A Flawed Masterpiece,

Rating: 8/10 (19 February 2008)

Martin Scorcese's Gangs of New York is one of my favorite movies of the decade and deserved some well deserved Oscar recognition, but it like almost every other film it has man flaws from making it a masterpiece. To praise this film I must say that Daniel-Day Lewis was simply outstandingly perfect as Bill 'the Butcher' and deserved the Oscar over Adrian Brody. Also the set design/costuming was done perfectly and is probably going to be one of the last films to use complete sets instead of CGI, while also using amazing costuming which represented the time and place exceptionally. Scorcese's directing was as always, great (Oscar worthy once again). And on a final note of praise the entire cast of the film was fantastic, perfectly casted with quality performances from every cast member.
Although I give this film a lot of praise as I certainly love it, it has many minor problems with one impending large one. It's main problem is that it taps into many different themes throughout the entire movie, but fails to go deeply into any of them only tapping the surface of any of them. It felt as if the film could have been three separate films if they had focused on one or two subjects. Other minor problems can be it is an epically long film that nearly runs three hours and it seems to drag in a few parts but over all has a nice flow.
This movie certainly could have been better but it still stands as a great film, a treat for the eyes, and a pleasure to watch.