Scorsese got his Oscar out of sentiment, not for this embarrassment

Rating: 5/10 (6 December 2007)

Very, very, very disappointing given the all-star cast. I love much of Nicholson's work, but in this he's not very believable as a crime boss. Nicholson can certainly do the man in charge, but not in this. Leonardo is fairly believable, although he seems to be working hard on looking sullen. Damon is okay, nothing special. Sheen is fairly good but Wahlberg is awful. Sheen has to pretend there's not a bad smell in the room when he's with Wahlberg. We are to believe that his Dignan is expressing real emotion, this is a real tough guy? This story relies on so many twists to carry itself, but the weakness of the characters and to some degree, the plot, is surprising. I didn't hate it, I just hated not seeing the performances I expect from these actors. It was okay as late night entertainment, but this thing won Oscars?