more than 4,000 days finally passed, it was Max who appeared in front of him on time to welcome his return, and brought a woman with the car to Noodles to enjoy. As Max’s power grew, he colluded with some politicians to seek status and money. Although Noodles did not approve of it, he still followed in Max’s footsteps. However, when Max told Noodles that his dream was to rob the Commonwealth Bank and hope that Noodles would help When he realized it together, Noodles responded to Max’s so-called dream with you’re crazy, which made Max mad. After that, Max planned his robbery, even if he could not get the help of Noodles. This made Noodles very worried about him, Max. 'S lover reminds Noodles that Max can only be saved by sending him to prison, better than sending him to death. After struggling inside, Noodles decided to "betray" him in order to save his best friend. Noodles reported Max to the police, but did not expect Max and the other two good brothers to be killed on the spot for rebelling against the police. With tears in his eyes, he ran to the opium hall in Chinatown to paralyze himself, and left New York under the double pressure of hostile forces and guilt towards friends. The lost Noodles came to the train station, when the conductor asked him where he was going. , Noodles replied anywhere, he finally went to Buffalo, and he went there for 35 years.
When he came back again in response to the invitation, he was already an old man with white temples. When he saw Deborah sitting in the dressing room, he couldn't help sighing that years had left footprints on his face, but forgiven his favorite woman. During the conversation, someone was knocking outside the dressing room. He was David, the son of Deborah's lover Bailey. When Noodles left the dressing room, he saw David standing under the dimly yellow street lamp. Noodles was stunned. The familiar face, the familiar smile, and even the familiar curly hair gave Noodles a feeling of interlacing space and going back in time. He was in a trance. I saw Max when I first met more than 40 years ago. So when Noodles finally found out that Bailey was Max in the villa where the party was held, they didn't have much consternation. Even he can probably know the ins and outs of the story. Max did not die in the confrontation with the police, and after that he carried out crazy revenge on Noodles. In the study of the villa, Max confessed everything to Noodles: I took away our common money, I took away your residence, your woman, and even made you think I was dead and guilty and pained for 35 years. Then Max handed him a gun and told him that you've been betrayed by a friend and you hit back. Max hoped that Noodles would end his life to repay his deprivation of Noodles' happiness. However, Noodles slowly said that my eyes are not good and my hands shake and refused to retaliate against Max. When Noodles woke up like a dream, they still remembered their past with Max: the first time they saw Max; they hugged each other because of the successful smuggling of alcohol; they screamed in panic thinking that Max was drowning; sweared by 5 other friends including Max The suitcase guarded together contains the money earned by five people working hard together. . . . . . Noodles quietly bid farewell to Max, but did not call him Max from beginning to end, but kept calling him Mr. Bailey. Noodles walked out of the villa and found that Max was only following him, and then disappeared into the garbage truck at night. The car was a huge mincing machine constantly operating. . . . .
Deborah and Max
Noodles once told Deborah that she and Max are very similar people, so they hate each other. Indeed, Deborah is as ambitious as Max, eager to enter the upper class and get rid of a poor birth, and is also a rational person who wants to achieve his goals by unscrupulous means. That’s why Max is different from Noodles. Max only considers women as an accessory. Career is the top priority of his life. Therefore, he hates Noodles’ persistent love for Deborah. Every time Noodles approaches Deborah, Max always Noodles will be spread out, and when Noodles lingers in the opium house in frustration because of Deborah's departure, they yell at Noodles: Women shouldn't hinder their careers! It is said that hate is mutual, yes, Deborah also hates Max because Noodles is always hesitating between friendship and love. Both the young Noodles and the adult Noodles love Deborah, but they also regard Max as their best friends. When the young Noodles and Deborah were alone in the room, Max took Noodles away to complete the so-called tasks, as an adult. After Noodles was released from prison, he couldn’t help recounting the old days with Deborah, whom he hadn’t seen for many years. When Max called him to leave again, Deborah disgusted and let Noodles leave because "your mother's calling you."
However, many years later, Deborah, who became a Hollywood star, Consolidate his position in the upper class and succumb to the person he hates most and become his lover. Of course, the premise is that the latter has become Mr. Bailey, a powerful political figure. Sad Deborah has loved Noodles all his life, but never pursued his love. The only thing she could do was protect the only thing Noodles had left after 35 years-memory, but in the end she couldn't prevent Noodles from seeing Max.
Three people have different life trajectories, but they have reached the same goal by different paths. Max chose to commit suicide. Although Noodles and Deborah were alive, they had nothing. In the end, even their beautiful memories were destroyed.
Some people say that this is a very manly movie, but I think this is a movie about people. One's life is in it, joy, anger, sorrow and joy, seven emotions and six desires, love, hatred, and hatred, life and death. .
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