They all thought that they were fighting in the name of God.

Rating: 7/10 (26 July 2017)

I don't think that you're supposed to like anybody in this epic story of civil war era New York City where hatred because of different Christian faiths shows the hypocrisy of an evil time. It was the era of slavery, the time where brother fought brother, where corruption was king, and survival meant getting what somebody else owned. In a sense, it was as bad, or possibly worse, than life in the old country, all in the name of religion and keeping the unwanted out, or at least down. The issues of the draft leads to the riots as men able to buy their way out find free blacks taking their jobs for less money, revealing even more hatred and leading to really inhumane treatment of the newly free that has shaped racial views across the country today. This all makes me wonder if supposedly educated, civilized men were really barbarians in expensive suits.
There has been much written and documented about New York City history, and a spectacular PBS documentary goes into detail about rial hatred as New York became the megacity of a country not yet at its centennial. It starts decades before the civil war with a nasty fight between Irish immigrants (the "dead rabbits" gang) and American born brutes (simply called the Native Americans) where a young Irish boy witnesses the brutal slaying of his father (Liam Neeson) in battle and years later (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) returns for revenge against the killer (Daniel Day Lewis). DiCaprio has been institutionalized for over a decade, and his seething anger hides behind a seemingly calm but determined demeanor. DiCaprio manages to worm his way into Lewis's circle, becoming one of his few confidantes, only awaiting the moment to strike. A rather nasty streetwalker/petty thief (Cameron Diaz) begins a love/hate relationship with him. While it's nice to see women in this era being portrayed realistically, there's nothing nice about her as she is quite crafty for such a soft looking lass.
While the layout of the city hasn't changed, architecture has, and the Five Points area of downtown Manhattan looks nothing like this now. Real life famous New Yorkers of the time (or infamous in the case of Boss Tweed) appear throughout; The head of Tammany hall who created much of the hatred between the Irish immigrants and the natives is also joined by Horace Greeley (the man honored with a park near 34th and 6th Avenue) and the Schemmerhorn family, and views of their lavish Fifth Avenue homes are seen, both as splendid reminders of an old glamorous midtown now gone and as the subject for violent break-ins that certainly ended up with brutal murders of some of them.
While DiCaprio and Diaz are excellent, it is Lewis who commands most of the attention with his brutish characterization outlined with an earthy charm. The film made me feel like I went back in time over 150 years, and even though there are other other eras of New York history I'd prefer to visit, I'm glad I got to spend nearly three hours in reel time as opposed to real time. As well made as this is, I found it more than just a little repulsive overall, and certainly won't be revisiting this like other modern classics. Technically and historically, it is brilliant, but I cannot praise this as the masterpiece that it's been made out to be.
Violent and disturbing, this does still feel as if it is being somewhat truthful, even though it's a bit too exploitative as far as the sexuality and bloodshed are concerned. There's a few presumed homosexual prostitutes seen among the street whores, dressed in women's clothing, acting rather mincing, yet still showing facial hair, and it's interesting to see a subject of ancient New York history that prior to the 20th century little is known about. I found their being right out in the open rather far-fetched, however, and I wonder the reasons for director Martin Scorsese including such characters in a story that didn't require them. The historical aspect of this era should be documented on film as it has been here, but the rancid atmosphere prevents it from pulling me in completely. Nothing has changed much outside the architecture, automobiles and most unfortunately, technology.