Martin Scorsese is back at what he does best: crime. The Departed comfortably puts the director back in this genre after trying his hand at dramas and period pieces for the past few years. This is actually a remake of a Hong Kong crime film called Infernal Affairs which was released 2002 and is now available at some of your local video stores. Although I am not a huge fan of remakes, The Departed does the original justice and adds its own presence.
The story of The Departed involves Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), who is a member of mob boss Frank Costello’s (played by Jack Nicholson) gang. Now Costello is being harassed by the cops on a daily basis, he sends Sullivan to the police academy so he can work his way up to becoming a police officer and become the mobs’ inside man in the police force. Leonardo DiCaprio is Billy Costigan, who pretty much parallels from Damon’s character as he is an undercover cop sent in to be the inside man in Costello’s gang. Both the mob and the police force find out that there are moles in their units and the film becomes a suspenseful game of cat and mouse as they both try to find out who is the mole.
Amazing! That word alone should just make you go to the theatre now. I’m not a big fan of Leonardo DiCaprio but goddamn it I think he gave the performance of his career, I would be shocked if he wasn’t nominated for an Oscar this year. His character is full of raw emotion and blunt force anger; you really do feel bad for what he goes through in the film. Matt Damon plays Matt Damon, does a serviceable job, I honestly believe he is better at playing the silent role like the Bourne films but he holds his own. Jack Nicholson as the mob boss hams his character up with that Jack personality to give him that witty dark sense of humor and personality. Mark Wahlberg in his limited screen time steals every scene he is in as a bad ass, foul-mouthed sergeant who knows the secret of Leonardo DiCaprio’s character and basically cusses everyone out that he sees with that cockney Boston accent. Also look out for the actress in the film, Vera Farmiga, she’s a definite up and comer who we’ll see in many films as time goes on. Beautiful and gave a very good performance as the shrink for Leo’s character as well as the girlfriend of Matt Damon’s character. Marty, you are back! No matter how many different kinds of films he does, the gangster film will always be his bread and butter.
The Boom Verdict: 5 out of 5
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