'' is a
2002 film set in the middle
19th Century in the
Five Points district of
New York City . It was directed by
Martin Scorsese and written by
Jay Cocks ,
Steven Zaillian and
Kenneth Lonergan . The film is loosely inspired by
Herbert Asbury 's 1928 book ''The Gangs of New York''. It was distributed by
Miramax Films .
''Gangs of New York'' is about the conflict between the "native" (
Mostly Protestant ) criminal underworld associated with the
Know Nothing s and the immigrant, (
Mostly Catholic ) gangs aligned with
Tammany Hall . Amsterdam Vallon (DiCaprio) is a young
Irish American who gains the trust of William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting (Day-Lewis), leader of the Nativist gangs. The character of Cutting is based on
Bill 'The Butcher' Poole , a real-life leader of the
Bowery Boys gang who is buried in
Green-Wood Cemetery in
Brooklyn , New York.
The film begins in
1846 and quickly jumps to the early
1860s . The two principal issues of the era in New York were Irish immigration to the city and the northern federal government's execution of the
American Civil War . The story follows the Bill Cutting in his roles as crime boss and political kingmaker under the helm of
Boss Tweed (Broadbent). It culminates in a confrontation between Cutting and his mob against Amsterdam and his immigrants, coinciding with the
New York Draft Riots of 1863.
It is 1846. In the Lower Manhattan
"Five Points" district, a territorial war raging for years between the gangs of the "Nativist" faction (comprising those born in America) and the predominantly Irish immigrants is about to come to a head in Paradise Square.
The Nativists are led by William "Bill the Butcher" Cutting, a
WASP , with an open hatred of immigrants. The leader of the immigrant Irish, the "
Dead Rabbits ," is Priest Vallon, who has a young son, Amsterdam. Cutting and Vallon meet with their respective gangs in a battle, horrific and bloody, concluding when Bill kills Priest Vallon. Amsterdam is a witness. Cutting declares that the Dead Rabbits outlawed and orders Vallon's body buried with honor. Amsterdam seizes the knife used to kill his father, races off and buries it. He is found and taken to the orphanage at Hellgate. Sixteen years later, Amsterdam leaves Hellgate a grown man. Arriving in Five Points, he reunites with an old friend, Johnny. Johnny introduces Amsterdam to Bill, for whom the group steals. Amsterdam finds that many of his father's old loyalists, including Happy Jack (Reilly) and McGloin (Gary Lewis) are now under Bill's control.
Amsterdam meets Jenny Everdeane, an pickpocket and
Grifter , who preys upon Manhattan's upper class by impersonating a maid. Amsterdam is attracted to Jenny, but it is dampened when Amsterdam discovers that Jenny was once the Butcher's ward and still enjoys Bill's affections. Amsterdam gains Bill's confidence as Bill becomes his mentor. He becomes involved in the semi-criminal empire of
Boss Tweed , a corrupt politician who heads
Tammany Hall , the local political machine. Tweed's influence is spread throughout
Lower Manhattan from boxing matches to sanitation services and fire control. As
Tammany Hall and its opponents fight for control of the city, the political climate is boiling. Immigrants, mostly
Irish , are drafted into the
Union Army as they depart the boats. $300 can buy one's way out of service.
Each year, on the anniversary of the Five Points battle (February 16), Bill leads the city in saluting the victory over the Dead Rabbits. Amsterdam plans to kill the Butcher during this ceremony, in front of the entire Five Points community, in order to exact public revenge.
During a performance of ''
Uncle Tom's Cabin '' Amsterdam thwarts an assassination attempt that leaves the Butcher wounded. Amsterdam is tormented by the realization that he acted more out of honest devotion to Bill than from his own plan of revenge. Both retire to a brothel, where Jenny nurses Bill. Amsterdam confronts Jenny over Bill, and the two have a furious argument which dissolves into passionate lovemaking. Late that night, Amsterdam wakes to find Bill sitting by his bed in a rocking chair, draped in a tattered American flag. Bill speaks of the downfall of civilization and how he has maintained his power over the years through violence and the "spectacle of fearsome acts." He says that Priest Vallon was the last enemy he ever fought that was worthy of real respect, and that the Priest once beat Bill soundly and then let him live in shame rather than kill him. Bill credits this with giving him strength of will and character to return and fight for his own authority. Bill implicitly admits that he has come to look upon Amsterdam as the son he never had.
The evening of the ceremony arrives. Johnny, who was attracted to Jenny and envious of Amsterdam's position as Bill's right-hand man, saw Amsterdam and Jenny in the throes of passion. Before the ceremony, he tells Bill who Amsterdam is and his plot to kill him. Bill baits Amsterdam with a knife-throwing act involving Jenny, where he targets her and superficially cuts her throat. As Bill makes the customary toast, Amsterdam throws a knife at Bill. Forewarned, Bill blocks the shot and counters with a throw of his own, hitting Amsterdam in the abdomen. Bill beats him, as the crowd cheers him on, marks his cheek with a hot blade, and casts him out into the streets, proclaiming that for Amsterdam to live in shame is a worse fate than death.
For three months, Jenny nurses Amsterdam while in hiding. She implores him to join her in an escape to
San Francisco . The two are visited by Walter "Monk" McGinn, a barber who worked as a mercenary for Priest Vallon in the battle in which he was killed. McGinn gives Amsterdam the straight razor that belonged to his father. Amsterdam announces his return by placing a dead rabbit on a fence in Paradise Square. The rabbit finds its way to Bill, who sends Happy Jack, now a corrupt policeman, to find out who sent the message. Jack tracks down Amsterdam and chases him through the catacombs into the local church where Amsterdam ambushes and strangles him. He hangs his body in Paradise Square. In retaliation, Bill has Johnny beaten and hung over a stake in the square. Suffering, Johnny pleads for Amsterdam to kill him. Jenny hands Amsterdam a gun and he fires.
The Natives march to the
Catholic church as the Irish, along with the Archbishop, stand on the steps in defense. A torch is thrown at their feet. Bill promises to return when they are ready. The incident garners newspaper coverage. Boss Tweed approaches Amsterdam with a plan to defeat Bill and his influence, hoping to cash in on the publicity. Tweed will back the candidacy of Monk McGinn for sheriff in return for the support of the Irish vote, the first step towards defeating Bill. The election is rigged and Monk wins on a platform of working for the people. Bill visits Monk at his shop, where Monk refuses Bill's implicit attempt to start a fight, and offers to negotiate. As soon as Monk turns his back to head into his shop, Bill hits him in the back with a thrown meat cleaver, and kills Monk with his own
Shillelagh . During the funeral procession, Amsterdam pauses to issue a battle challenge to Bill. The two sides agree to the terms of the battle and Amsterdam's gang resurrects the name of the Dead Rabbits. Battle will take place in Paradise Square.
The
Draft Riots break out just as the gangs are preparing to fight. Many people of the city are attacked by those protesting the drafts. Union Army soldiers march through the city streets trying to control the rioters.
.]]
The rival gangs meet in Paradise Square. As they approach each other, the Union Navy fire their cannons into the city, directly into Paradise Square. Many are killed as an enormous cloud of dust and debris covers the area. The destruction is followed by a wave of Union soldiers, who wipe out many of the gang members with massed rifle fire. Abandoning their gangs, Amsterdam and Bill exchange blows in the haze, then are thrown to the ground by another cannon blast. When the smoke clears, Bill discovers he has been impaled by a large piece of shrapnel. Looking at the devastation, he declares, "Thank God I die a true American." Bill offers no resistance as Amsterdam stabs him, dying with his hand locked in Amsterdam's.
In the final scenes, the dead are collected for burial. Bill's body is buried in view of the Manhattan skyline, next to Priest Vallon. Jenny and Amsterdam both visit the grave as Amsterdam buries his father's razor there. The frame shifts several times to reflect the intervening growth of the city between 1864 and the present day. The final shot includes the
World Trade Center towers.
Scorsese has received both praise and criticism for historical depictions in the film. In a
PBS interview for the
History News Network ,
George Washington University professor Tyler Anbinder discussed the historical aspects of the film.
History News Network
studios, Rome]]
Anbinder said that Scorsese's recreation of the visual environment of mid-19th century
New York City and the
Five Points "couldn't have
much better." All sets were built completely on the exterior stages of Cinecitta Studios in Rome.[http://bookreview.net/gangs/index.html Mixing Art and a Brutal History Anbinder also praised the depiction of the persecution and discrimination against immigrants at the time, particularly the Irish. The riot which opens the film, though fictional, was "reasonably true to history" for fights of this type, except for the amount of carnage depicted in the gang fights and city riots.
There is a large gang fight in 1846 depicted in the film. While there actually was a riot between the
Bowery Boys and the
Dead Rabbits in the Five Points on
July 4 ,
1857 in actual history, it occurs between the fictional film battle of 1846 and the point of time that Amsterdam returns in 1862. The 1857 riot goes unmentioned.
Virtual New York City, CUNY VNY: Riots
as Bill 'The Butcher]]
William "Bill The Butcher" Cutting was inspired by
Bill Poole , a member of the
New York City gang, the
Bowery Boys , a
Bare-knuckle boxer, and a leader of the
Know Nothing political movement.
Poole himself did not come from the Five Points and was assassinated nearly a decade before the Draft Riots. While Cutting had a glass eye in the film, lost following a beating from Priest Vallon, the real Poole did not. Both the fictional Bill and the real one had butcher shops, but Poole was not known to directly kill anyone.
Herbert Asbury website Gangs of New York
Herbert Asbury website Bill the Butcher
The movie implies that Chinese people were common enough in New York to have their own community and public venues, despite the fact that only 25 Chinese people are known to have lived there at the time. Other major ethnic groups among New York immigrants that were underrepresented in the film's characters included
Scots-Irish ,
Scottish ,
Welsh ,
Italian ,
Polish ,
English ,
German ,
Dutch and
Jew ish immigrants. Additionally, the film has been criticized for playing down the explicitly racist nature of the Draft Riots, and of the gangs in general. Though Amsterdam's gang includes a young black man, Jimmy Spoils, a scripted scene where Amsterdam asks Jimmy not to join him for the final battle, out of worry that Jimmy's being black will cost him the loyalty of the reassembled Dead Rabbits, was cut. At the end of the film Jimmy is shown as being one of the victims of the riots, but it is never explained why he is not at Paradise Square with the other gang members.
The museum run by
Phineas T. Barnum is shown being burned down by the Draft Riots. While this museum actually survived the riots, two years later, on July 13, 1865, Barnum's American Museum was demolished by fire; Barnum put up the Museum again elsewhere in the city, but fire consumed that version of the museum in March 1868.
In addition, historical liberties have been taken with the final scene in which Union soldiers fire upon the rioters. The drill positions, line commands and tactics used in this scene (such as "present arms!") have been completely fabricated. The position wherein the soldiers move their legs forward and aim their rifles also was never an actual command. For more information, see
Casey's Infantry Tactics , the manual at the time.
One of Scorsese's controversial choices is seen in the film's closing shot: a view of modern-day New York City, complete with the
World Trade Center Towers, despite them having been leveled by the
September 11, 2001 Attacks only a year before the film's release. Scorsese chose to end the shot there because he wanted to make a film about the ones who built New York, not the ones who tried to destroy it.
Internet Movie Database Gangs of New York trivia
Many critics have opined that the film is flawed compared to other Scorsese films, though it has its share of vocal supporters. , in a ''Variety'' guest editorial, claimed that the film attempted to touch on so many different themes that it failed to adequately explore any of them, though this argument was strongly rebutted by producer
Irvin Winkler among others. On the other hand, many critics praised the film, including eminent ''New York Times'' reviewer A.O. Scott, who gave it a glowing review.
The film was shelved for over a year, and rumors have abounded of disputes between the producer
Harvey Weinstein and the director, resulting in Scorsese being required to make damaging cuts. Because of this, some fans have requested a
Director's Cut in the belief that such a cut would clear up the film considerably. However, Scorsese has stated that the theatrical version is his
Final Cut and has spurned the practice of releasing directors' cuts several times.
''Gangs of New York'' won the
Golden Globe Award of
Best Director - Motion Picture for
Martin Scorsese and
Best Original Song for the song "
The Hands That Built America " by
U2 .
Daniel Day-Lewis won the
Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role & the
BAFTA for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role. It was nominated for 10
Academy Award s including
Best Picture and
Best Director . However, the film was largely overshadowed by
Chicago , which took half of the awards for which ''Gangs of New York'' was nominated, and the film failed to win any Academy Awards at all.
Full cast and crew credits at IMDB
