---
title: "Gangs of New York"
year: 2002
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/gangs-of-new-york"
fi1m_id: "gangs-of-new-york"
imdb_id: "tt0217505"
tmdb_id: 3131
wikidata_id: "Q154581"
fi1m_score: 74
critics_score: 65
critics_reviews: 13
published: "2026-09-14"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:28.491587+00:00"
region: "AR"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Gangs of New York (2002)

Directed by Martin Scorsese · 2h 48m · Drama, History, Crime

## Identity

Gangs of New York

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/gangs-of-new-york
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** gangs-of-new-york
- **IMDb ID:** tt0217505
- **TMDB ID:** 3131
- **Wikidata ID:** Q154581
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0217505/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/3131, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q154581

**Fi1m score: 74** · Critics 65 from 13 reviews

*In a sentence:* Daniel Day-Lewis makes a crowded New York street feel too small for anyone else

> Martin Scorsese’s violent history of New York is worth seeing for its streets and Daniel Day-Lewis. The revenge story and romance cannot sustain the same interest.

## Synopsis

In nineteenth-century New York, rival gangs fight for power as violence and corruption shape the city. Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) pursues revenge, bringing him into conflict with Bill ‘The Butcher’ Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis). Amsterdam also becomes involved with Jenny Everdeane (Cameron Diaz). Martin Scorsese’s historical crime drama places their quarrel among the city’s competing communities, where the battles form part of a wider struggle for control. Jim Broadbent appears as Boss Tweed, with John C. Reilly as Happy Jack and Brendan Gleeson as Walter ‘Monk’ McGinn.

## Review

*Gangs of New York* is worth a long evening, though its revenge story is too slight for the history surrounding it. Martin Scorsese follows gang warfare and corruption through nineteenth-century New York, asking how a city can build a public life out of such brutality. His interest in the place is infectious, and the reconstruction gives him plenty to work with. At 168 minutes, however, the film spends too much time on people it has not made sufficiently interesting.

Dante Ferretti’s production design gives the warring gangs streets that feel inhabited, with a whole city apparently carrying on beyond the principal characters. The density matters, because the rivalries need to seem part of everyday life here. Michael Ballhaus’s photography makes that reconstruction convincing even when the street battles become almost oppressively violent. We were horrified by the opening battle; the sustained bloodshed makes it difficult to treat the fighting as entertainment.

Daniel Day-Lewis gives Bill ‘The Butcher’ Cutting enough personality to compete with all this construction. His performance is extravagant, and properly so: a subdued Bill would disappear into the surrounding mayhem. The ferocity is entertaining even when the man himself is repellent, which makes our attention to him slightly uncomfortable. We want him back whenever he is absent. Leonardo DiCaprio’s Amsterdam Vallon has a difficult job holding the centre, and his determination to take revenge does not provide enough variety.

The screenplay by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan is least persuasive when it turns to Amsterdam and Jenny Everdeane, played by Cameron Diaz. Diaz brings welcome energy, but Jenny never becomes interesting enough to justify the time spent on the romance. These scenes ask for an emotional investment that the writing has not earned. A gangster film needs convincing reasons for its characters to love and trust each other, especially when they are capable of such violence, and these relationships remain underdeveloped.

Thelma Schoonmaker’s editing gives the confrontations force, but the larger rhythm is less secure. The movement between gang conflict, romance and the city’s politics repeatedly requires the film to get going again. Howard Shore’s music adds to the film’s oppressive atmosphere. It is effective, though another source of weight in a film that rarely needs help making its violence felt.

The broader history is the reason to stay. Scorsese treats corruption as part of the way the city works, not a problem caused by a few conveniently wicked men. Jim Broadbent’s Boss Tweed is welcome because the film becomes more alert whenever it attends to power beyond the rival gangs. Even when the amount of violence grows tiring, it belongs to a society that the film has taken care to establish.

We would make the time for it if historical crime drama is the attraction. Anyone after a tightly plotted revenge thriller should look elsewhere, and the brutality is not incidental. Choose your company accordingly.

*Fi1m score 74, published 14 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics lean towards admiration for Gangs of New York, though praise often comes with substantial reservations. The strongest agreement concerns Scorsese’s recreation of nineteenth-century New York: the crowded streets, period detail and violent spectacle give the history a physical force that even sceptical reviews acknowledge. Daniel Day-Lewis’s Bill the Butcher is the performance most consistently singled out, while several critics value the film’s account of a city shaped by immigration, gang warfare and corruption.

The main divide is over whether the personal drama can carry that historical weight. Reservations cluster around the thin revenge story, underdeveloped relationships and uneven momentum, with some finding the violence exhausting rather than illuminating. The spread is wide: Slant Magazine finds the film deeply moving despite its untidy construction, while the Los Angeles Times sees authentic streets and strong casting but too little narrative drive to make the spectacle work as drama.

## Straight answers

**Is Gangs of New York worth watching?**

*Gangs of New York* is worth watching for anyone drawn to historical crime drama, and we scored it 74. Martin Scorsese's reconstruction of nineteenth-century New York and Daniel Day-Lewis's ferocious Bill the Butcher are the reasons to stay. The revenge story and the romance between Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz are too slight to sustain 168 minutes.

**How long is Gangs of New York, and what is it rated?**

*Gangs of New York* runs 2h 48m. It is a drama and history film.

**Where can I watch Gangs of New York in Argentina?**

*Gangs of New York* is not on any streaming or rental service in Argentina at the moment. It is available in 46 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily.

**How violent or frightening is Gangs of New York, and is it suitable for children?**

*Gangs of New York* is certified 18 in the UK and R in the US, and it is not suitable for children. The gang battles are sustained and bloody; the opening fight horrified us, and the brutality runs through the whole film rather than arriving in isolated bursts. The squeamish should think twice, and it is a poor choice for younger teenagers.

**How does Gangs of New York compare to A Prophet?**

*Gangs of New York* and [*A Prophet*](https://film.one/film/a-prophet) both follow a young man's criminal education, but Jacques Audiard's prison drama is the tighter and more persuasive of the two. Scorsese has the grander canvas and the bigger performance in Daniel Day-Lewis, while *A Prophet* gives its central figure the patient development Amsterdam never receives. For spectacle choose Scorsese; for a character you believe in, choose Audiard.

**What should I watch after Gangs of New York?**

After *Gangs of New York*, try [*The Leopard*](https://film.one/film/the-leopard) (1963, Fi1m 88): Another society remakes itself, with period detail that explains who holds power. Then [*A Prophet*](https://film.one/film/a-prophet) (2009, Fi1m 86): A young man’s criminal education, with the patient character development Amsterdam lacks; and [*Once Upon a Time in America*](https://film.one/film/once-upon-a-time-in-america) (1984, Fi1m 81): Gang loyalties and private betrayals receive the time and weight they need.

### Reviews we read (17)

- **Slant Magazine** (4/4): An exceptionally violent and passionate account of history that counts as one of the most moving cinematic statements ever made; a willful, ardent breakthrough despite its unsettled and occasionally sloppy construction. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/gangs-of-new-york/)
- **The AV Club**, Scott Tobias (90/100, inferred): Scorsese delivers a magnificent epic and grand achievement in history and anthropology with sumptuous period recreation; the film's main character is America itself, tackled with peerless technique. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/gangs-of-new-york-1798198204)
- **Evening Standard**, Alexander Walker (75/100, inferred): Scorsese's long-awaited homage to New York is a colossal fresco teeming with life and rife with violence that dwarfs the stars, chronicling warring immigrant tribes and the city's emergence from internecine warfare amid Civil War riots. The personal drama centres on the battle between Bill the Butcher and Amsterdam Vallon. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/violence-dominates-gangs-7428461.html)
- **RogerEbert.com**, Roger Ebert (3/4): Scorsese's epic visualizes a violent, Dickensian 19th-century New York forged in gang warfare and corruption, with standout performances like Daniel Day-Lewis as Bill the Butcher. It is a considerable achievement but not among the director's masterpieces, lacking the momentum of his best work. [Read](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gangs-of-new-york-2002)
- **Time Out**, TCh (75/100, inferred): This is Scorsese's Birth of a Nation, linking the frontier Western and the gangster movie through its epic historical imagination and larger-than-life Day-Lewis performance. Relationships feel underdeveloped and the tone occasionally slips into blockbuster idiom, yet it remains compelling overall. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/gangs-of-new-york)
- **Empire**, Angie Errigo (70/100, inferred): Scorsese's dark, provocative 19th-century epic is signature work with stunning period detail and ambitious scale, but marred by narrative problems and a drawn-out romantic plot that feels rushed in the second half. Day-Lewis delivers a show-stealing performance as the sociopathic Bill the Butcher. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/gangs-new-york-review/)
- **Film Comment**, Amy Taubin (70/100, inferred): The critic describes the film as spectacular and brilliant but punishing, essentially one long brawl bookended by extremely bloody battle scenes. She praises its value as a corrective to ideas about the history of urban violence and Scorsese's interest in New York subcultures, while noting that the revenge-romance plot sits uneasily with the broader historical material. [Read](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/gangs-of-new-york/)
- **Total Film** (65/100, inferred): The film is neither massacre nor masterpiece but something in between, with self-importance and narrative flaws offset by powerful images, sizzling technique, and an epic scope capturing the painful birth of a nation. Day-Lewis as Bill the Butcher is the main selling point and a real showstopper. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/gangs-of-new-york-review/)
- **Radio Times**, Ian Freer (3/5): Scorsese returns to New York underworld roots with a brutal, occasionally muddled but riveting epic about 1860s gang warfare and revenge. The epic sweep and attention to detail are breathtaking with an unmissable Day-Lewis turn, though DiCaprio is one-note and personal stories feel simplistic. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-xyjlwf/gangs-of-new-york/)
- **Screen Daily** (50/100, inferred): A great old-fashioned spectacle with real, awe-inspiring battles and meticulous historical recreation, but a disappointing film whose slight revenge story fails to match its ambition or create compelling characters. Day-Lewis is mesmerizing and technical credits are Oscar-worthy, yet it plays more as a blockbuster western than a complex Scorsese epic. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/gangs-of-new-york/4011493.article)
- **The New Yorker**, David Denby (50/100, inferred): The movie is strange and muddled, a disorganized epic whose conception turned vague amid excessive production values. Daniel Day-Lewis's ferocious performance as Bill the Butcher holds it together somewhat, but the intimate drama and historical panoply never fully join. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2002/12/23/for-the-love-of-fighting)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (30/100, inferred): After 25 years in development the film has lost its narrative drive and sense of story, playing like an interminable airplane flight despite strong casting and authentic streets. It is a failed film but not a fiasco, with virtues of a pageant rather than a drama. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-dec-20-et-turan20-story.html)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The critic calls it a flawed masterpiece with far more energy and virility than other Hollywood films of the time. Praise is singled out for the magnificent painterly recreation of 1840s New York and Daniel Day-Lewis's towering, lip-smacking performance as Bill the Butcher. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2003/jan/10/artsfeatures2)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt: The critic views the film as a relentless, pitch-black portrait of brutality and corruption shaping early America, creating perverse beauty and excitement from its horrors while presenting a blinkered historical vision. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/gangs-new-york-review-2002-movie-1069314/)
- **The New York Times**, A. O. Scott (Critic’s Pick): Scorsese's brutal, flawed and indelible epic brings to life the texture and force of 19th-century New York through a blood-soaked revenger's tale and street-level spectacle. It is an important film as well as an entertaining one, reconstructing a narrative of historical change. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/20/movies/film-review-to-feel-a-city-seethe.html)
- **Variety**, Todd McCarthy: The ambitious picture falls somewhat short of great film status but is a richly impressive and densely realized work that opens the eye and mind to untaught aspects of American history. It manages the macro and micro aspects of history pretty well if not with magisterial confidence. [Read](https://variety.com/2002/film/awards/gangs-of-new-york-3-1200544486/)
- **Eye for Film**, Angus Wolfe Murray (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the film ugly and messy, with excessive violence that becomes tiresome after two and a half hours. They single out the lack of focus on the protagonist and poor character development for complaint, while noting Daniel Day-Lewis's memorable performance as the standout. [Read](http://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/gangs-of-new-york-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray)

## Details

- **Director:** Martin Scorsese
- **Director:** Martin Scorsese
- **Screenplay:** Jay Cocks, Kenneth Lonergan, Steven Zaillian
- **Story:** Jay Cocks
- **Cinematography:** Michael Ballhaus
- **Editor:** Thelma Schoonmaker
- **Music:** Howard Shore
- **Production design:** Dante Ferretti
- **Costume design:** Sandy Powell
- **Producer:** Alberto Grimaldi, Harvey Weinstein
- **Cast:** Leonardo DiCaprio as Amsterdam Vallon; Daniel Day-Lewis as Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting; Cameron Diaz as Jenny Everdeane; Jim Broadbent as Boss Tweed; John C. Reilly as Happy Jack; Henry Thomas as Johnny Sirocco; Liam Neeson as 'Priest' Vallon; Brendan Gleeson as Walter 'Monk' McGinn
- **Runtime:** 2h 48m
- **Release (Argentina):** 6 February 2003
- **Genres:** Drama, History, Crime
- **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 2002); [BAFTA Best Film winners](https://film.one/collections/bafta-best-film.md) (Nominee, 2002); [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 2002)
- **Budget:** $100 million
- **Box office:** $194 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bjh979vVG0

## Where to watch in Argentina

Not streaming, renting or buying in Argentina at the last check.

Also available in: AE, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, CA, CH, CZ, DE, DK, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MY, NL, NO, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2003: Best Actor (nominated); Best Cinematography (nominated); Best Costume Design (nominated); Best Director (nominated); Best Film Editing (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Production Design (nominated); Best Sound (nominated); Best Writing, Original Screenplay (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *The Leopard* (1963), Fi1m 88: Another society remakes itself, with period detail that explains who holds power. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-leopard.md)
- *A Prophet* (2009), Fi1m 86: A young man’s criminal education, with the patient character development Amsterdam lacks. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/a-prophet.md)
- *Once Upon a Time in America* (1984), Fi1m 81: Gang loyalties and private betrayals receive the time and weight they need. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/once-upon-a-time-in-america.md)
- *The Duellists* (1977): For period violence driven by male pride, on a more concentrated scale.
- *City of God* (2002), Fi1m 86: A city’s violent history told through rival gangs, with a more urgent pace. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/city-of-god.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/gangs-of-new-york