Gangs of New York is about to leave the Prime Video catalog, so you only have a few days left to see or rewatch the first collaboration between Martin Scorsese and Leonardo Dicaprio.
Leonardo DiCaprio was only 27 when he agreed to play in Gangs of New York, directed by the man who would become his mentor and one of his favorite filmmakers, Martin Scorsese. The young actor is however not the only headliner since the producers are betting at this time rather on Daniel Day-Lewis (and Liam Neeson although he does not appear in the whole film).
The two are part of rival gangs that are at war in the neighborhood of Five Points, a poor suburb of New York in 1846. On one side are the Irish migrants and on the other the Native Americans led by the bloodthirsty Bill the Butcher (Day-Lewis). Amsterdam Vallon (DiCaprio) wants to avenge the death of his father by eliminating the latter.
Historical reconstitution with big budget, its production had been chaotic as we tell you here. But rave reviews from both press and audiences made Gangs of New York a must-see. These were notably marked by the end of the film – the famous riots which shook the city and the confrontation between Amsterdam and Bill.
And the actors did not do things by halves to shoot this sequence. In preparation for their fight, Leonardo DiCaprio and Daniel Day-Lewis trained for months with Martin Scorsese and George Aguillar, a stunt coordinator. For 11 months, the interpreter of the young Vallon had to chain the routines, based on lifting weights and throwing knives. He also had to learn different fighting techniques of the time. At the same time, they worked on their accent thanks to a coach, in order to get as close as possible to the slang used in New York in the 19th century.
Note that Scorsese made DiCaprio turn several times after Gangs of New York (which should soon be adapted in series). They ended up in Departed, Shutter Island, The Wolf of Wall Street and Aviator.