Exquisite yet Flawed Film

Rating: Null/10 (18 April 2003)

Watching Martin Scorsese's long in the making 'Gangs of New York' is like watching a 12 round bout between two weary and staggering prize fighters. You witness the onslaught of blows, see the momentum change several times, and in the end can't really tell which fighter is victorious. This is the experience of watching 'Gangs of New York', and the two fighters are called "Ambitions" and "Flaws."
The film begins in the Five Points district of 1840s New York amongst a vivid gang war over turf. Amsterdam (Leonardo DiCaprio) witnesses the slaying of his father, Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson), at the blade of William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his "Native" Americans gang. So what does this son of a dead preacher-man do? Well he gros up, plots revenge by making a name under the wing of the Butcher, becoming like a surrogate son. But will vengeance consume him and turn him into blah blah blah. I'll give you three guesses where this leads and you won't need two of them.
Watch Leo DiCaprio assemble toughs, rake heels, and ne'er do wells to his Irish gang of rapscallions with facial hair that looks to be tweezed! Witness a one-dimensional Leo suck the life out of the film like a black hole! See Leo become the least frightening gangster since Frido.

Watch the horribly miscast Cameron Diaz play pin-the-tail-on-an-accent! Witness as she miserably tries to play a pickpocket with a heart of gold that falls hopelessly and illogically in love with Leo! Marvel how someone looking like Diaz would exist in a mangy slum!
See the brilliant Daniel Day-Lewis upstage our stupid hero and steal every scene he inhabits! Witness one of the greatest villains in the last decade of movies! Watch Day-Lewis almost single-handedly compensate for the film's flaws with his virtuoso performance! Admire his stove-top hat and handlebar mustache!
Witness a wonderful supporting cast including John C. Reilly, Jim Broadbent and Brendan Gleeson! Wish that they had more screen time to work with!
Wonder to yourself why in all good graces this film took nearly two years of delays to get out! Speculate away!
'Gangs' has the sharp aroma of a film heavily interfered with by its producers. The whole exercise feels like Scorsese being compromised. 'Gangs' is a meticulous recreation of 1860s New York that often evokes an epic sense of awe. The story has more resonance when it flashes to small yet tasty historical asides, like the dueling fire houses and the Draft Riots. But all of these interesting tidbits get pushed aside for our pedantic revenge storyline with pretty-boy Leo front and center. You know the producers wanted a more commercial storyline, which probably explains why Diaz has anything to do with this. And Leo? He still screams like a girl too.
The script is credited to longtime Scorsese collaborator Jay Cocks, Steven Zallian (Academy award winner for 'Shindler's List') and Kenneth Lonergan (Academy award nominee for 'You Can Count on Me'). So with all these writing credentials, don't you think one of them would realize all of the dumb things going on with the story? The ending is also very anticlimactic and ham-fisted. Just watch as we segue from a graveyard to present day New York, all thanks to the Irish rockers of U2!
I know this much, Day-Lewis needs to stop cobbling shoes and act more often. 'Gangs' is his first visit to the big screen since 1997's 'The Boxer'. He spent part of this hiatus in Italy actually making shoes. I don't know about everyone else but this man has too much talent to only be acting once every five years. Somebody buy his shoes and get him a script, post haste!
Scorsese's 'Gangs of New York' is at times sprawling with entertainment in its historic vision and at other times is infuriating, always dragging behind it a ball and chain called "stupid revenge story/love story." I'm sure the film will get plenty of awards and Oscar nods in prominent categories, and this seems like the Academy's familiar plan: ignore a brilliant artist for the majority of their career and then finally reward them late for one of their lesser films. So here's hoping Scorsese wins the Oscar he deserved for 'Raging Bull' and 'Goodfellas'.
An American Tale + Far and Away = Gangs of New York
C+