Scorsese proves himself once again

Rating: 10/10 (13 December 2006)

**Contains spoilers** The departed is a great cop thriller that works on every level. Scorsese's direction is amazing proving once again he is one of the greatest directors. The editing is also great. The movie paces very well, and there are some very nice cuts that editor Thelma Schoonmaker uses. The story is great and has a lot of twist and turns that you don't expect (even though I still can't understand why Costello doesn't try to find the rat the old fashioned way and has to gather everyone's records in an envelope). The dialog is also great and fun especially from Mark Wahlberg who has a lot of nice one-liners. He also gives a good performance even though I didn't really like him as an actor. The performances are amazing from everyone. Jack Nicholson, may be a bit over the top but Scorsese knows how to control him. DiCaprio is amazing and proves again his acting talents. He is on the verge of mental collapse and has violent outbursts and DiCaprio seems like he's living his situation not acting it. Matt Damon is also great as the corrupt and sleazy cop and is the perfect actor to play DiCaprio's mirror character (the rat in the police-DiCaprio is the rat in Costello's gang). Vera Farminga does an excellent job as the only female character and Scorsese did well not to choose a famous movie star, and Martin Sheen is great as the head of the head for the investigation against Costello and I was really shocked when he was thrown out of the building. Which brings me to the ending. Though I was a bit annoyed about the way everybody got shot in the head, after I thought about it a little I realized that there wasn't any other way to end the movie. By killing all the 'rats' (Costello is the rat of his own gang to the FBI, DiCaprio is the rat in Costello's gang, Matt Damon is the rat in the police), Scorsese gives a message that betrayers will get what they deserve and makes the film theme of trust and betrayal even stronger. Now to see Infernal Affairs and compare the two!