Runtime: 167 minutes
Directed by: A now 80 year old Martin Scorsese
Starring: A cast full of famous faces, most of whom I dug in the film ::coughcoughexceptCameronDiaz::coughcough
From: A number of different companies, including (unfortunately) Miramax
On Marty Scorsese’s 80th birthday, it was time for me to talk about a famous effort for the very first time. Despite hearing long ago that this was historically accurate-at least by movie standards and broadly speaking-I had put off the viewing experience. Finally, there was no excuse for me not to check out the world of mid-19th century New York City, which proved to be rather rich and vibrant.
The main plot point-Leonardo DiCaprio returns to the area as an adult after he witnessed his Reverend father murdered during a huge brawl by Bill the Butcher (Daniel Day-Lewis) and is looking for revenge-is a basic idea that’s probably been around as long as stories have been told. Yet that is no slight at all as the world is so full of fascinating & memorable characters, the scenario presented is sadly familiar in 2022 (Day-Lewis leads a gang of ruffians who not only hates foreigners, the same goes for Black people) and it is quite the hero’s journey for Leo.
During this era of NYC, there actually was a character known as Bill the Butcher, although the surnames were different and specific moments in his life definitely were changed. He still led a gang-furthermore, there were many gangs roaming around-that was against immigrants and he tried to buddy up w/ powerful local politicians. Much care was put not only into constructing the expansive sets of NYC, they even tried to mimic the unique local dialects of the time—how much time an immigrant spend in America factors into the exact sound of their tongue. Aside from the “dramatic license” moments, it was fascinating to learn more about this time in history; if you’re like me, you’ll want to at least start doing a deep dive w/ various Wikipedia articles.
With all the talent involved-whether behind or in front of the camera-the vivacious setting successfully brought to life, the well-worn themes that are presented in a way that doesn’t feel hackneyed, the performances (especially from Day-Lewis and DiCaprio), were unforgettable, and despite the almost 3 hour length the experience did not feel that long. Sure, there’s a romance that seems superfluous and it’s not my favorite Scorsese but there are some epic scenes in the movie so my bellyaching won’t be too boisterous. Happy birthday to a legendary filmmaker, someone who has not only made many classics, has helped directed attention to or even saved many motion pictures from across the globe.
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