The blood stays on the blade

Gangs of New York

(2002)

Been watching Copper on BBC America and have been mostly unimpressed by a series that seems clearly derivative of and inferior to this: same time, same place, but from the POV of the police, who are, after all, just another gang.

So watching this again confirms its superiority to the TV series (whose derivativeness--is that a word?--needs no proof), but also confirms that my initial lukewarm reaction to it when it came out was not stingy. It's an OK film, visually impressive, excessively grandiose, with what must have been a welcome opportunity for Daniel Day-Lewis to rehearse his overacting ahead of There Will Be Blood. It's one of those Marty-a-little-too-much-in-love-with-himself deals that we've seen from time to time.