Whilst it is true that this film was not a box office success, it may be unfair to blame the public completely for it. Paramount studios had agreed to bankroll this medium budget project, which was being filmed thousands of miles away in New Zealand. When the studio were presented with the final cut of it in the summer of 1983 they were concerned at some of the stylistic similarities with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) (which had proven to be a huge hit for Paramount two years previously). During the summer of 1983 Steven Spielberg was already in pre-production with the Raiders sequel, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) with a view to it being Paramount's tent-pole release for the summer of 1984. Not wanting to have two old fashioned swashbuckling adventure films released within a year of each other for fear of effecting the advertising, publicity and box office potential of the Spielberg film (and remember Harrison Ford was a hugely popular star by this point whereas Tommy Lee Jones was practically unknown), Paramount Pictures decided to cut their losses and give this film only a small, relatively publicity free release, to meet contractual obligations. It was released in the fall of 1983 where it would go unnoticed, sandwiched between the likes of James Bond film Never Say Never Again (1983) and the Clint Eastwood thriller Sudden Impact (1983). The Indiana Jones film was subsequently released just over half a year later where it was, unsurprisingly, a huge hit, earning back more than ten times its budget.
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
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Fan of Gangs of New York or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to Gangs of New York
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It is the only Best Picture Oscar nominee that year that did not win any Academy Awards.
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Martin Scorsese hired "The Magician", an Italian man famous for a 30-year career as a pickpocket, to teach Cameron Diaz about the art of picking pockets.
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The opening street fight features music from Peter Gabriel's song "Signal to Noise." Gabriel wrote the soundtrack for Scorsese's earlier film "The Last Temptation of Christ."
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The draft riots depicted in the film are largely accurate, but the real-life Bill "The Butcher" Poole was killed several years before the riots took place.
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Christina Applegate, Kate Beckinsale, Kirsten Dunst, Eliza Dushku, Heather Graham, Bryce Dallas Howard, Alyssa Milano, Natalie Portman Christina Ricci, Winona Ryder and Mena Suvari were considered or auditioned for the role of Jenny Everdeane.
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Daniel Day-Lewis became so uncomfortable with the greasy hairstyle he wore as Bill the Butcher that he shaved his head immediately after filming completed.
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Daniel Day-Lewis was persuaded to come out of semi-retirement by the fact that he had enjoyed working with Martin Scorsese so much on The Age of Innocence (1993).
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Bill the Butcher has a scene with every main and supporting character in the film, a symbol of his vast influence in the Five Points.
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To simulate Bill the Butcher's fake eye, Daniel Day-Lewis had his own eyeball covered in prosthetic glass. Day-Lewis learned to tap his fake eye with the tip of a knife without blinking.
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The closing credits of the movie feature the "Twin Towers." By the time it hit theaters in December of 2002, sadly, the towers were already gone.
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Cameron Diaz was unhappy that her six week contract kept getting extended. She ultimately spent six months working on the film.
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Amsterdam Vallon's description of nearly every grift (lay) or confidence game in the Five Points:For every lay we had a different name. An Angler put a hook on the end of a stick......to drop behind store windows and doors.An Autumn diver picked your pocket in church.A Badger, gets a fellow in bed with a girl... and robs his pockets when they're on the go.Jenny was a Bludger... a girl pickpocket., And a Turtle dove. A Turtle dove goes uptown...dressed like a housemaid. Picks out a fine house...and goes right through the back door. Robs you blind. It takes a lot of sand to be a Turtle dove.
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When the film was first conceived in 1978, Martin Scorsese planned to cast Dan Aykroyd as Amsterdam Vallon and John Belushi as Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting. The project fell apart after Belushi died. A cast reshuffle had Mel Gibson as Amsterdam Vallon and Willem Dafoe as The Butcher.
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Production designer Dante Ferretti recreated over a mile of mid-nineteenth century buildings, consisting of a five block area of Lower Manhattan, including the Five Points slum, part of the East River waterfront with two full-sized sailing ships, a thirty-building stretch of lower Broadway and replicas of a mansion, Tammany Hall, a church, a saloon, a Chinese theater, and a casino.
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Bill the Butcher is a rabid opponent of Abraham Lincoln. In one scene he throws a knife at a picture of the president. Day-Lewis would play Lincoln in Lincoln (2012) ten years later. Coincidentally Gangs of New York co-star Liam Neeson was originally cast to play Lincoln before Day-Lewis replaced him.
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Jonathan Rhys Meyers was offered a part before production. He turned it down because he said he was too busy with other projects.
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Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio both took salary reductions to preserve the budget.
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Leonardo DiCaprio got a dressing down in front of the entire assembled crew one morning when he turned up late after a night of heavy partying.
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Touchstone Pictures was credited in the opening logos along with Miramax, even though Touchstone had no involvement with the film. Both studios were owned by The Walt Disney Company at the time.
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
Gangs of New York - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts
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