If Gangs of New York is remembered for anything, it's probably Daniel Day-Lewis in a top hat. As a fearsome gang leader cutting a swathe through bloody street battles and equally callous political intrigue, Day-Lewis was rightly Oscar-nominated for an unforgettably intense performance.
But 2002’s Gangs of New York is more than just a showcase for Day-Lewis and his mighty moustache. It's a stunning piece of historical cinema, plunging you into the past at street level. Director Martin Scorsese based the film on a non-fiction book about the criminal tribes of 19th-century New York, and the movie brings the history alive with fascinating detail, depth and texture.
I have to admit I didn't get Gangs of New York the first time I saw it, possibly because I wasn't sure about Leonardo DiCaprio – it was his first film with Scorsese and came before The Departed or Django Unchained or Inception (and way before this year's One Battle After Another). With hindsight, it's pretty impressive that Leo holds his own against the extraordinary force of Daniel Day-Lewis waving a meat cleaver.
One thing that did stick with me was an unsettling feeling that this was like no historical film I'd seen before. This strange version of the Big Apple is almost a fantasy setting, and its violent tribes have their own alien languages and customs.
Scorsese reportedly told the original writer to, "Think of it like a western in outer space." It's history with no filter, treated with the urgency of a street-level thriller, as vivid a snapshot of New York as Taxi Driver or Goodfellas were of their modern times.
To achieve this feat of time travel, production designer Dante Ferretti recreated a five-block stretch of mid-nineteenth century New York buildings, while voice coach Tim Monich and costume designer Sandy Powell were among the skilled filmmakers diving into authentic period detail. Their depiction of this time and place is incredibly rich with dusty detail in its sets and costumes.
Gangs of New York begins in darkness. As grisly-looking weapons are sharpened by candlelight, military-style drums and piercing whistles bring together the gruesome denizens of these shadowy catacombs. A door is booted open and we step into blinding white winter, snow on the ground – soon to be splattered with crimson blood.
A brutal, bloody battle ensues, as Daniel Day-Lewis and Liam Neeson lead rival gangs in a gory fight for control of the tough Five Points neighbourhood. When the bodies are finally carried away, one young boy escapes, swearing vengeance on the man who killed his father.
Growing up into Leonardo DiCaprio, the boy returns to the Five Points. His quest for revenge is the through line of the film, but really he's our tour guide to this astonishing immersive experience. As DiCaprio rises through the ranks of Five Points criminals, we see the hierarchy of corruption from pickpockets to politicians.
From that scene-setting battle to a climactic riot, the sound and visuals immerse you in this city's fight for survival. Peter Gabriel's atmospheric score combines disquieting percussion with period appropriate(ish) folk and fiddle music, adding character to the quieter scenes. Horses' hooves, distant shouts and crackling fires take you into the streets, while the battle sequences' clanging blades and booming cannon blasts capture the chaos and panic of fighting for your life amid a city in flames.
You may remember young DiCaprio facing off with Day-Lewis. But the title makes it clear this is a film about a city and its people, and its biggest strength is its incredible sense of time and place. Let Marty, Leo, and an Oscar-nominated moustache be your tour guides to living, breathing bloody history.
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