Gangs of New York (2002)

In 1862, 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, Cameron Diaz, Daniel Day-Lewis

Nominated for 10 Oscars. Another 50 wins & 125 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Amsterdam Vallon
Daniel Day-Lewis	...	Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting
Cameron Diaz	...	Jenny Everdeane
Jim Broadbent	...	Boss Tweed
John C. Reilly	...	Happy Jack
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

In the god-forsaken district of early-1860s Lower Manhattan known as the Five Points, the vicious Nativist, Bill "The Butcher" Cutting, is the supreme overlord of an area riddled with crime, prostitution, theft and murder, as the American Civil War still rages on. Sixteen whole years after the brutal murder of his father from Bill's blood-stained hands, an orphaned Irish-American, Amsterdam Vallon, returns to this melting pot of corruption to avenge his untimely death; however, a lot has changed since then. Who can remember the once-innocent boy and now a young man bent on revenge, who works his way up to the hierarchy of Five Points? Will Amsterdam ever taste the dangerous but sweet fruit of retribution?

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Plot Keywords:

new york city | gangster | political corruption | lower east side manhattan | butcher | 

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Taglines:

Freedom was born in the streets.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bill says his father was killed by the British on July 25, 1814. He most likely died in the Battle of Lundy's Lane, which was fought on that date in the Niagara Falls area. It was the bloodiest battle of the War of 1812.

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Goofs

An elderly woman at Satan's Circus is clearly pretending to sew. The needle never enters the cloth, she just waves it up and down with the thread fluttering after it.

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Quotes

Bill: Pistols?
Amsterdam Vallon: No pistols.
Bill: Good boy.

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Crazy Credits

Aside from the altered studio logos, there are no opening credits and title, except for the beginning of the movie saying "Miramax Films Presents". The rest of the credits and the title are at the end of the movie. The title of the film is made up of pieces of type that would have been used in the 19th Century to print newsletters, posters, and flyers like the ones seen throughout the film.

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Alternate Versions

Scorsese's original cut of the film was 216 minutes (3 hours & 36 minutes) long.

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Connections

Featured in Death of a Nation (2018)

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Soundtracks

Kerry Slides
Arranged by Paddy Moloney
Performed by The Chieftains
Courtesy of Claddagh Records

User Reviews

Daniel Day-Lewis: Spectacular Performance

Daniel Day-Lewis elevates this film from just "good" to "very good" or even "excellent." He is absolutely riveting, one of the most interesting "villains" I have ever seen on film. I am sorry Day-Lewis didn't win the Academy Award for his performance. He was just outstanding to watch. His facial expressions alone cracked me up!

Day-Lewis played "Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting" he is one nasty dude. However, there are no real "good guys" in this story. The supposed hero, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, is a revenge-seeking man with a ton of flaws himself. The rest of the characters are either thieves, gang members, corrupt politicians or corrupt policeman. Ah yes, another family-oriented film from that kindly director Martin Scorcese.

What Scorcese lacks in family values, he comes close to making up for in style. This is another fascinating visual film with great sets, costumes, color and camera-work. Other typical Scorcese touches are in here: Catholic-bashing and brutal language. (I question whether the f-word was used back in the days this film takes place.)

All in all, a tough film that could be too unpleasant to watch but for Lewis' outstanding performance and the spectacular visuals.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA Italy

Language:

English Irish Chinese Latin

Release Date:

20 December 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Gangs of New York

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$100,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,100,000, 22 December 2002

Gross USA:

$77,812,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$193,772,504

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax, 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