Gangs of New York (2002)

Rating: 9/10 (15 July 2019)

Directed by Martin Scorsese. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, Jim Broadbent, Brendan Gleeson, Henry Thomas, John C. Reilly, Liam Neeson, Gary Lewis, Lawrence Gilliard Jr. (R)
Grand, sprawling Scorsese epic set in the New York City slums during the mid-19th century blending (embellished) history and the fictional story of DiCaprio seeking revenge against Day-Lewis for the death of his gang leader father. A feast for the senses, especially Dante Ferretti's sensational set design and a soundtrack mixing eclectic folk compositions with Howard Shore's stirring score (to say nothing for an Oscar-nominated tune from U2), it's like plunging into a grimy furnace for the better part of three punishing hours and emerging crusty, smeared, victorious. Like his other gangster sagas, Scorsese fills the story and screen with juicy details on the fringes that elevates the material above mere revenge story set in city filth; it's ultimately about the bloody birth of "America" as fought on the streets of its largest, messiest metropolis. Loses some narrative momentum in the last hour but rarely falls short of engrossing, oft-mesmerizing. Day-Lewis tears into the role of the rapacious but undeniably charismatic Bill the Butcher with so much relish that it's nearly impossible to take eyes off him; so potent, he often reduces his primary co-stars (DiCaprio & Diaz, both doing solid period work) to mere fresh meat wanting for tenderizing. Not quite on the same tier as Scorsese's most searing, towering masterpieces, but very close, and this one is arguably the most purely ambitious film of his career.
91/100