''give me that Oscar''

Rating: 8/10 (5 August 2008)

As Martin Scorsese collected the Best Director Oscar for The Departed he jokingly began his speech by asking 'Could you check the envelope again??' This came after an extended show of respect from the crowd for a man who should have walked those steps many years ago. It is a fact of life that you aren't going to win every time. But to not win at all with movies like Taxi Driver, Casino, and especially Goodfellas, well, thats just an injustice. As his name was called out it seemed a collective sigh of relief swept over the film industry as finally the man who has battled long and hard collected his award.
Scorsese stepped outside his gangster film making home last time out to tackle the biopic with 'The Aviator', with mixed reviews. Although not a bad film, it wasn't the Scorsese we've come to know, and it was time to get back to basics in the search for that elusive Oscar.
'The Departed' tells the story of two men from opposite sides of the law ,undercover within the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish mafia. The State Police's aim, led by Detectives Dignam (Mark Wahlberg) and Queenan (Martin Sheen), is to take down Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson), who has been terrorising the City for years. Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio), is assigned the unattractive role of going undercover in attempt to do so. Costello's hand is made up of Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), who is his mole in the Police Department. To add to the tension, both Sullivan and Costigan fall for the same girl, shrink Madolyn (Vera Farmiga). The story is as intriguing as it gets, and the acting is superb on all corners, including the terrific Alec Baldwin.
Jack Nicholson is immense, DiCaprios improvement away from the bay faced actor continues, and Damon is one of the best actors around full stop. My only annoyance is that Robert De Niro, a man who has forged a great partnership with Scorsese over the years, didn't feature in the film that finally got the great man an Oscar.