How others will see it. Assuming that those who dislike violent films will select My Little Pony instead, most people who see this film will be satisfied with it, although they might complain that it's not as good as Braveheart.
How I felt about it. I've never seen My Little Pony, but I doubt it is as good as Gangs of New York. Nonetheless, one has to wonder what is the point of all the bloodshed. It seems to be an end in itself; despite the stated motive of Anglo supremacy, avoiding the draft, or asserting the rights of 'potato eaters' to consume oxygen on American soil.
One has to respect the scale and drama, and any film with D-Day Lewis is worthy of attention. One suspects that, unlike Robert De Niro, he's not going to sell out to make a Bullwinkle movie anytime soon (at least not unless it has a bang-up script and a splendid dramatic role.)
Still, Gangs of New York may work best as an unintentional comedy. Why is Bill Cutting the mob ruler of New York City? It is because he honors an Irish priest every anniversary of his slaughter? Is it because he has intense eyes, or because he sports a really tall top hat, or has a silly curly mustache?
Why does Vallon become Cutting's right hand man, even saving him from death, when this makes it all the more treacherous to kill him, and only increases the chance his true identity will be revealed too soon? Why doesn't Cutting kill Vallon when he has the chance? (Hasn't he ever seen a James Bond movie?) Why do Vallon and Cutting go to such lengths to honor the chief rivals they murder? Why does a mob stand in front of armed soldiers, waiting to be mowed down? Why does Boss Tweed (Jim Broadbent) spend so much time in the Irish slums?
The questions go on and on. They really can't be answered, but it's not especially important since Gangs of New York is about manly intensity and bloodshed, more than about honor or power or anything else. Cutting can't win, the numbers aren't on his side. It's like he wants to be killed, but has to see how much he can get away with first.
Why does the redhead hottie (Diaz) like DiCaprio so much? Does she prefer her men short, violent, unreliable, and likely to get killed or imprisoned? Is that bad fife playing during the battles, or is it just an Irish thing?