Once Upon a Time In America Opening Scene

Once Upon a Time In America is a gangster thriller. Directed by Sergio Leone.

During the opening titles there is a soundbridge of the song "God Bless America" written in 1918. The version used here is sung by Kate Smith, 1938. In this film Leone is using it sarcastically and ironically.
The first shot is a silhouette of an enigmatic femme fatale. It couyld be argued that the lighting is almost chiaroscuro lighting but is really more noir lighting. She looks quite glamarous. She is wearing pearls around her neck which can also represent tears and foreshadow what events are still to come. She is by herself making her out to be an isolated figure. She goes to turn a lamp on and three men step out. Costume here is very important and Leone has gone with the traditional trilby hat and long coats with a cigar. There is a shot from behind her when she is confronted by the gentlemen and you can see an archway over her. This is a thriller convention and implies that she has been framed in some way, shape or form. She is shot and falls dead onto a bed. The lamp she had turned on before is then turned off by one of the men. This is metaphoric for her life as the lamp light fades just as she breathes her terminal breath. The lighting in this scene is almost sepia.