Slow, but it picks up. (a little too late)

Rating: 6/10 (1 January 2018)

This movie was a bit slow in the beginning. For me, the movie did not exactly capture and hold my attention. This was mainly because is was also hard to follow. There were many parts of the movie where I was a little confused. I wasn't sure who was who or what exactly was going on. I do however think that Gangs of New York was very educational. I think that it accurately depicted New York in that time period and what it was like to live there at the time. It showed the different ethnicities and religions that were in New York, and how they interacted and got along (or lack thereof). It also helped give an image to the revolts that took place after drafts.
On another note, there were definitely some sections of the movie that were a bit of a stretch and hard to believe. For example, the first big fight of the movie between the two rival gangs took place in the winter and there was snow on the ground, so you'd think that you'd see all the blood people lost. However, for the amount of people that were lying dead on the ground there was not nearly enough blood. Then comes a scene where two people are fist fighting and there is a ton of blood! Also, there is a part where The Butcher is shot in the chest, and lives. Now I don't know a lot about medicine, but I know back then people weren't exactly getting shot and then going out and drinking the next night. It was hard to believe that The Butcher could get shot and then seem to be fine the next day, only having a sling on his arm.
Overall, this movie was definitely a little slow in the beginning, but it does pick up. It gives a decent portrayal of life around the Civil War in New York, but it is a little unrealistic at points.