Gangs of New York

"Gangs of New York" is a great film depicting what New York was like in the late 1800's. The movie takes place in the Five Points of lower Manhattan. In 1846 waves of Irish immigrants poured into Manhattan. During this time the citizens already living in New York who were also born there immediately show there resentment for these immigrants. A man named William Cutting groups together his fellow "Natives" to form a gang, with a main goal to rid The Five Points of these immigrants. William Cutting was a very intense leader. His nick name was "Bill the Butcher" due to his skill with a knife and his ruthless tactics of fighting. At the same time a man named Priest Vallon banded together the Irish immigrants and formed their own gang called "The Dead Rabbits." The two gangs meet in a very bloody war. Priest Vallon is killed as long with many of the "Dead Rabbits." This bloody fight marks the end of the "Dead Rabbits. One person who watches the battle is Priest Vallons son. Since he becomes fatherless he gets sent away to a reform school. The story picks up again in the Five Points in 1862; Priest Vallons son is now a young man and the main character of the film. His name is Amsterdam Vallon he is now a young man with one goal in mind that is revenge. He watched Bill the Butcher kill his dad and now wants to do the same to him. As soon as he arrives he is perceived as an Irish immigrant. At this time immigrants were looked down upon in New York. When Amsterdam gets off the boat he is immediately greeted by army generals and politicians. The generals what him to enlist in the army, they try to persuade him offering him 3 meals a day and an honest salary. They need soldiers to join the army because America is in a civil war at this time. Amsterdam is also greeted by politicians who want his vote; they bribe the immigrants by offering them food. After he gets off the boat he goes and digs up his father's knife that he buried when he was a boy. While digging up the knife two men try to mug him and steal his belongings, he shows off what he learned at boarding school and fights back. The two men are impressed and they become friends. One of the guys name is Johnny Sirocco he knows his way around the Five Points and shows Amsterdam the ropes. He introduces him to his love interest of the film Jenny Everdeane. She is a beautiful but street-smart thief who was once involved with Bill. There is an instant attraction between them. The next person Amsterdam is introduced to is "Bill the Butcher." He immediately recognizes Bill and sees that he is still in charge around New York. Bill doesn't recall Amsterdam as being Priest Vallons son. At this time of the movie Bill is the still the leader of the "Natives" and is still feared by the citizens of the Five Points. Bill sends Johnny and his crew to the shipyard to collect some money and prized items for him. This gets Amsterdam in the door with Bill; they get closer and closer until Amsterdam becomes Bills right hand man. The whole time Amsterdam plots how we will kill Bill at the celebration of Priest Vallons death. Amsterdam says at one point in the film and I quote "When you kill