The Plot: Set in South Boston, this crime drama centers around the state police force, and its all out war on organized crime.
Young and somewhat troubled undercover cop Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) is assigned to infiltrate the mob syndicate run by gangland chief Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson). While Billy is quickly gaining Costello's favor, Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), is a hardened young criminal who has found way into the police department as an informer for the syndicate--Quickly rising to a position of power in the Special Investigation Unit.
Each man finds himself deeply consumed by his double life, gathering information about the plans and counter-plans of operations he is made privy. But when it becomes clear to both the gangsters and the police that there lurks a mole, Billy and Colin are suddenly in danger of being caught and exposed to the enemy -- and each of the two men must now race to uncover the identity of the other, in time to save himself.
Scorsese on The Departed Set
My Take: Based on the 2002 Japanese film, Mou gaan dou (Infernal Affairs), The Departed has all of the ingredients that one would expect from a Scorsese film in the mob genre. Of course, William Monahan's script gives the director plenty to work with...Does it rise to the level of perfection that is, a Goodfellas, (1990) Taxi Driver (1976) Raging Bull (1980) or Cape Fear (1991) ? The answer to that question is that the movie ultimately lands just behind all of those classics I mentioned in the great one's filmography--but miles and miles ahead of the worst, just the same.
Three things that really nudged at me about the flick-- taking away from an otherwise flawless film...
--There's a point in the film where DiCaprio and Damon's characters engage in a game of cat and mouse as they try to expose each other without getting taken out...Under normal circumstances, this sequence would have been the centerpiece, made memorable through its staging and editing. I don't know what happened here, but this scene yielded, little tension or surprise. Editor Thelma Schoonmaker usually knows how to make this work but the pacing seemed off somehow. You can't have a great set-up and then blow it a crucial time in the story. I felt like I was watching a re-run of a 70's era TV cop show. I can't believe I just typed that about a Scorsese picture
--Vera Farmiga as Madolyn, the woman who comes between Billy and Colin, shares little chemistry with either Damon or DiCaprio. As pretty much the only female in the "men's room"...She should have sparks with someone.
--The Bostonian accents--Some cast members sounded really bad...and and that was really distracting. Damon, who's originally from Boston, is perhaps the worst offender. Leo fares much much better with his accent. I find it ironic though, that DiCaprio gets Oscar attention for Blood Diamond but not for The Departed--When by all account--his performance in the mob pic is better then that of BD-I digress...
The film succeeds though thanks to everything else. Yes, Jack Nicholson is playing a character he's done a thousand times before, but gosh darn it it works here. Also doing yeoman's work is Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen, and of course, Mark Wahlberg. And the ending is just spectacular...
The Two-Disc Special Edition DVD offers up some great extras, even though not a whole lot of the stuff, actually focuses on the film.
A 21-minute featurette titled "Stranger Than Fiction" about Whitey Bulger, the legendary South Boston mobster on whom the film's Frank Costello was loosely based is first up. Bulger's tale is told by various folks in the know. According to this featurette, Bulger has been on the lam since 1995 and is number two on the F.B.I.'s Ten Most Wanted List. Interesting real-life drama.
The best bonus material in the DVD set is "Scorsese on Scorsese," an hour-and-a-half documentary made for Turner Classic Movies by Richard Schickel . Scorsese talks about his life and work. Taking us through his earliest days through 2004's The Aviator ending with that TV commercial he appeared in for American Express .
A 24-minute featurette "Crossing Criminal Cultures" takes a look at the how the gangster film has evolved over the decades--with Scorsese at its center.
There is a collection of nine deleted/extended scenes--complete with intros from the director. Some of these scenes are quite good, but were rightfully omitted, for time and pace.
The theatrical trailer tops off the set.
Overall: I may have had some unexpected issues with The Departed, but none of them bothered me enough to be really critical. This is a must see movie for sure...Definitely buy or rent, depending on how much you like Scorsese And if Hollywood doesn't give him that Oscar--Heads are gonna roll
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