The Departed (2006)

User Rating:

8.5/10   

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers (WGA):

William Monahan (screenplay)
Alan Mak (2002 screenplay Mou gaan dou) ...

Release Date:

6 October 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Lies. Betrayal. Sacrifice. How far will you take it?

Plot:

Two men from opposite sides of the law are undercover within the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish mafia, but violence and bloodshed boil when discoveries are made, and the moles are dispatched to find out their enemy's identities.

Plot Keywords:

Police | State Police | Undercover | Mole | Criminal

Awards:

Won 4 Oscars. Another 49 wins & 53 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Wed. Nov. 18	6:30 PM	FX
Thur. Nov. 19	2:00 PM	FX

Cast

Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Billy Costigan
Matt Damon	...	Colin Sullivan
Jack Nicholson	...	Frank Costello
Mark Wahlberg	...	Staff Sgt. Dignam
Martin Sheen	...	Cpt. Queenan
Ray Winstone	...	Mr. French
Vera Farmiga	...	Madolyn
Anthony Anderson	...	Brown
Alec Baldwin	...	Cpt. Ellerby
Kevin Corrigan	...	Cousin Sean
James Badge Dale	...	Barrigan
David O'Hara	...	Fitzy (as David Patrick O'Hara)
Mark Rolston	...	Delahunt
Robert Wahlberg	...	Lazio - FBI
Kristen Dalton	...	Gwen

Also Known As:

Infernal Affairs (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong brutal violence, pervasive language, some strong sexual content and drug material.

Runtime:

151 min

Country:

USA | Hong Kong

Language:

English | Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | UK:18 | Hong Kong:IIB | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Singapore:M18 (edited version) | Australia:MA | USA:R (certificate #42877) | Finland:K-15 | Argentina:16 | Norway:15 | Philippines:R-13 (MTRCB) | Israel:16 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:16 | Brazil:18 | Malaysia:18SG | Iran:18+ | Portugal:M/16 | New Zealand:R16 | Spain:18 | Greece:K-13 | Ireland:18 (video rating) | Sweden:15 | South Korea:15 | Denmark:15 | Ireland:16 (original rating) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | France:U (with warning) | Japan:R-15 | India:A | Italy:T | Singapore:R21 | China:(Banned) | Italy:VM14 (original rating) | Austria:16 | Romania:I.C.-14 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

12 Farnsworth Street, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Mark Wahlberg based his performance on the police officers who'd arrested him about two dozen times in his youth, and the reactions of his parents who had to come bail him out with their grocery money.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Costigan is getting his arm put in plaster his stare is toward two totally different places between shots.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Frank Costello: I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me. Years ago we had the church. That was only a way of saying - we had each other. The Knights of Columbus were real head-breakers; true guineas. They took over their piece of the city. Twenty years after an Irishman couldn't get a fucking job, we had the presidency. May he rest in peace. That's what the niggers don't realize. If I got one thing against the black chappies, it's this - no one gives it to you. You have to take it.

Movie Connections:

References Scarface (1932)

Soundtrack:

Chi mi frena (Sextet, Act 2)

Scorsese's best since Goodfellas!

He has made good musicals (New York, New York), surreal comedies (After Hours), satires (The King of Comedy) and biopics (The Aviator), but Martin Scorsese has never done better than the times he's dealt with life on the streets and gangsters. Mean Streets, Goodfellas and Casino (and, to some degree, Taxi Driver) are proof of that. It doesn't seem strange, then, that his finest film in over a decade (Goodfellas was released in 1990) sees him return to that familiar ground. With a few changes.

The Departed, based on Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs (2002), is Scorsese's first gangster film not to feature Italian-American criminals. In fact, this film is set in Boston, where the Irish rule. One of these "godfathers" is Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson), the man the State Police want the most. After years of investigation, they're finally getting close, thanks to undercover agent Billy Costigan (Leonardo Di Caprio). Because of his family (all Irish, all bad), becoming a member of Costello's crew isn't that difficult. Now all Costigan has to do is report to his superiors, Queenan (Martin Sheen) and Dignam (Mark Wahlberg), who will pass on the information to Ellerby's (Alec Baldwin) Special Investigations Unit. What they don't know is that Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), the most promising element of said unit, has been on Costello's payroll since he was 12. Soon enough, both cops and crooks become aware of the situation, beginning a manhunt that's gonna make the already fragile Billy even more nervous and Costello increasingly crazier.

By moving from Hong Kong to Boston, Scorsese and screenwriter William Monahan have made the first step in ensuring this film will be quite different from its Chinese inspiration. Another significant factor is the running time: a mere 97 minutes for Infernal Affairs, 150 for The Departed. This is due to new characters (Dignam and Costello's henchman Mr French, played by Ray Winstone, were missing in the original) and subplots, such as the one concerning Madolyn (Vera Farmiga), a psychiatrist who gets emotionally involved with both of the moles. But the most crucial difference is in the depiction of the underworld: whereas IA was stylish without being excessive, Scorsese's vision comprises very colorful language (some insults are so creative one might expect Joe Pesci to show up) and, of course, buckets of blood, the last part of the movie proving to be particularly shocking. None of the scenes ever reach the gross-out level of Casino's head-in-the-vice scene, but in pure Scorsese tradition it remains unflinchingly violent (also notable is the music, perfectly setting the mood, scene after scene, alongside Thelma Schoonmaker's impeccable editing).

Amidst these brutal surroundings, the director handles a spot-on cast: Baldwin, Sheen and Wahlberg (the latter finally back on form) make good use of their little screen time, Damon fine-tunes the edgier side he showed in The Talented Mr Ripley and the Bourne movies, and Nicholson, playing the villain again at last, delivers another OTT but classy turn (original choice Robert De Niro would probably have played the part with more calm and subtlety). A special mention is needed for Di Caprio: working with Scorsese for the third consecutive time, he has finally found a way to shake off his Titanic image, thanks to a vulnerable, gripping (and arguably career-best) performance.

With its clever plot, excellent acting and expert direction, The Departed is without doubt the year's best film so far. If this really is going to be his last gangster film (he has said so), as well as his last studio-endorsed picture, Scorsese can be proud, given the masterpiece he has given us. If only they gave him the Oscar in return...