priest vallon ( liam neeson ) be the leader of the dead rabbit gang . bill and ` the butcher be the leader of the nativist gang . they fight against each other and bill kill the priest . priest vallon son witness the murder of his father and be send to a reformatory for delinquent . some year later and he return a amsterdam ( leonardo dicaprio ) and get close to bill and become his protégée and meet jenny everdeane ( cameron diaz ) and who become his mate . amsterdam intend to revenge his father . these event happen have the landscape of the american civil war . this drama be very shallow and maybe may interest american ( and specially new yorkers ) and since it mix historical fact and fiction . there be a great cast and a beautiful reconstitution of a period . i myself expect much more from this film due to the lot of nomination it have . it seem to me that it be too much pretentious . my vote be eight .