Grim, violent, but brilliantly detailed and moving epic drama.

Rating: Null/10 (2 July 2003)

Pretty much ignored at the Oscars this year, `Gangs of New York' deserved a bit more of the Academy's attention than it received. Twenty-five years in the making, it was worth the wait as the finished product is quite a good one. This is classic Scorsese given a periodic setting: lowlifes, hellish streets, and crime-filled landscapes. It is also a superb follow-up to Scorsese's last outing- the equally impressive `Bringing out the Dead'.

Given the technology in the hectic world of today, `Gangs of New York' wouldn't have been pulled off with quite as oomph had it been made 20-25 years ago. Digital effects were very sparse back then, and cardboard studio settings would seem obvious. The recreation of the Five Points is magnificent to say the least. Truly, one of the best works in cinematography, set decoration and art direction to date. But this is too be discarded as a `technically impressive movie' (The Matrix, Star Wars etc.), as the narrative that follows is a strong one that holds up well against the booming shadows of the set pieces.
But the real star here is Martin Scorsese and his mesmerising sleight of hand. Perhaps a bit too gritty and violent, but he runs this show and brings back the vividly hellish, dank New York landscape that know other director can pull-off quite as well. He was the most deserving nominee at the Oscars and by all means should have won. Being from Ireland myself, the accents are hard to judge. I find it ironic how most of the American actors (John C. Reilly, Henry Thomas etc.) were given `Oirish' accents, while most Irish actors (Daniel Day Lewis, Jim Broadbent etc.) were given American accents.

Some performances are good but others are hard to judge. The lead `average Joe' part goes to Leo DiCaprio. He does the best job with the material he is given, and isn't half-bad, but this probably isn't his finest hour to make the role his own. His accent comes and goes to a very vague effect. The same applies to Cameron Diaz. She gave the part her all, but she's much better at the lighter roles, and the accent is undefined. Daniel Day Lewis' performance is a bit of an enigma. Occasionally good in the operatically menacing role, in others he is just too hammy. He sticks to the `New Yawkish' accent throughout, but that is very hard to comprehend. The Irish accent was much more convincing in all his other films. In fairness, it is a dead-on impression of William Cutting, but simply too farfetched and often over-the-top to have deserved the Oscar. Supporting performances are quite good from the likes of Brendan Gleeson, Jim Broadbent and Henry Thomas. But you get the strong feeling that much of the scenes with John C. Reilly (Magnolia, The Hours) and Cara Seymour (American Psycho, Adaptation) were left on the cutting room floor.
Another flaw is the fact the movie is simply too long. After the `Leo-recovering-in-the-cave' scene it loses much of its momentum. Certainly not one for the squeamish, `Gangs of New York' is still a powerful epic that deserved at least three wins out of the ten Oscar nominations it received (particularly Best Director). Visually impressive but also deep and meaningful, this is a superbly detailed and often under-appreciated picture. My IMDb rating: 7.4/10.