Sergio Leone’s Masterpiece Ruined: How One of Cinema’s Greatest Films Lost Its Soul

Sergio Leone envisioned “Once Upon a Time in America” as a grand saga, a cinematic project meant to make history. However, the American cut of the film was drastically shortened, deeply altering its essence to the extent that Leone felt profoundly disappointed. Released in 1984, the film grossed merely $2.5 million, far below its nearly $40 million budget. This financial disappointment was largely due to the film’s mutilation, a fact that continued to haunt the filmmaker.

Originally, Leone planned a six-hour version divided into two parts but eventually submitted a 4-hour and 25-minute cut. However, Warner Studios and producer Arnon Milchan immediately rejected this version. In an attempt to compromise, Leone himself shortened certain scenes, resulting in a 3-hour and 49-minute European version. Yet, this version was also cut down for the American market to 2 hours and 19 minutes, and the film was restructured into a chronological order, completely distorting the work. The outcome was disastrous both critically and commercially.

“A Work Drained of Its Soul”

In the book “Conversation with Sergio Leone” by Noël Simsolo (re-published in 2024 by Capricci editions), the filmmaker discusses the sabotage of his film. “The truncated version drains my work of its soul,” he stated bitterly. For him, the original non-linear structure of the film was crucial to its narrative. By rearranging the story into chronological order, the mystery, atmosphere, and depth that Leone had intended were lost. He saw this reduction as a true aberration. “I cannot accept being told that the original version is too long. It is exactly as long as it needs to be,” he insisted.

Leone also expressed his confusion regarding the decisions made by the producers, particularly Dino De Laurentiis, another prominent figure in Italian cinema. At the Cannes Film Festival screening, De Laurentiis praised the film but suggested cutting it by 30 minutes. Leone did not hesitate to respond forcefully: “He makes two-hour films that feel like four hours, while I make four-hour films that seem to last two.” This sharp and truthful remark highlighted the difference in their cinematic visions and explained why they never worked together.

European Reception and the Legacy of the Work

Conversely, the 3-hour and 49-minute version found its audience in Europe, particularly in France, where the film received warm critical acclaim. However, despite this enthusiasm, “Once Upon a Time in America” only attracted 1.5 million viewers, a number far from the 15 million viewers of Leone’s previous masterpiece, “Once Upon a Time in the West.”

Although the 229-minute version was released on Blu-ray in 2014, it has since become extremely rare and sells for high prices. In 2011, the Cinémathèque of Bologna announced it was working on a restored 4-hour and 20-minute version, but this version has not yet been released. Meanwhile, cinephiles hope that a 4K release of Leone’s masterpiece might allow the film to be rediscovered in all its intended glory.

Thus, “Once Upon a Time in America,” despite its status among the world’s greatest cinematic works, remains a victim of the Hollywood production process that deprived it of its true narrative and emotional form. Sergio Leone never stopped fighting for his film to be seen in its entirety, and debates over its original version continue to fuel the passion of cinephiles worldwide.

The truncated version, however, remains available on Disney+.

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