Hat, Knifes and Pistols off to Martin

Rating: 8/10 (10 February 2005)

Will Martin Scorsese ever make a bad film? Well, so far in his 30+ years in the movie-making industry, his made nothing but shear classics (like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Casino), but that Oscar is standing right there and he just can't get to it. He's had unbelievable success with audiences and critics but not the Academy. If Robert De Niro can get an Oscar for a breathtaking performance in a Scorsese movie (Raging Bull), why can Scorsese himself win one.
This is one of Scorsese's few De Niroless epics. Here he swaps the Twentieth Century for the Nineteenth Century, guns for carving knifes and there's no Joe Pesci character shout the 'F' word every two seconds. Academy Award Nominee Leonardo DiCaprio (Best Supporting Actor 1993 - What's Eating Gilbert Grape), Academy Award Winner Daniel Day-Lewis (Best Actor 1989 - My Left Foot) and Cameron Diaz head a brilliantly talented cast.
The film starts in 1847 New York, on a day where two gangs, the Dead Rabbits lead by 'Priest' Vallon (Academy Award Nominee Liam Neeson - Best Actor 1994 - Schindler's List) and the Natives lead by William 'Bill the Butcher' Cutting (Day-Lewis), go into battle over a building called The 5 Points. The battle is watched by young Amsterdam Vallon (Cian McCormack), the son of 'Priest'. Amsterdam watches Cutting kill his father. He is then sent to the Hell Gate Centre of Form by Cutting. 16 years later Amsterdam (now played by DiCaprio) returns New York where he becomes Cuttings apprentice, while planning his revenge. And the great thing is that Cutting has no idea who he really is.
Amazing sets, Beautiful performances and excellent direction. The battles are brilliantly choreographed.