Gangs of New York (2002)

In 1863, Amsterdam Vallon returns to the Five Points area of New York City seeking revenge against Bill the Butcher, his father's killer.

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers:

Jay Cocks (story), Jay Cocks (screenplay),

Stars:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz

Nominated for 10 Oscars. Another 41 wins & 64 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Amsterdam Vallon
Daniel Day-Lewis	...	Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting
Cameron Diaz	...	Jenny Everdeane
Jim Broadbent	...	William 'Boss' Tweed
John C. Reilly	...	Happy Jack Mulraney
Henry Thomas	...	Johnny Sirocco
Liam Neeson	...	'Priest' Vallon
Brendan Gleeson	...	Walter 'Monk' McGinn
Gary Lewis	...	McGloin
Stephen Graham	...	Shang
Eddie Marsan	...	Killoran
Alec McCowen	...	Reverend Raleigh (as Alec Mccowen)
David Hemmings	...	Mr. Schermerhorn
Lawrence Gilliard Jr.	...	Jimmy Spoils (as Larry Gilliard Jr.)
Cara Seymour	...	Hell-Cat Maggie

Storyline

1863. America was born in the streets. In this movie, we see Amsterdam Vallon returning to the Five Points of America to seek vengeance against the psychotic gangland kingpin Bill the Butcher who murdered his father years ago. With an eager pickpocket by his side and a whole new army, Vallon fights his way to seek vengeance on the Butcher and restore peace in the area. However this is more said than done.

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Plot Keywords:

butcher | new york city | revenge | violence | riot | 

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Taglines:

America Was Born In The Streets.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | History

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for intense strong violence, sexuality/nudity and language

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax Film Corp. [us] Official Facebook

Country:

USA Italy

Language:

English Irish Chinese Latin

Release Date:

20 December 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pandillas de Nueva York

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$97,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$227,236 (Hong Kong) (14 March 2003)

Gross:

$77,679,638 (USA) (11 April 2003)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax Films, Initial Entertainment Group (IEG), Alberto Grimaldi Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

167 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original budget was $83 million.

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Goofs

One shot during the opening fight scene shows Bill the Butcher killing several people with his meat cleaver and knife, yet the blades stay clean.

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Quotes

Bill: Is this it priest, the Pope's new army, a few crusty bitches and a hand full of rag tags?
Priest Vallon: Now, now, Bill, you swore this was a battle between warriors, not a bunch of miss nancies, so warriors is what I brought.
[various Irish Gangs proceed to appear]

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Crazy Credits

We Gratefully acknowledge all the individuals and institutions who contributed their historical knowledge to this film.

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Connections

Referenced in Martin Scorsese, l'émotion par la musique (2005)

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Soundtracks

"Devil Amongst the Tailors"
Performed by Vittorio Schiboni, Massimo Giuntini, Rodrigo D'Erasmo, Mariano De Simone

User Reviews

Not That Bad but It's Not A Classic Scorsese Picture

" What did you think of Gangs Of New York ? " I asked my father who is also a big Scorsese fan .

" I thought it was a load of " ££$%^^$"£* £$% " he replied " The actors looked like they were all going to burst out singing "

I could see where he was coming from although I didn't disagree with him 100 % . GANGS OF NEW YORK had some really extreme opinions from its audience ,a point reflected in the comments thrown at it on this site .I didn't think it was as bad as my dad made out but like I said I could seewhere he was coming from

My major problem with the movie is the screenplay . the opening shot sees Bill " The Butcher " Cutting kill Priest Vallon in front of his son who runs away swearing revenge for his dead father . From that point onwards we know that the story will end years later with a confrontation between the two protagonists so there's no more dramatic twists for the story to take . Actually this in itself isn't too bad but what spoils the story is the way it's held up with the character interaction between Amsterdamn and Jenny Everdeane . Scorsese doesn't do romantic interlude very well and this movie proves it . In amongst this diversion there's something of a plot hole since Bill takes the young Amsterdamn under his wing even though he knows who he is . If you bumped off someones father in a street fight would you adopt their kids ? I didn't think so

This could have been an absolutely brilliant script and it is very good in places where we see how the gangs are structured , their ethnic mix and their political affiliations - Some are protestant with members who were born in America , some are catholic with many members born in Ireland , all are anglophobe and they all hate each other . We also see one of the most cynical episodes in American history where immigrants getting off ships at New York are immediately conscripted into the Union army unless they pay 300 dollars which eventually leads to the draft riots . When the movie concentrates on these parts of the plot it's a great film but becomes heavily bogged down by the character subplots

If Scorsese had directed this 20 years ago with a fraction of the budget he had here this could have been his masterwork but he seems to have overawed by riches . Everything is just a bit too grandiose and operatic to be entirely convincing . Charles Dickens had visited the five points and is recorded as saying it was the worst place on Earth . Scorsese makes the streets a little too clean , a little too Hollywood grunge , a little too glamorous in spite of everything . Leonardo Dicaprio is a very underrated actor held back by his startling good looks but he's wrong as Amsterdamn and wasn't right for the part which should have gone to an unknown . Cameron Diaz is totally unconvincing as Jenny and Scorsese could have easily given the part to a real life NY hooker while Daniel Day Lewis gives a powerhouse performance as Bill Cutting , however the role is slightly overplayed especially compared to Lewis's other work

Indeed everyone involved in GANGS OF NEW YORK in whatever capacity has done far better in other movies and at the end of the day this is a very unsatisfying flawed picture which received more nominations than it did prizes at award ceremonies , and I'm somewhat happy about that because this movie isn't a crowning achievement for anyone , especially Martin Scorsese or Daniel Day Lewis who are capable of better things

Seven out of Ten