|
|
Movie
description |
-Leonardo
Di
Caprio
-Jack
Nicholson
-Matt
Damon
Director
Martin
Scorsese
returns
to
his
trademark
style
with
the
violent,
bruised,
and
bloody
feature
THE
DEPARTED.
Scorsese
filched
the
basic
storyline
from
Wai
Keung
Lau
and
Siu
Fai
Mak's
masterful
2002
Hong
Kong
action
film,
INFERNAL
AFFAIRS,
which
saw
a
policeman
going
undercover
as a
mob
member
and
a
mob
member
infiltrating
the
police
force.
Scorsese
transfers
the
action
to
Boston,
positioning
Leonardo
Di
Caprio
as
undercover
cop
William
Costigan
and
Matt
Damon
as
undercover
mobster
Colin
Sullivan.
While
Costigan
and
Sullivan
get
into
plenty
of
nail-biting
situations
that
almost
reveal
their
true
identities,
Scorsese
gradually
unravels
his
strong
supporting
cast,
including
Jack
Nicholson
as
Sullivan's
mob
boss,
Frank
Costello;
Ray
Winstone
as
Costello's
meat-headed
muscle;
Mark
Wahlberg
as a
hot-headed
police
sergeant;
and
Vera
Farmiga
as a
love
interest
for
both
Damon
and
DiCaprio's
characters.
THE
DEPARTED
finds
Scorsese
generously
dipping
his
toes
back
into
waters
that
will
be
warmly
familiar
to
his
biggest
fans.
Rolling
Stones
songs
pepper
the
soundtrack,
recalling
the
remarkable
"Jumpin'
Jack
Flash"
sequence
in
MEAN
STREETS;
bullets
and
blood
punctuate
every
key
scene,
bringing
TAXI
DRIVER's
explosive
finale
to
mind;
and
the
mobster-themed
storyline
is a
thrilling
return
to
GOODFELLAS
territory.
Nicholson
and
Winstone
provide
acting
master-classes
every
time
they
appear,
neatly
complementing
the
blossoming
talents
of
DiCaprio,
Damon,
and
Wahlberg,
while
further
veteran
support
comes
in
small
roles
for
Martin
Sheen
and
Alec
Baldwin.
Scorsese
is
often
criticized
for
affording
precious
little
screen
time
to
female
characters,
and
THE
DEPARTED
won't
quell
those
dissenting
voices,
although
Farmiga's
character
proves
to
be
more
than
a
match
for
DiCaprio
and
Damon's
posturings.
But
Scorsese
followers
who
balked
at
his
diversions
into
documentary
filmmaking
(NO
DIRECTION
HOME)
and
period
epics
(THE
AVIATOR)
will
be
delighted
to
find
raw
male
machismo
puncturing
the
screen
once
again
in
this
frenetic
entry
into
his
celebrated
oeuvre.
Portions
of
this
page
Copyright
1948-2006
Muze
Inc.
and
Muze
Europe
Ltd.
All
rights
reserved. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
MovieNoodle Guarantee
