Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"They don't speak English in New York any more?" , 25 Jun 2007
For a movie that was almost 3 hours, I never managed to get bored. Viewers will love to hate Daniel D. Lewis in this role. What a performance! Many ancestors could have been part of these gangs. How people survive the times is a thought that comes to mind while watching. I can only hope that the violence depicted in the film was somewhat inflated. Have things changed since the late 1800s? Sure, but gangs still exist and corruption is more rampant than ever. In the 1840s. Natives and Irsih Americans fight to the death in New York, resulting in the death of Irish leader Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson) and Native Bill The Butcher's (Daniel Day Lewis) undisputed rule of the city's criminal underworld. Vallon's son, Amsterdam (Di Caprio) escapes. And after growing into an anonymous young man, returns to reap his revenge, yet unwittingly becomes the butcher's protégé...
Scorsese was bringing a long treasured project to the screen with Gangs, creating a hype that suffered from setbacks, delayed releases and mixed reviews. In hindsight what we have is no masterpiece, but it remains an undeniably good film, with many fine qualities to make up for its flaws.
Scorsese's recreation of the city is stunning: the level of detail completely immerses the viewer into an atmosphere scarcely read of in History books. Moreover, the rich criminal world depicted here maintains a delicate balance of understandability and chaos. Scorsese couples this with his flair for music to create a truly intoxicating mood. The photography reinforces the overall effect tenfold, wonderfully sustained and carrying scattered sparks of pure genius. For example: in one shot, Scorsese pans from newly arrived immigrants who are welcomed, given the nationality, provided a uniform, and enlisted into the Union army to coffins of dead soldiers being unloaded on another peer.
Ultimately, a film lives or dies by its screenplay and acting, and herein lies Gangs of New York's polarizing point. Whether you focus on the slightly uneven story (oddly shortened in places by pressured editing) or the fantastic performances will determine whether Gangs makes it or breaks it, but for its sheer visual power and acting it deserves to be seen. Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, Brendan Gleeson and John C. Reilly are all a joy to see when on top form, but the true feast here is Daniel Day Lewis's grand-standing, violent and xenophobic Bill The Butcher. A role that Robert De Niro (for whom it was originally intended over the years). The chances of this film becoming a favorite are slim, but at the very least you'll walk away with an indelible character to remember.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
No point to the five points, 4 May 2004
Not a terrible film, as some may have you believe, but equally not the grand epic that Scorcese seemed to think he was making. Day-Lewis' performance is grandiose but, at times it seems a little like he is just mimicking de Niro at his most caricatured. Still, it is as if he is 7ft tall given how he dominates the screen at every appearance. The cinematography and set-pieces all looked fantastic, as did the costumes, but the movie played over-long and the plot ambled to a somewhat predictable conclusion with a series of characters for whom i failed to generate any real sympathy. DiCaprio should probably avoid roles like this, his talents (and he does have some) are not suited to this role and i couldnt help but think that he represented Oliver Twist more than he did a young gang leader. And a gripe over the fight scenes and general violence - all far too sanitised. The opening fight scene plays as almost comic-book stuff and not the life or death battle it should have been. And what a shame Liam Neeson played such a small role, he could have offset Day-Lewis perfectly. Overall, a visually stunning film with grandiose ambitions and one fine performance, but lacking cohesiveness and not sufficiently engaging. A slightly wasted opportunity, but watchable nevertheless.
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20 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant and brutal, 8 Aug 2007
'Gangs of New York' was directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan. The film is loosely inspired by Herbert Asbury's 1928 book of the same name. The film is set in the middle 19th century in the Five Points district of New York City. The film opens in 1846, but most of the action takes place in the early 1860s, when the two principal controversies in New York were the great wave of Irish immigration to the city and the federal government's prosecution of the American Civil War. The story follows Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio), a young Irish American who gains the trust of William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis), leader of the Nativist gangs as they rise from crime bosses to political kingmakers during the reign of Boss Tweed (Broadbent), and culminates with a confrontation between them that coincides with the New York Draft Riots of 1863.
This is without a doubt one of the best Scorsese movies that is as bloodthirsty and disturbing as you'd expect from this genius director. 19th Century New York is captured perfectly and the grimy, dark settings really add to the shocking displays of bruality. The acting is top quality, especially Day-Lewis's superb performance as the ruthless and highly feared Bill the Butcher, which shows that he definitely has the bad guy persona down to a tee. DiCaprio plays Amsterdam very well and actually carries the tough-guy character surprisingly believably.
Overall this is a definite five-star film with excellent performances all-round. Lots of violence and action but also some shocking history to be learnt (whether or not it is all true, I'm not sure). For a nearly 3-hour film the time flies by with not one dull moment throughout. Highly recommended.
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