Legendary director Martin Scorsese takes the helm for this tale of questionable loyalties and blurring identities set in the South Boston organized crime scene.

Rating: 9/10 (5 February 2010)

The Departed is director Martin Scorsese's most purely enjoyable film in years, but it's not for the faint of heart because it's rude, bleak, violent and defiantly un-PC. A young criminal (Matt Damon) is ordered by a Boston mobster (Jack Nicholson) to operate undercover within the state police, while a young cop (Leonardo DiCaprio) infiltrates the mobster's gang.
Scorsese has made half a dozen better films, but finally he has his Oscar and Academy voters have spared their own blushes. Yet this is worth the plaudits: a great crime thriller with a deft, relentless plot that grips throughout. It vastly improves the 2003 Hong Kong thriller Internal Affairs, clarifying a complex story and adding subtlety to characters. Scorsese coaxes superlative work from his actors: DiCaprio and Damon are at their peak, Mark Wahlberg is a real surprise in a relatively minor role, and Nicholson's profanely funny mobster Frank Costello marks his best work in years. Superbly staged set-pieces add to the film's visceral appeal; it's both a hoot and kick in the guts.