Movie: Gangs Of New York
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz
Directed by Martin Scorcese (Miramax Films)
Reviewed by Rusty Pipes


Welcome to the Mean Streets of 19th century New York.

Gangs Of New York is an epic tale about a period in the city's history that was swept under the rug until Ken Burns brought it back into the public's mind a couple years ago. Scorcese fills in all the details about the bawdy, tempestuous days when there was civil war within the city as well as between the states.

The story that Scorcese tells is one of revenge. Young Amsterdam Vallon (DiCaprio), who saw his father knifed to death as a boy by Bill "The Butcher" Cutting (Day Lewis), has returned home as a man to the lawless neighborhood of Five Points. He is determined to get inside The Butcher's inner circle in order to knife him in return. So begins a trail of deceit and murder. Like an abattoir, this movie is drenched in blood.

Daniel Day-Lewis is probably going to get an Oscar for his work. He has a commanding presence throughout the movie and like Amsterdam, and the rest of the city, we are both attracted and repelled by his deadly charm. Amsterdam seems one dimensional in comparison, he has no purpose in life other than to kill his father's killer. He never shows a human kindness to anyone; even the affections of The Butcher's paramour, Jenny, (Diaz) cannot change his path.

That's really the only weakness in a stunning, enthralling production. If only Vallon the Younger had shown some redeeming quality, we might have been on his side, but no, he's a thief and a brawler in his own right and there's nothing to like. None of these people are the people that built America. We are still having to deal with their selfish, rascist and even fascist real-Americans-first legacy today.

Still, this is a hell of a production that overwhelms you with a marvelously detailed vision of mid-1800's New York. Martin Scorcese has only added to his own legend with this towering epic.

The Skinny:
Am I glad I saw the film? Absolutely
Would I go to see it again? Sure, next time I feel like bathing in the blood of street fights.

(Also starring Jim Broadbent and Liam Neeson; Music by Robbie Robertson, Howard Shore and others; Written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zallian and Kenneth Lonergan)

© 2003 - Rusty Pipes