The Dream Page





  • The most popular DVDs in Canada for the period ending July 6 (Rogers Video):




    DVD RENTALS
    1. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
     A notorious womanizer bets his friends that he can stay in a relationship for more than 10 days. The girl he picks though, has a few surprises of her own in store.
    Cast: Kate Hudson Matthew McConaughey
    2. Gangs of New York
    Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, Jim Broadbent
    3. Just Married 4. Dark Blue
    5. Old School 6. Tears of the Sun
    7. Punch-Drunk Love 8. Die Another Day
    9. The Recruit 10. Narc
       



    DVD SALES
    1. Gangs of New York 2. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
    3. Brokedown Palace 4. What About Bob?
    5. Bad Boys 6. Terminator 2: Extreme Edition
    7. Terminator: Special Edition 8. There's Something About Mary
    9. Legally Blonde 10. Die Another Day


  • July 9, 2003 - 'Gangs,' 'Guy' Battle It Out on Video Shelves
    By Brett Sporich

    LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Midsummer is splitting video renters and DVD buyers between director Martin Scorsese's dramatic recounting of 19th century New York and the best bet for a romantic comedy, showcasing actors Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey.

    Paramount Home Entertainment's debut of "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" sold nearly 3 million combined VHS and DVD units during its first five days on store shelves, industry sources say, with the majority of those sales representing DVDs, according to several key national retailers.

    "Guy" swept all the sell-through and rental charts during the 4th of July holiday week that ended July 6, topping Nielsen VideoScan's First Alert DVD sales charts and Video Store magazine's weekly rental chart during the frame. The picture earned an estimated $11.88 million in rental revenue its first week out, according to Video Store magazine research.

    Paramount pulled out all the stops for the story about a guy on the make and a girl on the take, who find love and happiness on a bet. Besides widespread television, radio and print exposure, the timing of the release was key.

    "We picked the perfect street date for the perfect summer release -- the week of the Fourth," said Paramount Home Entertainment president Meagan Burrows.

    Miramax's dark drama "The Gangs of New York," starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis and Cameron Diaz, sold more than 2.5 million combined VHS and DVD units during its debut the same week, according to several industry sources. That's a very impressive number considering that summer is usually the slowest period for the video industry.

    Disney's Buena Vista Home Entertainment distributed Scorsese's two-disc DVD and sell-through priced VHS, which ranked No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, on VideoScan's First Alert sales charts for the week ending July 6.

    "Gangs" came in as the nation's second top-renting title during the same frame and earned an estimated $11.32 million in rental revenue during its first five days on store shelves, according to Video Store magazine.

    DreamWorks Home Entertainment's "Old School," staring Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell and Vince Vaughn, continued to have long summer legs in both DVD sales and VHS rentals, dipping from No. 2 to the No. 3 top selling DVD, according to VideoScan's First Alert sales chart. "Old School" earned an estimated $6.91 million in rental revenue last week for a 26-day total of about $37.6 million.

    Warner Home Video's comedy "Kangaroo Jack," staring Jerry O'Connell, Anthony Anderson and Christopher Walken, was the nation's fourth best-selling DVD for the same week and earned an estimated $8.49 million in rental revenue during the same frame for a 12-day haul of $17.8 million.

    20th Century Fox Home Entertainment's "Just Married," staring Ashton Kutcher and Brittany Murphy, continued to do well in both DVD sales and at the rental counter, taking the No. 6 slot last week on VideoScan's First Alert DVD sales chart. The comedy is thought to have sold through nearly 2 million combined VHS and DVD units during the same frame.

    According to Video Store magazine, "Just Married" earned an estimated $7.15 million in weekly rental revenue for a 19-day tally of $27.2 million.

  • March 24 2003 - GONY will be available on video in July. You can preorder the DVD at Amazon.com. Also see the news main page for the latest in boxoffice tallies.

  • March 24 2003 - GONY was shut out of the Oscars. If you read the news page of this website, you will see why. Miramax's dirty behind the scenes politics ruined what should have been Martin Scorsese's biggest triumph. We now know for sure that the Oscars are a sham. They are no longer about merit, but about which studio boss has the most influence on Academy voters.

  • February 2003 - GONY received 10 Oscar nominations. Most disappointment that I feel about the Oscars is that Leonardo, even though he is the lead in the film, was again shut out of the Oscar noms, and Daniel Day Lewis, who is the supporting character in the movie, was given a nomination in the lead category. It's a travesty.

  • January 2003 - AFI names 2002's best films

    LOS ANGELES (AP) -- The American Film Institute has honored Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York" and Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers" as two of the 10 best movies of 2002.

    The list included a number of movies that have yet to be widely released, including the dark comedy "About Schmidt," starring Jack Nicholson, and "The Hours," which stars Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman.

    The AFI also honored the Hugh Grant comedy "About a Boy" and the big-screen musical "Chicago," starring Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Richard Gere.

    Rounding off the list were "Adaptation," "Antwone Fisher," "The Quiet American" and "Frida." Last year, the institute recognized the first film in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, "The Fellowship of the Ring," as its movie of the year.

  • December 29 2002 - Leo's Accent on Accuracy (Roger Friedman)

    I hate to dispute my colleague Jeannette Walls, but Leonardo DiCaprio's accent in Gangs of New York got high praise the other night from actual Irish people.

    Indeed, the manager of the little Irish boy who plays a young Leo in the film — a woman who was born and raised in Dublin — happened to tell a bunch of us that DiCaprio's brogue was 100 percent authentic.

    But oy, some other accents she's heard! A bad one? "Brad Pitt in Devil's Own," the lady offered. "That one was wide off the mark."

  • December 2002 - Hail, hail, 'Gangs' is here By Jeannie Williams, USA TODAY

    NEW YORK -- Leonardo DiCaprio, a smart little goatee on his handsome chin, beamed as he watched U2 perform, Bono's voice soaring to the rafters of the New York Public Library as he sang The Hands That Built America.

    "Now that's dope!" Leo told his dad at the party that followed the premiere of his movie Gangs of New York.

    His Gangs co-star Cameron Diaz took advantage of a bitter cold night to stand out in a neon-violet hat.

    Guest Nicole Kidman showed off a head of short golden curls, a new do she cut herself. "Not much hair left!" she said.

    And director Martin Scorsese seemed to be pals with Miramax Films' Harvey Weinstein after all their battles over Gangs.

    No, it wasn't your average movie premiere as Scorsese's bloody epic of New York, set against the Civil War and draft riots, finally took its bow. It opens Dec. 20.

    Daniel Day-Lewis shunned the media, skulking about with a shaven head. As the truly frightening Bill the Butcher, both mentor and nemesis to DiCaprio's Irish gang leader, Day-Lewis is responsible for much of the movie's gore.

    Scorsese said: "It's not like the violence of my other films. The violence is natural. It comes out of the world they're in. They're in the middle of the Civil War. And it's implied more than actually shown graphically, through the editing, the camera moves, music and sound effects." Bono wrote some of that music, including Hands.

    Diaz, as a skilled pickpocket in her first period piece, does a lot of biting/kissing with DiCaprio. "It was a very physical film for everyone, and the guys had to endure this old-style boxing."

    Of her role as a loose but loyal woman, she said, "I have to tell you, playing Jenny, I didn't really corset up my corsets very tight. I cheated!"

  • Decmber 7 2002 - Amazon.com's Jerry McCulley - CD review thanks to Arnzilla

    Martin Scorsese's sprawling meditation on the rise of street gangs in 19th-century New York (the roots of the modern mafia) also became another soundtrack buff's "What If?" after the director scrapped the original orchestral underscore of modern collaborator (Cape Fear, The Age of Innocence, Bringing Out the Dead)/veteran scoring legend Elmer Bernstein and replaced it with this typically rich, Robbie Robertson-supervised collection of eclectic pop, folk, and neo-classical tracks. The latter come courtesy of three brooding excerpts from film composer Howard Shore's previously unpremiered concert piece Brooklyn Heights, tracks that help emphasize the film's darker emotional gravitas. Much of the other catalog choices by Robertson and Scorsese lean on an evocative slate of Celtic and folk-tinged selections that range from hammered dulcimers, fiddles, and tin whistles to the spare, emotive balladry of Linda Thompson and Shu-De; even U2's main theme, "The Hands That Built America," is cast in a similar mold. But that Irish musical stew gets leavened by everything from the postmodern dirges of Peter Gabriel and Jocelyn Pook to a black field hand recording by legendary musicologist Alan Lomax and even the Chinese flavors of "Beijing Opera Suite." It's an imaginative, compelling mix, one that gratifyingly pushes the usually staid boundaries of what film scores can truly encompass.

    From www.universal-music.co.jp


    1. BROOKLYN HIGHTS PART 1 / HOWARD SHORE

    2. DARK MOON, HIGH TIDE / AFRO CELT SOUND SYSTEM

    3. GOSPEL TRAIN / SILVER LEAF QUARTET

    4. THE HANDS THAT BUILT AMERICA(THEME FROM GANGS OF NEW YORK) / U2

    5. SHIMMY SHE WOBBLE / OTHAR TURNER AND THE RISING STAR FIFE AND DRUM BAND

    6. BREAKAWAY / SIDNEY STRIPLING

    7. SIGNAL TO NOISE / PETER GABRIEL

    8. NEW YORK GIRLS / FINBAR FUREY

    9. THE MURDERER'S HOME / JIMPSON & GROUP

    10. DIONYSUS / JOCELYN POOK

    11. BROOKLYN HEIGHTS PART 2 / HOWARD SHORE

    12. MORRISON'S JIG / LIBERTY / MARIANO DE SIMONE

    13. DURGEN CHUGAA / SHU-DE

    14. UNCONSTANT LOVER / VITTORIO SCHIBONI, MASSIMO GIUNTINI, RODRIGO D'ERASMO AND MARIANO DE SIMONE

    15. DEVIL'S TAPDANCE / VITTORIO SCHIBONI, MASSIMO GIUNTINI, RODRIGO D'ERASMO AND MARIANO DE SIMONE

    16. BEIJING OPERA SUITE/Da-Can Chen and Anxi Jiang

    17. PADDY'S LAMENTATION / LINDA THOMPSON

    18. BROOKLYN HEIGHTS PART 3 / HOWARD SHORE

  • Decmber 4 2002 - From Variety thanks to Peanut - 'Gangs' to battle B.O. heavies in Japan... DiCaprio remains a favorite heartthrob
    By LUKAS SCHWARZACHER

    TOKYO -- "Gangs of New York" is in for a tough battle for auds when it opens in Japan Dec. 21 on 400 screens. "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" is still doing record business since it opened in late November on a record 858 screens. And Fox is set to release "Minority Report" on Saturday on 430 screens, a film sure to benefit from the superstar status helmer Steven Spielberg and thesp Tom Cruise enjoy in Japan.

    Local distributors Shochiku and Herald have not left any stone unturned to make sure "Gangs," Martin Scorsese's portrait of mid-1800s New York life, gets across to an audience jaded by the slate of blockbuster releases during the important year-end season.

    Lead Leonardo DiCaprio remains the biggest draw, followed by the awe helmer Scorsese commands among local cinephiles. Since "Titanic" world preemed in Tokyo five years ago, DiCaprio remains a favorite heartthrob for Japan's important female audience. He and Scorcese captivated local media and the audience at a special screening here in late November.

  • November 30 2002 - Martin Scorsese is considering going an extra mile or two to promote Gangs of New York. We hear that the legendary director is in talks to personally lead journalists on a walking tour of lower Manhattan during a press junket. The Gangs of New York tour (which is being planned by Big Onion Walking Tours in conjunction with Miramax) goes through the former Five Points, the infamous neighborhood where Scorsese's nineteenth-century gangland epic -- starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, and Daniel Day-Lewis -- takes place. Stops on the Lower East Side include Paradise Square, "Murderer's Alley," and sites associated with Bill "The Butcher" Poole, William M. "Boss" Tweed, and the 1857 Police and 1863 Draft riots. The tour is scheduled to open to the public in January 2003 -- but don't expect to find Scorsese leading the common folks' group.

  • Dec VCR tapings: (thanks to Peanut)

    1. The Japanese Excite site will soon broadcast a special that covers the fans reactions/greetings to DiCaprio during his recent Japan visit to promote GONY (thanks to Yumi)

    2. "Inside Actor's Studio " with Martin Scorsese - Dec. 15th ..7:00 Central Dec. 16th ..12:00am Central

    3. History Channel - History vs. Hollywood Gangs of New York
      Monday, December 16 11:00 PM-12:00 AM Tuesday, December 17 3:00 AM-4:00 AM Saturday, December 21 8:00 AM-9:00 AM

      Find out what's history and what's Hollywood as our experts examine Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York". Set against the backdrop of the infamous Five Points, an area of Manhattan formerly described as the world's worst slum, the film focuses on the powerful Irish and Italian gangs. Scorsese takes host Josh Binswanger on a tour of what was once Five Points, where outlaws, crooked cops, and corrupt politicians flourished in the 1800s. Includes interviews with Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz.

    4. Gangs of New York: Movie Special 30 minutes- N, In Stereo Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz star in the crime drama.

      Sat Dec 14 02:00P VH1- Video Hits 1 Sun Dec 15 10:00A VH1- Video Hits 1 Wed Dec 18 05:30P VH1- Video Hits 1 Thu Dec 19 07:30P VH1- Video Hits 1 Sat Dec 21 01:00P VH1- Video Hits 1

    5. On the Set Gangs of New York 20 minutes- Leonardo DiCaprio and Cameron Diaz star in ``Gangs of New York.´´.

      Wed Dec 18 03:45P STARE- Starz Fri Dec 20 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Sat Dec 21 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Sat Dec 21 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Sat Dec 21 03:40P STARE- Starz Sat Dec 21 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Sun Dec 22 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Sun Dec 22 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Sun Dec 22 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Mon Dec 23 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Mon Dec 23 12:45P STARE- Starz Mon Dec 23 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Mon Dec 23 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Mon Dec 23 09:45P STARE- Starz Tue Dec 24 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Tue Dec 24 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Tue Dec 24 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Wed Dec 25 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Wed Dec 25 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Wed Dec 25 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Thu Dec 26 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Thu Dec 26 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Thu Dec 26 04:00P STARE- Starz Thu Dec 26 09:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Fri Dec 27 05:45A STAR2- Starz # 2 Fri Dec 27 01:45P STAR2- Starz # 2 Sun Dec 29 01:45P STARE- Starz Mon Dec 30 07:45A STARE- Starz

    6. November 20, 2002 - Japan Today JST NARITA — Proving that he is still the champion heartthrob of the universe for Japanese women at least, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, 28, arrived in Japan Tuesday afternoon along with director Martin Scorsese for the world premiere Tuesday night of their long-delayed film "Gangs of New York."

      More than 500 young fans, mainly girls, swarmed around the pair, yelling "Leo, Leo, Leo" as their security hustled them through the terminal at Narita airport.

    7. November 21 2002 - Tom O'Neil from The Golden Derby, who recently saw a press screening:

      I won't review the film, but let's put it this way: there is NO possible way it can lose best picture at the Globes and Oscars. Expect the National Board of Review to go for it first on Dec. 4. They always go for the historical pageants. Then NY film crix will follow suit and there will be no stopping the Scorsese juggernaut. That's good news, because the film is so deserving.

    8. The Press Conference was fantastic! The clips and stills are here!

    9. November 17 2002 - A press junkett for GONY with Leonardo and Martin Scorsese will be broadcast on the 20th NOV (11:00 am Japan time) in Japan & the good news is that you can watch it on your pc at this Japaneses site!Thanks to Yumi and Shadi!
      Adjust your time & watch it! USA Press Conference will take place In New York, 09:00 PM Tuesday, November 19, 2002.

    10. November 14 2002 - With the latter half of U2's career surveyed on "The Best of 1990-2000," last month guitarist the Edge talked with Billboard Associate Editor Wes Orshoski via phone from his home in Ireland about the band's history for an article that appears in the Nov. 16, 2002 issue of the magazine. Here is the link to U2's mp3, thanks to Arnzilla!

      "The Hands That Built America" "This song was written after we were approached by Martin Scorsese to think about maybe writing a song for [his new historical film] 'The Gangs of New York.' We went and met him in New York, and went up and saw a rough assembly of the film. A few weeks later we went into the studio to work up some ideas, and one of the ideas that we came out with was 'The Hands That Built America,' the music anyway. We got back to it a little later on, later on last year, and finished it in the spring of this year. So, it's kind of a very recent piece, somewhat inspired by September 11th -- the final verse makes reference to New York during that period. But it's really inspired by the movie. It's a song about that period of time in the 19th century when so many immigrants came to America from Europe, and what it was like to arrive in this crazy town called New York. It was an incredible thing to sort of realize what New York was at that time. I can only imagine it was kind of like Nairobi -- incredibly dangerous. Actually, probably much worse than Nairobi, but, like, full of people trying to find a way to get away from the city. It's full of all kinds of diseases associated with overcrowding and bad sanitation, ruled by gangs and corrupt politicians. It was like, just, chaos."

    11. November 10 2002 - A brand new poster was shown this week on Entertainment Tonight



    12. November 9 2002 - In the new issue of EW, there is a section on John C. Reilly in which he has a few comments about the movie: after considering a part in P.T. Anderson's Punch Drunk Love, and being commited to do GONY, he says that it was Anderson who had talked him into doing the film: "It was this massive script, but there didn't seem to be a lot to my part. So I was a little torn..Am I really gonna go to Italy for all these months? I called Paul and he was like, 'Are you f**king crazy?...It doesn't matter about the role. If he says to come, you just go.'" Reilly loved Scorsese's 1997 Dalai Lama biopic Kundun so much that he joined a save-Tibet organization. Now he'd like to save Scorsese from all the heckling over Gang's extended gestation. "It's like a kid obsessed with getting Christmas presents in June," Reilly says angrily of the media buzz. "It's taking a long time, therefore it must be in trouble?...Have a little f**king respect."

    13. November 9 2002 - Special Event "A Pinewood Dialogue with Martin Scorsese"
      Martin Scorsese will discuss his career in a conversation with New York Times critic Janet Maslin. Tickets are $20, and must be purchased in advance: (718) 784-4520.

      Scorsese will make two special personal appearances during the retrospective, in Pinewood Dialogues moderated by New York Times critic Janet Maslin. On November 9, Scorsese will appear at the Museum for a discussion about his entire film career. In January (date and location to be announced), he will participate in a discussion with members of the cast and crew following a screening of The Gangs of New York. His key creative collaborator, film editor Thelma Schoonmaker (who has cut all of Scorsese's films since 1980), will speak at the Museum on November 24 following a screening of Raging Bull, for which she won an Academy Award.

      Presented with Scorsese's cooperation, the series will include a number of rare screenings, including the director's dynamic first feature, Who's That Knocking At My Door?, his heartfelt documentary portrait of his parents, Italianamerican, and "Mirror, Mirror," his reflexive episode for Steven Spielberg's TV series Amazing Stories. The series is, however, mainly an opportunity to see the director's well-known, and intensely cinematic works, such as GoodFellas, Taxi Driver, Casino, The Age of Innocence, The King of Comedy, and more, the way they were meant to be seen, on the big screen.

      Sumptuous in scale and brimming with life, Martin Scorsese's epic The Gangs of New York is a culmination of sorts, the grandest expression to date of the two key strands that run throughout his remarkable body of work. These dueling tendencies evoke the phrase "operatic realism." On one hand, Scorsese's films take full advantage of the heightened expressive powers of the medium, the ability to create a larger-than-life experience through the spectacle of sight and sound, and through the mastery of every element of the cinematic craft: acting, editing, camerawork, music, and design.

      Yet at the core of Scorsese's art is a passion for authenticity-a focus on details and a desire for tangible realism. According to the Museum's Chief Curator of Film, David Schwartz, who organized the series, "In essence, Scorsese makes documentary fictions, movies that combine the most expressive use of film technique since Hitchcock with a relentless search for realism." The end of Raging Bull quotes the prophet John: "Once I was blind, but now I can see." The desire to see things as they are, and communicate this vision as intensely as possible, drives Scorsese's filmmaking.

    14. November 8 2002 - (thanks Peanut) Museum 'Gangs' up on Scorsese
      By JUSTIN OPPELAAR

      From "Streets" to "Gangs," Martin Scorsese's career will be on display at a Gotham retrospective set to unspool next month.

      The American Museum of the Moving Image will bow "Directed By Martin Scorcese," a complete screening of the legendary helmer's features, documentaries, shorts, TV shows and commercials, beginning Nov. 9 and running through Dec. 29.

      Program, which will open with screenings of Scorsese's autobiographical pics "Mean Streets" and "Italian American," is timed to coincide with the Dec. 25 release of his latest film, the Miramax-distribbed historical drama "Gangs of New York."

      Scorsese will visit the museum for two sit-downs with New York Times critic Janet Maslin during the series. On opening day, he will appear to talk about his film career, and on a still-undetermined date in January, he'll return for a roundtable discussion with cast and crew from "Gangs."

    15. November 5 2002 - From http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/cl-ca-shorts3nov03.story (thanks Arnzilla)
      By Jon Burlingame
      Settling some scores

      Join the club, Elmer...

      Two major holiday releases -- "Gangs of New York" and "The Hours" -- have gone through multiple composers on their way to theaters.

      The most widely talked-about change has been on Martin Scorsese's long-delayed "Gangs" for which Elmer Bernstein (the Oscar-winning composer of "The Magnificent Seven" and "To Kill a Mockingbird") wrote and recorded an entire score. The Bernstein-Scorsese relationship dates to 1990, when the composer scored the Scorsese-produced "The Grifters." He went on to adapt Bernard Herrmann's original "Cape Fear" score for Scorsese's 1991 remake and write original music for the director's 1993 "The Age of Innocence" (which earned him an Oscar nomination) and 1999's "Bringing Out the Dead."

      Bernstein said that he worked with Scorsese over a period of several months late last year and earlier this year prior to recording the music in London. Afterward, Scorsese became "uncommunicative" until Bernstein received a letter "in which he basically said that he had decided he would do this as a typical Scorsese score, meaning bits and pieces that he puts together, as he did in 'GoodFellas' and 'Casino.' "

      Miramax officials confirmed that there is no longer any Bernstein music in the film. Howard Shore (who worked on Scorsese's "After Hours" and recently won an Oscar for "The Lord of the Rings") has contributed music based on a previously unheard concert work, "Brooklyn Heights."

      Scorsese has also borrowed music from a recent album by Peter Gabriel (who scored the director's "Last Temptation of Christ") and rock group U2 has written "The Hands That Built America."

    16. November 5 2002 - GONY soundtrack
      Amazon.com
      Gangs of New York [SOUNDTRACK]
      Various Artists
      List Price: $18.98
      Price: $18.98

      Availability: This item will be released on December 17, 2002. You may order it now and we will ship it to you when it arrives.

    17. November 5 2002 - From NY Times - Holiday Movies: Gangs of New York - Historical drama (Miramax)
      Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, John C. Reilly, Henry Thomas, Jim Broadbent.
      The idea: Irish immigrant leaves prison, seeks revenge on murderous gang lord in 1860s Manhattan.
      Writers: Jay Cocks and Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan; story by Jay Cocks.
      Director: Martin Scorsese.

      Of his three months in Italy handling screenwriting duties, Lonergan says, "I remember being quite frightened and then just delighted." Wandering the gigantic set overseen by Dante Ferretti, "I can't convey what it was like. To turn a corner and be in a harbor with huge ships and hundreds of extras made it come alive in such an exciting way. It's not like it's in front of you, it's all around you. It was a real work of art -- a physical, life-size reconstruction of an entire neighborhood in a vanished era. To be a part of that much creative power ... was just inspiring."

      There is also this item in a Q and A section of the Times:

      Will "Gangs of New York" finally be ready for release Dec. 20?

      If the film is half as gripping as what went on behind the scenes of Martin Scorsese's epic about gang warfare in mid-19th century Manhattan, then moviegoers could be in for a ride. Many wonder what the matchup of the colorful, scrappy Scorsese and tempestuous Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein will create. Production costs soared above $100 million and the film arrived a year late. Even with bankable stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz and Daniel Day-Lewis, the film -- about 2 hours, 40 minutes -- needs to gross about twice its budget to break even.

    18. November 5 2002 - From the NY Times...excerpt from an article about Elmer Bernstein:

      Mr. Bernstein wrote a score for the much-delayed "Gangs of New York" (which opens Dec. 20), but in the end Mr. Scorsese didn't use it. Most of the score will be traditional Irish music, with some original music by Howard Shore and a song by Bono of U2. "The score will be a typical Scorsese score, a pastiche, which is the way he scores a lot of his films," Mr. Bernstein said. "And he does it brilliantly."

    19. November 1 2002 - Excerpt from an interview with Elmer Bernstein: "I think anything Scorsese does is extraordinary," says the native New Yorker, as his wife, Eve, serves us coffee and biscuits in his front room. "There's something very special about this film (GONY). It's very hard to explain. It has the feeling of something you've never seen before.

      "Scorsese is by far the greatest film artist I've worked with. There have been other long-term relationships with directors, the most notable is with Robert Mulligan, culminating in To Kill a Mockingbird. I also did many films with George Roy Hill, as a matter of fact the film for which I won the Oscar was directed by him, Thoroughly Modern Millie. But the relationship with Scorsese is unique, in the sense that his knowledge of music in general, of my work and of how music is supposed to function in a film, is just superb."

      Quite a barrage of praise, even for someone as lauded as Scorsese who, as an ardent film buff, will appreciate the compliments more than most. Certainly Marty could tell you that Bernstein was the man behind the revolutionary all-jazz score of The Man with the Golden Arm, and the genius of Sweet Smell of Success.

    20. November 1 2002 - New York Times special on "holiday movies":

      GANGS OF NEW YORK Leonardo DiCaprio, directed by Martin Scorsese. Mr. DiCaprio plays Amsterdam Vallon, a hoodlum in mid-19th-century New York. And that was not a tranquil time: the usual corruption and turmoil were stirred further by war. (Historians say the 1863 Civil War draft riots were the largest uprising in the city's history.) Vallon is fresh out of prison and eager to get even with his father's killer, Bill the Butcher (Daniel Day-Lewis). This all takes place in Five Points, the city's most dangerous neighborhood at the time. The screenwriting team is first-rate: Steven Zaillian, Kenneth Lonergan and Jay Cocks. The cast also includes Cameron Diaz, John C. Reilly and Jim Broadbent (as Boss Tweed). Moviegoers have been waiting for this one a long time, and Miramax rescheduled it again recently to avoid conflict with Mr. DiCaprio's other holiday film, DreamWorks' "Catch Me if You Can." Dec. 20.

    21. October 18, 2002 - DiCaprio will get five-day headstart against ... himself
      From CBS.MarketWatch.com

      NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - Miramax Films has settled on a new release date for its "Gangs of New York," which was due to debut on Christmas Day against another film featuring the same star. Miramax instead will release "Gangs" on Dec. 20 so that it doesn't conflict with the Dec. 25 opening of "Catch Me If You Can" from privately held DreamWorks SKG. Both films featured Leonardo DiCaprio in leading roles.

      While the new date isn't that much of a separation between DiCaprio movies, it was deemed the best time frame, said Rick Sands, Miramax's chief operating officer. It also puts the film in competition with the highly anticipated "Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers" which debuts the same weekend. Sands said the new date allows Miramax, a division of Walt Disney Co. (DIS: news, chart, profile), to take advantage of the holiday film-going season and still provide some separation between the two films. The fact that it competes with "Lord of the Rings," which targets different audiences, is of relatively minor concern.

      "There is room in the marketplace. There is clearly room in the marketplace," Sands said. "Every night's a Saturday night during holiday time." Putting on "Gangs" during an earlier weekend wouldn't have allowed Miramax to take full advantage of the holiday season. Films released in early December have a tendency to get pushed down the priority list in theaters, ending up in smaller venues in favor of more current movies.

      "There was really nowhere else to go," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations Co. "I think it's a wise move." He said there should be some time separation between "Gangs" and "Catch," but added Miramax can't allow the movie to get lost in the shuffle. "Gangs" originally was supposed to be released last Christmas, but wasn't completed in time for what Miramax said was an ambitious release schedule. ** See also my Release Date Rumors page for all the official and speculative reports on GONY's release date.

    22. October 16, 2002 - From http://www.moviepoopshoot.com/score/index.html - KNOWING THE SCORE
      by Paul Tonks

      Something else soundtrack fans have been speculating about recently is when on (Middle) Earth Shore found time to provide additional music for Martin Scorcese's GANGS OF NEW YORK. Elmer Bernstein provided a full score some time ago now, and has spoken fondly of it. Then the movie underwent more than a little re-editing. One possibility is that Shore hasn't actually written anything new, but licensed some existing material to bridge gaps.

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