Thumbs Up For Daniel-Day Lewis

Rating: Null/10 (5 January 2003)

:::CONTAINS SPOILERS::::
The idea behind this movie is great. It's about the wars between the Gangs that would later form the New York population. And for the most part, this is very well shown. Daniel-Day Lewis gives out an outstanding performance with Bill The Butcher, and the initial thought is that the movie is brilliant as well. However, there are some flaws, that fail to make this movie one of the best of the start of 2003. I don't have much against Leonardo Dicaprio's acting, but I said it, and I'll say it again, he fails to deliver the strong character he should. He isn't suited for this kind of role. Although he tries, some of his attempts to seem a rough rebellion often are somewhat amusing. Watch the scene when he eats an apple in a circle with his friend John. Sorry, but I made a grin during that one, even if it wasn't meant like that. Towards the ending, Scorcese somewhat overcomplicated things. The main idea was lost in the many different small happenings, such as John being a traitor, the small romance between Amsterdam and Jenny, etc. It distracts Amsterdam's hate towards Bill Cutting. Also, and I found this to be a tremendous shame, in the ending, when Amsterdam finally delivers Cutting to God, the blood is exaggerated. It wasn't as tasteful to see Cutting die while blood is flowing like a fountain over Amsterdam. Neither was it good for it to be a special moment, a moment of honor. All in all, the movie was good, and it without some mistakes, it was extraordinary. I give it a 7/10.