Great cinema

Rating: 10/10 (16 February 2003)

Gangs of New York: This movie is an exercise in how it all should be done. Everything.
The plot, although seeming simple enough (son sees father killed at hands of rival, swears revenge), is actually given multi-dimensions by the talented cast and the end result is almost an operatic tragedy, in more ways than one.
As a personal project for Scorsese, Gangs of New York is really a slam-bang history lesson. Personally, I never new anything about what happened in NYC during the 1860s. And the detail with which this is enacted is incredible. Just look at the sets, the costumes and the atmosphere!
The direction and editing is something else again. Long tracking shots, sweeping overheads, quick bursts of movement and cleanly cut montages are everywhere. The word for Scorsese's camera is 'kinetic'. It draws you in. You can easily admire the way everything is brought together despite the scale of it all. Just another jewel in Scorsese's crown.
As everyone before me has noted, Day-Lewis shines in his role as Bill the butcher, seamlessly combining humour with a kind of seething menace that works in his favour.
While some people will be put off by the violence in the film, (and there IS a lot of violence, really) I recommend it to everyone who likes great cinema. This is something you should just sit back in and let it wash over you. You will not come out of it unsatisfied.