Film Analysis: Once Upon A Time In America

“You see, I have a story too, Mr. Bailey. I had a friend once. A dear friend. I turned him in to save his life. He died. But he wanted it that way. Things went bad for my friend, and they went bad for me, too (Once Upon A Time in America). Once Upon A Time in America centers around a group of young Jewish thugs who embark on a quest to make it large and more importantly, rise to the absolute top of the hierarchy. While the film explores the lives of these young Jewish individuals, the plot itself pans in on the relationship between David 'Noodles ' Aaronson and Max Bercowicz - Brooklyn scoundrels who grow up to become big-time gangsters during the Prohibition era. This is not your typical form of the gangster genre with Italian hoods but rather …show more content…
It 's only a matter of time before his friends will betray one another. But it 's too late to turn back. Fearing for everyone’s life, Noodles makes the choice to make an anonymous tip to the Police in order to stop his friends from getting themselves killed. His intentions, although good, backfire when he learns that Max, Patsy, and Cockeye have been killed in a gunfight when cornered by the police. Overcome by guilt and as a wanted man, he goes into hiding for about 35 years and returns when he receives a letter from a Secretary Bailey. Noodles return to New York and has an encounter with an old friend. This last act culminates in the revelation of who has summoned old Noodles back to New York. He finally meets Secretary Bailey and to the audience’s surprise, we found out that Max has survived and had taken on a new identity as a man of great power. Noodles, however, remains unscathed to this shocking revelation. It 's as if the bitterness and malice have been drained from him, and the tremendous weight of his guilt and remorse have been lifted from his shoulders. Noodles never breaks the illusion of acknowledging the truth of his host 's identity. He responds to Max as only “Mr. Bailey,” even though he’s very much aware of his true identity. In Noodle’s mind, the Max he knew has been dead the moment he found out he was killed in the shootout. It 's almost as if he must keep Max dead in order to keep him at a distance. When Mr. Bailey makes the request for Noodles to kill him, Noodles cannot bring himself to comply with these orders. He finally has the courage and power to say no. He is no longer under the will of Max, he is free from his control. His choice reflects his genuine desire to put the past to rest and to live by the code he 's always had inside of him, but had heretofore lacked the courage to employ. It 's an