The Departed Is Scorsese At His Best
All Star Cast Rises To Script’s Challenges

The defining element of good movies is timelessness. While watching Martin Scorsese’s The Departed, I was struck with the realization that this film, while getting better with each passing moment, would retain its poignancy for years to come.

Jack Nicholson stars in the new movie The Departed.

Mark Wahlberg stars in the new movie The Departed.

Jack Nicholson is Frank Costello, an Irish gangster who exudes confidence and runs his South Boston neighborhood with such terrifying intelligence that none have dared to cross him.

The Boston State Police, desperate to end Costello’s reign, place rookie Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) as a mole in Costello’s crew.

Little do the authorities know, Costello is a step ahead and has Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) on the inside of the police department as a high ranking detective.

As both sides attempt to smoke out their respective traitors, the tension mounts and explodes until all are tested on grounds of loyalty, morality, and general stamina.

There is no shortness of intensity in The Departed; Scorsese sets the mood with Costello’s clever evil, Billy’s dangerous double life, and Colin’s indecision. Whenever the characters meet, sparks fly.

Commendation for Scorsese is in order for directing such a flawlessly emotional film. He forms each scene to raise the tension, yet the feelings are so subtle and smooth that never are you forced into the transition.

This brilliant film is accompanied by an equally brilliant soundtrack. Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb,” as sung by Van Morrison and the Band, is symbolic and haunting while Billy displays the most vulnerability he is allowed to show to keep his low profile. High-tension meetings with Costello and potential murder victims are overshadowed by the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter.”

If fear is an art, then DiCaprio is an artist with quality enough for the Louvre. As his character finds it harder to conceal his identity, DiCaprio tugs the audience’s sympathy with such skill that we find it hard to not weep for him. Billy fights off demons with prescription drugs and a brief, passionate affair with his shrink (Vera Farminga), who, coincidentally, is Colin’s fiancée.

Colin keeps his cool throughout the film, but the audience knows better. He realizes, not only, that he cannot come clean as a cop but that Costello no longer finds him necessary and he is in danger of being exposed or killed. Keeping his secret from everyone around him, including his fiancé, becomes his main goal and this fights against his desire to please the man who has helped him get where he is. Damon plays Colin so carefully that each movement is a clue to his motive, yet hides his true intentions.

Nicholson is devilishly hilarious, but not to the point of caricature. His twisted sense of humor is matched perfectly with his mischievous looks and gestures. It is difficult to decide whether to grimace or laugh as he makes wisecracks after each murder. Though Nicholson is pushing 70, he is far from losing his touch.

Mark Wahlburg, as Lt. Dignam, Billy and Colin’s crude superior, takes his small role and makes it memorable, displaying the kind of showmanship that reminds us that you don’t have to be the headliner to make history.

Vera Farminga, like Wahlburg, and Alec Baldwin as a high-strung detective, has few lines and little screen time, but has talent so obvious that there is never a dull moment. With only a look towards Colin, she conveys so much anger and betrayal that it nearly burns a hole through the screen and into your heart.

Everyone in the cast displayed such talent that its a shame that there aren’t enough Oscars for all of them. Each actor was tested to their limit and came out on top.

From start to finish, The Departed is a treat for the eyes, ears, and intellect. Scorsese uses a harsh setting to demonstrate the treachery and weight involved in organized crime and living in general. Rarely will you find a gangster movie with such brutal potency; The Departed will surely go down in history as one of the classics.

The Departed is rated R for violence, language, drug use, and some sexual content.