GANGS OF NEW YORK (18)

Martin Scorsese returns to the mean streets of his beloved New York City for this 19th century tale of gang warfare and doomed love inspired by Herbert Asbury's book of the same name.

Gangs Of New York is an epic undertaking, and with a budget estimated to be in excess of £100m, the film is the director's grandest and riskiest project to date.

Despite critical success and numerous awards, Scorsese's films rarely set the box office alight commercially, and, regrettably, Gangs Of New York may follow suit.

If the director was hoping to make this year's Titanic, replete with Leonardo DiCaprio as the romantic hero, he fails; the iceberg that sinks this one is weak characterisation and a sprawling narrative.

The Dead Rabbits and the Nativists are two gangs who rule the poorest neighbourhoods of the Victorian Big Apple with an iron fist. Rivalry between them is fierce, and their skirmishes are increasingly bloody.

Following the death of his father, Priest Vallon (Liam Neeson), at the hands of Nativist leader Bill 'The Butcher' Cutting (Daniel Day-Lewis), young Amsterdam Vallon vows revenge.

Many years later, after the Dead Rabbits have been disbanded, Amsterdam (Leonardo DiCaprio) returns to his home of the Five Points.

Using a new identity, he infiltrates Bill's inner circle, winning the notorious leader's trust and respect.

However, Amsterdam's plan comes unstuck when he falls in love with a beautiful Irish pickpocket called Jenny (Cameron Diaz), whose past draws her to Amsterdam's sworn enemy.

Gangs Of New York is technically astounding, from Scorsese's masterful direction of the epic battle scenes to Thelma Schoonmaker's hyperkinetic editing.

The film also looks amazing, with the combined efforts of master setbuilders and special effects artists re-creating old New York in its grimy entirety.

For all of its technical brio, however, the film lacks heart - it's difficult to feel empathy for Amsterdam because the character is poorly sketched and DiCaprio's accent wanders from Boston to Tipperary and back again.

Diaz is equally unable to generate any appeal for her character and there's no spark of sexual chemistry, even in the love scenes.

However, Day-Lewis delivers a tour-de-force portrayal of evil that marks him as a frontrunner for the Oscars.