Truly a master piece. Pwns the original Hongkong one.

Rating: 10/10 (9 February 2007)

It is no secret that The Departed is a remake of the successful Hongkong movie Infernal Affairs. I watched the original one in 2002, right after it was out. I wasn't so impressed then, plus it has been quite some time, so I barely remember any details. But I still can recall the general idea I got. It has a script with intertwining clues which generates considerable intensity, even if several leading actors' performances are mediocre at the best.
I mistakenly extended my old opinion to the Departed, and delayed watching this masterpiece because I thought it could be overrated. As soon as I finished watching it, I realized that I want watch it again, right then. It is a completely new movie, spiritually. The affiliation in the screenplay to the original one is unavoidable, but Martin Scorsese did a great job in substantiating the cop and criminal story with his own interpretation. If the original Hongkong movie delivers the sense of cool and cool (sorry I couldn't find another proper adjective, since all what they tried to do is to be or pretend to be cool; anybody, anytime, anywhere.), The Departed is on the other hand all about crime, homicide and deep unrest. Infernal Affairs attempted to get into various profound philosophical topics such as causality, karma, the nature of human being. In my opinion it overextended itself to gain ground for none. The Departed starts less ambitiously and puts more effort on setting up the backgrounds. The psyches of the main characters become subtler and more authentic. DiCaprio's role rooted in the Irish Section with a family heritage being either bankrupt or criminal. This setting credibly fits into DiCaprio's expertise and explains why he is picked to play the mole. Another bold but effective modification of the original script is to combine the role of the 2 lead actress into one, a change proved smart in that it not only reduces redundancy but also creates an convincing love triangle.
Even better is the award-worthy performance of its shiny all-star cast. Matt Damon (as Colin Sullivan) persuasively presented us a deceitful rouge cop, especially considering those dutiful roles (Private Ryan~) he used to act. Jack Nicholson (as Frank Costello) skillfully portraits the aged corrupt boss with a strange paternal charm. Vera Farmiga's Madolyn is gorgeous. Intellect and sensual, she is just the right person for this character. And Leonardo DiCaprio, eventually get enough matured to break the Jack-of-Titanic prince-of-charm stereotype, really outperformed himself in his rendition of Billy Costigan. (BTW Leo also did a great job in Blood Diamond, another highly enjoyable Oscar nominee.) In my opinion Dicaprio is the biggest surprise I got from this movie.
Some people have been concerned about the excessive curse and violence in this movie. To me these are necessary materials to faithfully depict the restlessness of those who plays with darkness so intimately.
The Departed is a timely reminder to the industry that good movies are made of solid storyline and engrossing acting, not of superficial CGIs or eye-candies. Cheers Martin Scorses, Cheers all men behind this great movie. If The Academy won't give you the deserving awards, surely the audience will hold a place for it in their memories.