Gangs of New York Page #31

Synopsis: Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a young Irish immigrant released from prison. He returns to the Five Points seeking revenge against his father's killer, William Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis), a powerful anti-immigrant gang leader. He knows that revenge can only be attained by infiltrating Cutting's inner circle. Amsterdam's journey becomes a fight for personal survival and to find a place for the Irish people in 1860's New York.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Production: Miramax Films
  Nominated for 10 Oscars. Another 50 wins & 124 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.5
Metacritic:
72
Rotten Tomatoes:
74%
R
Year:
2002
167 min
$77,605,296
Website
949 Views


He walks to the doors. The Rabbits guarding it don't make a move. He OPENS

it himself and strides out into the street.

CUT TO:

122 EXT./INT. ARMORY DAY

Bill walks alone toward the Native/militia lines.

From inside... from every window ... the Dead Rabbits watch him.

The sun is high, but the street is eerily quiet. There are FARAWAY SOUNDS

of battle, but here there is only the sound of distant, unheard

conversation between Bill, the Militia Commander and some Natives.

Amsterdam WATCHES intently.

The Butcher and the Militia Commander argue, but we still can't hear what

they're saying. There is still no sound...

... until, SUDDENLY, we see the Militia Commander's face. Huge. EYES WIDE

with surprise as we HEAR the thunderclap of a SHOT.

Bill the Butcher has just gutshot the Militia Commander.

As if the shot were a signal, the Natives TURN on the militia. It's

hellish, close-quarter combat. Guns fired inches from enemies who had just

been allies. Knives, swords, bludgeons, kids with dead-rat blackjacks,

women with hob-nailed wooden planks, attacking better-armed but totally

stunned soldiers.

Bill the Butcher falls back toward the Armory, the Natives following him.

Inside the Armory, Amsterdam turns to his own greatly diminished gang.

AMSTERDAM:

Go ahead them, give them cover! Give them some damn cover!

The Rabbits are so stunned to be fighting on the same side as their sworn

enemies that, even with Amsterdam's order, no one makes a move. It's

Amsterdam who FIRES the first shots. And that unleashes a great VOLLEY

from the Armory...

... toward the militia.

The Butcher and the Natives are closer to the Armory now... and the Armory

doors start to open...

... when a MILITIA LIEUTENANT SIGNALS ...

... and MILITIA on the surrounding roofs, waiting for this moment,

suddenly open fire...on the Natives below and on the Rabbits on the roof

of the armory. Many drop in the street and fall from the Armory roof...

... as the Armory doors SWING WIDE to admit the Natives. As they run or

stagger inside, the Rabbits start to close the doors. Some Rabbits are cut

down by the fire from the rooftops. Other Natives never make it to the

doors. And a few are shot...

... when the doors close before they can get through.

CUT TO:

123 INT./EXT. ARMORY DAY

The Dead Rabbits keep firing, but they have sustained grave losses. The

Butcher looks around at the Natives who have made it inside with him: he

has perhaps one-quarter of his original strength.

BILL THE BUTCHER

Well, it seems like between us we got two mobs that might make a gang.

AMSTERDAM:

Whose gang might it be?

BILL THE BUTCHER

Not William Tweed's.

Jimmy Spoils and a crew of Natives PUSH a cannon toward the rear of the

Armory.

AMSTERDAM:

Which way you pointing that?

JIMMY SPOILS:

Any way you say. One direction could let us out, the other will let them

in.

BILL THE BUTCHER

They got to come in if we're going to fight them.

AMSTERDAM:

Who do you want to fight, Bill?

Amsterdam MOTIONS toward the rear wall and Jimmy swings the cannon around.

Everything surrounding them is MOVEMENT and COMMOTION as the remaining

members of both gangs TAKE whatever weapons they can carry from the Armory

stockpile...

... and Jenny steps forward with a torch, LIGHTING the fuse of the

cannon...

... which ROARS and BLOWS a huge hole in the rear wall of the Armory.

AMSTERDAM:

(to Bill the Butcher)

See you in the street.

The gang members RUSH for the opening, carrying whatever they can manage.

Outside, the MILITIA LIEUTENANT hears the cannon blast... sees no damage

to the front of the building... and SIGNALS for a frontal ASSAULT on the

Armory.

HIGH ANGLE FROM ABOVE, CAMERA MOVING as the militia CHARGES ... following

them forward, then moving ahead to the Armory

... SHOOTING straight down inside (no roof or ceiling) as the Gangs HURTLE

through the still-smoldering hole in the wall ...

... and drop twenty feet to an alley below...

... where militia on the roof try to pick them off. As the militia presses

closer from the front, gang defenses start to fall back inside the Armory.

Everyone wants to get through that hole.

Amsterdam, Jenny, Jimmy Spoils and some of the other gang nembers are

carrying TORCHES. Jenny HANDS a torch to the Butcher. Amsterdam MOTIONS

them all toward the back of the Armory.

But he stays behind. Just for a moment. He BENDS over the crumpled body of

Johnny Sirocco, ARRANGES it, folding JOHNNY'S HANDS across his chest.

AMSTERDAM:

You'll have a warrior's funeral anyway, John.

He STANDS and RUNS for the hole in the wall, where Jenny and the others

stand waiting.

He TURNS, takes a last look inside the Armory. The militia is BATTERING

DOWN the front doors. Then he raises his TORCH over his head... and HURLS

it through the air. Jenny and the others do the same.

His single torch BLAZES a path of light across the screen. The others,

JOINING it, make a fiery CONSTELLATION.

CUT TO:

124 EXT. REAR OF ARMORY/STREETS BEHIND ARMORY DAY

As Jenny, Jimmy Spoils, Bill the Butcher and Amsterdam HURTLE through the

hole into the alley below...

... and start to run through the withering GUNFIRE of the militia on the

roof...

... getting away... just barely away.

As Jenny runs, her swag drops and FALLS from under her clothes. She TURNS

to pick it up but Amsterdam PULLS her on....

... and just away from the titanic EXPLOSION of the Armory. The CONCUSSION

throws some of the militia from their perches on the roof. It sends a

fountain of FLAME and RUBBLE high into the sky. It is VOLCANIC in its

brilliance and intensity. The sky turns BLACK with powder, BLAZING ORANGE

with flame.

In the small streets BEHIND THE ARMORY, many gang members are CRUSHED by

debris or burned by FIREBALLS breaking off from the central flame.

The Armory is gone. Much of the surrounding area is gone with it.

On the ground, everything is smoke, flame, dirt, death, confusion, Corpses

everywhere. Gang members and kids running all over, desperate. It looks

like the last day of mankind on earth.

Bill the Butcher HELPS a couple of fallen Natives, then SEES through the

smoke and flame and storm of ash ... Amsterdam.

Coming towards him.

BILL THE BUTCHER

We're finished, all of us.

AMSTERDAM:

But you and me ain't settled.

BILL THE BUTCHER

We got the same now, a full share of nothing. There's nothing to settle.

There's nothing left.

Amsterdam takes a weapon from his pocket, OPENS it for the Butcher to see:

it is the pirate's knife which the Butcher used to kill Priest Vallon.

AMSTERDAM:

Then let's start over.

Bill the Butcher looks tired, sorrowful. He BURIES his face wearily in his

arms. And for a moment we think he has given everything up. Amsterdam

MOVES toward him, through the smoke. The Butcher does not even look at

him. Of all the things he could do, this is the one that Amsterdam could

not anticipate and does not know how to reckon.

AMSTERDAM:

Look at me. Look at me!

But the Butcher will not obey. Amsterdam HESITATES.

And it's at that moment the Butcher LOOKS UP... in a FLASH... a pistol in

his hand, a grin of triumph on his face... and shoots. Amsterdam goes down.

Rate this script:3.0 / 2 votes

Jay Cocks

John C. "Jay" Cocks, Jr. (born January 12, 1944) is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is a graduate of Kenyon College. He was a critic for Time, Newsweek, and Rolling Stone, among other magazines, before shifting to screenplay writing.[1] He is married to actress Verna Bloom. more…

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