Once Upon a Time in America is a man's drama, and most gangster-themed movies are movies in which men play the leading role. However, some of the female images in them have left a strong mark in this man's world. The following is a sample essay on reflections on the past in the United States that I brought to you. I hope you like it!
Sample essay on reflections on the past in the United States Part 1
The meaning of things lies in themselves, the meaning of the past In the face of. ?Title
"Once Upon a Time in America" ??may be the longest movie I have ever seen (229 minutes long). Although this may make people a little impatient, I think I should still be a little considerate. After all, the subject matter and genre of a good movie always match. If I refuse to accept a movie that is nearly 4 hours long, then I will also reject all short movies.
The film is narrated in two lines. The first line is the memory of "Noodles". After reporting Max's bank robbery conspiracy, "Noodles" was immersed in pain, recalling the process of starting out as a teenager, going to jail for murder, returning to his old career, and then reporting his accomplices. Although the second line is reality, it tells the story through real people of how Max escaped from his shell and made huge sums of money, turning into a politician. Finally, Max and "Noodles" get together and recall the past together. Expressing his repentance, he hopes to use "Noodles"'s hand to shoot him and die, fantasizing about atonement and escaping legal sanctions. After being rejected, he jumped into a garbage crushing truck in despair and committed suicide.
This movie uses a long length to truly reflect the history of gangs in the United States from the 1920s to the 1960s on a large level. However, this history with a unique perspective is cut into and presented from the small level of the life experience of Max and "Noodles". Max and "Noodles" are both gang members and have worked hard to achieve great careers. But their personalities are completely different. Max is decisive and ambitious; in contrast, "Noodles" is conservative and cautious. These two completely different personalities operate under the baton of the God of History, deducing the same destiny but different paths. The decisive and decisive character can certainly enable Max to build a more glorious career in the gangster field than "Noodles", but it is also enough for Max to be stunned when facing other gang members and kill them all. In comparison, although "Noodles" is more conservative and cautious, his original intention of protecting his friends does help him avoid going astray further, get back on track in time, and face life calmly.
Thieves should behave accordingly, and so should bandits. Human nature cannot be completely eliminated. Even Max, who was once a gang leader, would fantasize about a day of atonement after killing his former partners. Time flies, and the past is like smoke. When Max and "Noodles" looked at each other, they didn't know that they were facing not only each other, but also decades of dusty past. The gangster career left Max with the regret that led to his suicide; however, for "Noodles", it also left scars that are difficult to erase, just like paper, once it is wrinkled, it can no longer be smoothed out. Behind both endings, they both point to one destination, that is, gangsters can no longer become a big phenomenon. And isn’t this the progress of history?
We always say, “May the past never be looked back upon.” However, there are some past events that cannot be settled even after a long period of time. It is impossible for us to adopt a very decisive attitude towards the past. Even if you are dissatisfied, disappointed, and even want to repent like Max, you can never forget it. Having the courage to face the past may increase the suffering, but after all, it proves one's courage. Before the past is silenced, time has pointed out a wrong path. If no one is willing to agree to "please give me more advice for the rest of my life", then what else can we do besides trusting time?
Model Essay on Reflections on the Past in America Part 2
When Max and While Noodles was on vacation at the beach, a newspaper announcing the lifting of the prohibition on alcohol reached them. Sharkey made a suggestion to Max, and cooperated with the union leader Jimmy to acquire the trucks that would be sold at a low price, establish a national organization, and establish a foundation. When Noodles refused to cooperate with politicians, Max used a poisonous trick to kill his two brothers, get rid of Noodles, and take all the money to enter politics.
Many years later, Max has become a political boss, and Noodles has spent 30 years in regret. Although Max was forced to commit suicide in the end and Noodles came back, but throughout his life, Max was successful. He came from a lower-class background, and his father was sent to a lunatic asylum (so Max hates people saying, you are crazy). What is different from noodles is his ambition. When Noodles rejected Shaji's suggestion, Max told him that you can't always think like a street gangster. This is the most essential difference between the two. Noodles advocates traditional tough guy values, hates politicians, trusts friends, is loyal to love, and is not swayed by power. No matter how you look at it, this is a positive image. Max is willing to sacrifice his friends for power, and is full of tricks and cunning.
Regarding Max and Noodles, I personally prefer Max’s values, which is that the personal pursuit of money and power is better than the so-called consideration of others, and trickery is essential in human society. part.
The individual’s pursuit of money is the foundation of society and the foundation of other human qualities.
First, living for oneself is the most primitive need of people. Eat the food you like, wear good-looking clothes, and pursue the girl you like. In order to satisfy these primitive desires, you must have the ability to pursue money independently; second, You cannot replace other people's thinking and actions, because everyone's thoughts are different, and it is impossible to agree on everything. Cooperating on things with the same ideas, and parting ways when disagreements arise is the most efficient way to get along.
Trust is never an absolutely correct word. Trusting a friend does not mean giving everything to him or completely relying on him. Everything must be based on personal pursuit of money, otherwise it will be pathological trust. Noodles' trust in Max can be said to be such a pathology. If trust can benefit oneself (that is, it can increase one's ability to obtain money) or benefit both parties, then this is a good trust.
Both trickery and cunning have bad emotional overtones, but trickery and resourcefulness are just different people’s emotional overtones, and there is no difference in essence. In the process of the operation and game of human society, such things are needed to solve some problems in the operation process. With the development of the times, the rules of struggle have changed. All the methods that were previously used for granted are no longer recognized and are called tricks. New methods are constantly emerging under the new rules. Who can be said to be smarter than the other?
The merits of all values ??must be judged by their results. If such values ??can promote the development of individuals and society, it is good, otherwise it is stupid.
Reflections on Once Upon a Time in America Part 3
The director of "Once Upon a Time in America" ??tells the life of "Noodles" through the blending of memories and reality, interpreting the complex story of America's chaotic era. Social relations also highlight the dark side of human nature. It expresses the author's lament for the current situation of American society at that time and his blessing for the future. I think this is what the director wanted to express.
The words sung in the opera at the beginning of the film: May God bless America...have already set a tragic tone for the film. Then he briefly described "Noodles"'s shooting death after calling the police 30 years ago and his embarrassing escape, and then used "Noodles"'s memories as a clue to unfold that American past...
It can be seen from "Noodles" that he would rather go to the toilet than go home: his family conditions are not good. Coupled with the police who appeared later and engaged in malpractice for personal gain (confiscating pocket watches, raping young girls, and even getting involved with the underworld), we can see the misery of American society. It is precisely because of this that he did not receive an excellent education. Instead, he developed the habit of swearing and stealing and robbing for a living. However, "Noodles" also has the brilliance of humanity, and his true intention even transcends money, power and life: in order to avenge his companions, he risked his life to kill the murderer. The naive "Noodles" thought that "Mai Da" and others would think the same. After "Noodles" was released from prison, "Mai Da"'s performance was indeed eye-catching. Not only did he not misappropriate the "provident fund", but he also shared the wealth he had worked hard for for many years with Noodles. As a result, "Noodles" returned to his old business and started a dirty business with his companions (robbing a bank without hesitation is a good example). However, he could never forget Deborah in his heart, and getting together with Deborah prompted a change in his outlook on life. Her words "It's not that I don't love you, I want to be an actor, not be with a criminal like you" may be firmly engraved in "Noodles" heart. At the same time, "Mai Da" and the others discovered his behavior, which is why the atmosphere in the house was so depressed after Noodles came back. It was only natural that "Mai Da was angry with Noodles". The fact is just as Mada Mai thought, the meeting with Deborah changed the noodles: 1. In the diamond transaction, after getting payment from the businessman "Joe", "Da Mai" and the others played tricks, which made "Da Mai" Falling into deep self-blame; 2 After saving the worker leader, "Noodles" did not accept the opportunity to climb up through this relationship. These all reflect the awakening of "noodles" conscience. In sharp contrast is "Mai Da"'s betrayal: he used his wife to cheat on "Noodles" and killed his companions who had been through life and death, making him feel guilty for thirty years and unable to extricate himself. He even "robbed" "Noodles"'s lover? Deborah. The dark society turned Mai Da, who valued love and justice when he was young, into a profit-driven beast. Finally, "Mai Da" also jumped into the garbage truck in despair.
"Making a film will shorten my life by five years." Director Leon put all his emotions and efforts into this film, especially the clever transitions during the transition, which makes readers feel Memories and reality are integrated, confusing and difficult to grasp.
Details that are difficult to detect and understand:
1. When describing childhood noodles, there are a lot of "sexual" behaviors. The director uses this to illustrate the lack of sex education for children represented by noodles, as well as the lack of overall education.
2. When Noodles and Deborah return home after separation, readers will find that the atmosphere is very depressing, and that Madam is quite dissatisfied with the meeting between Noodles and Deborah, and loses her temper with the woman. Some readers believe that this is due to being beaten in childhood, injuring the lower body, and losing sexual function (as shown in the movie), and thus they are jealous of the sexual relationship between Noodles and Deborah. I think it should be understood as: Mai Da is worried that this will affect the noodles and affect their business.
Because, in the subsequent diamond transaction, Mai Da played a trick and took advantage of others. Noodles was very angry and asked Mai Da why he didn't tell him. Mai Da said that he was afraid that the noodles would be moved by compassion and hinder them from doing things. Noodles also admitted that if he had known, he would have stopped them. This shows that: 1. After contacting Deborah, Noodles was indeed deeply affected. 2. Through "Mai Da did not tell him in advance", it can also be seen that Ma Da is worried about his psychological changes. 3. There is no disorder in Mai Da’s sexual function. Thirty years later, Noodles went to see Deborah. When he left, he met Mada's son, who was very similar to Mada in childhood. It can be seen that Mai Da has no sexual dysfunction.
3. Noodles raped Deborah. Readers may have questions about whether Noodles loves Deborah. In fact, Noodles loved Deborah deeply, otherwise he would not be sad because of her departure, let alone change because of her. In the car, Deborah took the initiative to kiss Noodles, but when Noodles wanted to have sex with her, Deborah would rather die. Explanation: Deborah loves noodles. But she said: "I want to be an actor and don't want to marry a criminal." So she could only hide her love in her heart. As for Noodles raping her, it reflects Noodles' ambition to get what he wants. After all, he lacked education in his childhood and still had an ugly side.
4. The director’s method of combining fiction and reality may confuse the readers, and they don’t understand why the noodles are young at the end. In fact, after Mai Da committed suicide, all the readers saw were memories of noodles. First there was the running carriage, which was the scene of people's carnival after the "Prohibition" was promulgated. Later, he returns to the opium shop in his memory and ends the film with a smile.
5. After getting old, Noodles went to see Fatty Mo and saw in front of the TV that the trade union leader who once protected the interests of the lower class had become a corrupt politician. The reader does not understand the director's intention. The materialistic old society has changed the innocent friendship between Noodles and Mai Da, and naturally it can also change the influential figures who once safeguarded the interests of the people. Through the change of this leader, it is ironic that society corrodes the human heart. Faced with him talking on the TV, Noodles said: "That's bullshit again."
The truth contained in the movie is thought-provoking
Reflections on America's Past Model Essay 4
Once Upon a Time in America is a man's drama, and gangster-themed movies are mostly movies in which men play the leading role. However, some of the female images in them have left a strong mark in this man's world.
First of all, let’s talk about the fat girl Paige. Her values ??are very simple. Everything can be exchanged with the body. Even a piece of delicious cake is enough to make her undress. Her premature growth gave her a plump figure, and her existence also allowed several male protagonists to experience the joy of fish and water. During their youth, she added a lot of knowledge about gender. After becoming an adult, Paige still shuttles among people. Her needs are very direct and therefore easy to be satisfied. She is happy and simple. What she pursues is the relationship with her bedmate and the one she considers equal. exchange. Her life is fulfilling and leisurely, and she can fully enjoy herself in her own little world.
What really fascinates the male protagonist Noodles is Deborah, a somewhat sultry young artistic woman. She likes noodles, and she can expose her body in front of him, but unlike Peggy, her attitude of being naked and refusing to welcome him immediately makes her state noble. She lives at the bottom, but she has an upward ambition, which is a strong desire. Her dream of leaping forward also creates an insurmountable gap between her and noodles. Her pursuit is understandable, but it is incompatible with Noodles' mentality of being content with the status quo and not striving for advancement. Although the ending of "Once Upon a Time in America" ??is that being ordinary is a blessing, and having no desires is strong, but in the passionate youth era, Deborah the noodle fish has been unable to get along with each other several times. There is love between them, but Deborah has a noble mentality. Bola always keeps himself superior. This kind of unequal love can only lead to tragedy in the end. Noodles can no longer maintain an elegant posture. When a woman wants to leave him to pursue his ideal, Noodles feels that the only way to retain her is to forcefully possess her. The result of living with her is self-evident. The relatively harmonious relationship was immediately torn apart, resulting in decades of separation. Deborah's pursuit of advancement coincides with that of the second male protagonist, Max, and she has become one of the triggers for the rebellion between Noodles and the Max brothers.
Of course, with Max’s character, he would not betray Noodles simply because of a woman, but his love for Deborah exists, from how many times he broke Noodles several times and spent a long time alone with Deborah. It can be seen that he is not as smart as Noodles, but he is more ambitious and more unscrupulous than Noodles. He finally succeeded. He faked his death and became a very important figure. Deborah also became his mistress, but he could not let go of his heart. But he pestered him for decades. In the end, he wanted to repay everything with death, but Noodles didn't do it and ended up committing suicide. Time is merciless, and beauties age easily. After Deborah reunited with Noodles, she still showed her love for this man. However, everything seemed a bit late. If ideals turn into ambitions, they can only raise themselves to a high level. When the sky falls, who can look back on the past? In fact, there are many beautiful things. As long as you slow down, you can see the beautiful scenery along the way.
Among the many female characters in the film "Once Upon a Time in America", there is another interesting task, that is Carol.
This is a combination of Peggy and Deborah. She can be said to be incompetent but very smart. Several very vulgar and interesting things happened to her. While pursuing physical pleasure, she was also trying to find support. After meeting the gang of four men, she quickly integrated with Max. She was undoubtedly smart and saw Max's ambition and dominance. status. At this time, she could get rid of her husband without hesitation, and she was willing to tolerate Max's indifference. When Max wanted to rob the bank crazily, she proposed her plan to Noodles, and Noodles implemented the plan. Falling into Max's trap. Therefore, this woman plays a very important role in the film and is a key figure.
Once Upon a Time in America is a good movie. I used to be afraid of the nearly 4-hour running time and didn’t dare to watch it. Now I feel that although the movie is long, it is not boring. Robert De Niro plays Noodles, and his acting skills are amazing. Superb and worth a look. Men create the world and women embellish it. These heroines who are not vases add endless colors to the film.
五 Any comment would be a blasphemy to this old movie in some sense. We can no longer use the word "classic" to evaluate this movie. In many aspects, this Western film "Once Upon a Time in America", which was released in February 1984, has become a benchmark, demonstration, and teaching existence in the history of world cinema. Because there are so many things that can be expressed, for a while, I couldn’t even find the place to write.
"Once Upon a Time in America" ??is a film about relationships between men and men, between men and women, between friendship and love, between loyalty and betrayal, between money and friendship, decision or hesitation, desire Or feelings, bonds or chic? "Once Upon a Time in America" ??integrates too many things. In this movie, what you see is not a profile of this society, but the entire American society in the 35 years from 1933 to 1968. , and even further space and time.
In this time and space, we feel that everything is real. The four friends Max and Noodles have grown up with are real. We can touch the growth trajectory of their bodies and friendships. , we touch their smiles and deaths, we touch Noodles’ heartfelt love for Debra, we also touch Noodles’ pure physical desire for the washerwoman Peggy, we touch With the gunshots that resounded over their lives, we can even touch the faint melancholy that permeated the entire film. In this melancholy, we have to pay tribute to the classic soundtrack of "Once Upon a Time in America"; and this The sadness is deep into the bone marrow. Through the sadness of Noodles and Max's personal lives, it has become a kind of social injury, even an injury that human nature cannot bear to read suddenly.
In this time and space, we feel that everything is illusory. The so-called friendship is illusory. One moment, the youngest Dominic was dancing happily in front of Noodles, Squint, Patrick and Max. The next moment, he was shot and killed. The scene was also made into a movie poster, becoming an unsurpassed classic in poster design; the so-called life is illusory, and the lives of several people were all explained vividly in 3 hours and 45 minutes, so long, yet so short , when several gangsters whom Noodles had been hanging out with since childhood were lying dead on the street, and when the same time was engraved on their inscriptions, they truly realized "not to be born in the same year, the same month and the same day, but to die in the same year, the same month and the same day." There was a moment , this feeling even surpassed China's Liu Guan and Zhang Taoyuan's three sworn brothers; the so-called love is illusory. Noodles spent his whole life loving one person, but in the end his beloved woman Debra fell to him under careful design. In the arms of his brothers; the so-called money and power are also illusory. Max spent his whole life designing and betraying his brothers to get the so-called success, but in the end he still had to face the cruelty and retribution of being deprived of all. The seemingly tall garbage truck took Max away. The film did not explain where Max ended up. It might be a remote village or a small town, but the power and money he had deliberately obtained would not be with him. He spent the rest of his life.
I have to say, Noodles and Max. They are two specimens of men. Noodles is a man of temperament. He has the roughness and loyalty of a gangster, but he is also delicate. From beginning to end, he is always Noodles. He is unwilling to do things that go against his will. Max, on the other hand, is calculating, calm, and ruthless. Not only does he have no true feelings for women, but in the end, we find that he has always used or even betrayed his brothers. Noodles has been deceived, used, or deprived of his life by Max. Noodles' beloved Debra eventually became Max's. Noodles' brother had to be buried with Max. Noodles' money was monopolized by Max. Noodles even had to spend 35 years Come to repent and feel guilty for Max's elaborate scam. The brilliance of director Leon lies in the fact that from the moment Max and Noodles met, he laid the groundwork for the relationship between the two of them. The young Noodles and his friends tried hard to rob a drunkard, but Max got there first. From the perspective of Max, who was sitting in the carriage, the Noodles under the carriage were just a group of wretched street gangsters.
If Noodles and his friends knew that their relationship with Max would begin and end with exploitation, I wonder what they would think about their lives? When the young Noodles was still When he was worried about Max's safety in the water, who knew that Max had secretly climbed onto the boat and in turn teased Noodles in this way. Their relationship lasted throughout their lives. Perhaps in Max's view, the Noodles were marionettes in his hands that could be used at any time or discarded when it was time to throw them away. It's a pity that the Nudels have always regarded Max as a true friendship. In this unequal relationship, Max has become their God, the God who can control their destiny at any time, just like Max has messed up their lives. I don’t mind the hospital nursery number plate at all: “Maybe we can change their destiny, let some people live a good life, and let others get what they deserve.”
I I have always believed that this world is a cycle of reincarnation, the reincarnation of good and evil, the reincarnation of beauty and ugliness. In the end, when Max judged that he was going to be killed by the interest group, he handed the gun to Noodles. He only wanted to "die under Noodles' gun." I believe that in the heart of this man full of intrigues, he also regards Noodles as friends. Unfortunately, for him, love is for betrayal and friends are for use. He "only wants to die under Noodles' gun", isn't it a kind of atonement or a relief he seeks? But for Noodles, although he knows that Max's break with him is inevitable , but this man still has a stubborn belief in friendship in his heart, "Please let me know when you clean me." Does what he said to Max show the naivety of this man? Or is it right? The last fantasy of friendship? But for Max, perhaps from that moment on, the purge had begun, and from the beginning, there was no intention to "notify" Noodles, and everything was carried out under a conspiracy.
Let’s talk about Noodles’ love. Young Noodles got the first experience in his life from a policeman. Max was also present at the time, but Max didn't rush onto the field like Noodles. When Noodles finished quickly due to his inexperience, he started calmly behind. From the close-up of the camera, we can see Noodles' helpless smile. This small detail is also a kind of difference and confrontation between the two men. Noodles loves Debra deeply, but every time he goes on a date with Debra, he is peeped and interrupted by Max. Debra, a seemingly innocent woman, although she is in love with Noodles on the surface, she is actually the same type of person as Max. She is good at calculating and desperate to climb up and get ahead. She knew Max's tricks very well, so every time a date was interrupted, she would say to Noodles: "Your mother asked you to go home for dinner." When she learned that Debra was going to Hollywood, Noodles raped Debra in the car; rather than Noodles' violence, it was the man's despair and wailing at the lack of love. But even in this case, Debra still left Noodles and went to Hollywood. On the platform, in stark contrast to Noodles' hesitation and helplessness, Debra looked back without any regrets. In the film, there is also a scene of Noodles raping a woman. In addition to Debra, the other scene is when Noodles and his guys were hired to rob a jeweler, and they faced the lustful jeweler. The beautiful lover Carol, Max resisted pushing her to Noodles, because Max understood that this was not the time to vent his passion, but Noodles did not hesitate to rape or be raped under that situation. Raped Carol. This is also the difference in the personalities of these two men. Later, Carol met these men again, and she could never forget the man who raped her. Because he was wearing a mask at the time, Max pretended to be Noodles at this time and became Carol's new lover. For Noodles, although he committed violent rape, he never really and completely got any of them, whether it was Peggy, the washerwoman who was the original object of pure sexual desire, or the one he truly loved. Debra, or Carol, whom he later had a little affection for, these women who were supposed to be him all ended up in the arms and body of his so-called brother Max.
Noodles, in love, failed completely and gained nothing. This is a choice of character and a deliberate trick of fate.
In terms of the transformation of time and space, this movie set an almost unsurpassable benchmark for latecomers. This kind of spatio-temporal narrative method, whether in terms of the transformation of details or the grasp of the big picture, has almost reached a state of proficiency in which "the elephant is invisible and the big sound is silent". This is no longer something that can only be grasped by personal wishes or general skills.
The film "Once Upon a Time in America" ??is structurally wide-open, yet extremely mellow. It starts with the Chinese Shadow Puppet Theater (actually an opium den) and ends with the Chinese Shadow Puppet Theater. Noodles, who had just experienced the catastrophe of life and death, was lying on the bed in the theater with a smile on his face, looking at the next 35 years of his life. This time and space is both very long and very short.