Besides the original music , the film used source music , including : '' Once Upon a Time in America '' premiered at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival on 23 May and received a " 15-minute standing ovation " . In the United States , the film received a wide release in 894 theaters on June 1 , 1984 , and grossed $ 2.4 million during its opening weekend . It ended its box office run with a gross of just over $ 5.3 million on a $ 30 million budget , and became a box office flop . The financial and critical disaster of the American release almost bankrupted The Ladd Company . Eventually , the film premiered in Leone 's native Italy out of competition at the 41st Venice International Film Festival in September 1984 . That same month , the film was released wide in Italy on September 28 , 1984 , in its 229-minute version
1984 Cannes Film Festival
1984 Cannes Film Festival
Once Upon a Time in America