Almost great...

Rating: 5/10 (27 January 2007)

So much has been reviewed and said about this movie. I had mixed expectations going in, which is usually good because I will be more easily impressed if it's a great movie. Without giving anything away, the first hour and 45 minutes of The Departed were excellent, but the ending was 20-30 minutes too long, the plot ran away with itself, and I just didn't find it fulfilling. I don't need a particularly happy or sad ending to truly enjoy a movie, but it should leave the viewer with a strong emotion one way or the other. The only emotion The Departed left me with was disappointment that it ended so poorly.
This film was impressive for everything larger-than-life about it: the roles, the backdrops, the actions taking place, the ensemble actors, etc. The problem was (as many have mentioned) there wasn't any character development. There weren't any stories told that really connected with the audience. Such an effort was put on making everything BIG that they forgot to tell a story. And even realizing this, I still feel that "The Departed" is one of Scorsese's best for the first hour forty-five. Everything else is really THAT good.
(Goodfellas, in comparison, was both BIG in all the reasons The Departed was, but _also_ told some great stories. Henry's growing up, the killing of Billy Batts and moving his body, Tommy getting made, the big heist, even the finale about Henry getting trapped by the FBI and regretting giving up his gangster days to be a normal citizen under federal protection... These were all STORIES within the movie that the audience could identify with. The Departed didn't really tell ANY story in this regard. As for Scorsese's other works, his fame helped make Casino, Gangs of New York, and The Aviator all larger than life like Goodfellas and The Departed, but none of them told stories as good as his previous works such as The Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, or even Taxi Driver.)
As for the acting, I was very impressed with Leo. He's come off as such a pretty boy in everything he's done in recent years. This performance hearkened back to his promising start with "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" and "The Basketball Diaries". It was a home run. Matt Damon was OK, but kind of wooden; nothing like "Goodwill Hunting", and even his Jason Bourne roles were better. Mark Wahlberg did well in a great role, but was not earth-shattering. That role was written for Denis Leary, and if Wahlberg could be nominated for an Oscar for his performance in it, Leary would win one. Can't help but think that Leary was just made for that role and really would've been dynamite in it. Alec Baldwin was great in a larger-than-life supporting role, as was Martin Sheen. Vera Farmiga was great as the love interest, but her character's story wasn't as developed. That is an example of how "scattered" the plot was.
And, of course, Jack was outstanding. One of his best performances ever. It is downright criminal that the Academy plays these games of "who we owe, who doesn't need an Oscar anymore, etc." and didn't nominate him. Jack was just incredible as the dark, sinister, and truly disturbed crime boss.
I am a fan of Scorsese's work, a big fan but I assume many people are too. It is too bad he hasn't won an Oscar before, but I think it was just bad luck for him given the competition at the time. That said, Goodfellas was unarguably his greatest work in my mind, and he's had many other greats as well (Deer Hunter, Raging Bull, I've always like Casino, etc.). I thought going in that "The Departed" would not crack that list, or at least would be at the lower end. To my surprise, after the first hour or so, I was ready to say this movie placed a close 2nd to Goodfellas. But in conclusion, it is at the lower end of Scorsese's greats. I think he'll get an "I owe you" Oscar from the Academy here, but I remain disappointed at how good this movie MIGHT have been...
7 out of 10 stars
*** Of course my expectations may be too low these days considering how great movies just don't seem to be made anymore. Maybe this _wasn't_ one of Scorsese's best... I mean, The Shawshank Redemption, Goodfellas, Field of Dreams, Dead Poets Society... None of these movies won Oscars, and who feels the winners of the past few years were any better than them? Much less the movies they lost to... ***