A depiction of the gangs surrounding lower Manhattan, during the years of the Civil War. It also touches on the first time the U.S. government instituted a draft.

Rating: 6/10 (6 January 2015)

I thought this movie was very good, however the story could have been told in less than three hours. There were several moments that were drawn out and could have been either shortened or cut out of the movie due to their insignificance to the story line. Also, there is a lot of historically inaccurate information in this movie. One of the most obvious is the character played by Cameron Diaz. Diaz's character, a pick pocketing hooker during the times of the 1800's would never look or stay as clean as she is with a near perfect set of teeth. The performance by Daniel Day Lewis was extraordinary. He was captivating throughout the film. His emotion from start to finish could be felt the entire time. Leonardo DiCaprio was another bright spot. He delivered another stellar performance however his good looks and soft features hardly represent a mid nineteenth century Irish immigrant. Overall the film provided good entertainment but could have tampered down the blood and gore while till maintaining the plot.