From the moment the first Irish drums started to beat I was captivated.

Rating: Null/10 (5 January 2003)

There will be a lot of criticism about this film, especially about the historical facts and the violence, but you've got to ask, does it really matter? What you have when here is a masterpiece of a film. Not the best film of the year but still a very good contender. Ever since I saw Titanic my opinion of Leonardo Dicaprio had gone down but this month I have seen him give two great performances, but the real star of 'Gangs' has to be Daniel Day-Lewis. What a performance to make coming out of retirement! And I was even drawn to tears for Cameron Diaz! Aside from the acting the visual shots were great, especially the opening fight scene between the Natives and the Dead Rabbits. I truly felt part of the action and cringed, looked away and laughed at the right moments as did the guy next to me. The music definitely helped with this, I loved it and have since bought the soundtrack. 'Gangs' storyline was not what I expected, but I was very much surprised and pleased. Well done Scorcese, but we expect more like it.