Give the man an Oscar already!

Rating: 9/10 (20 February 2007)

The Departed is another knock-out blow from director Martin Scorsese. A gritty, fast paced and highly impressive cops versus robbers fable that is reminiscent of his old classics and makes for a riveting cinema experience. With the awards ceremony season in full swing and the Oscars just around the corner, it'd be a real shame if he didn't walk away with at least one golden statue having been denied them so long, as it is a very impressive movie. At turns, it is both tense, violent, funny, dark and packed with so many terrific performances it is hard to pick a standout and should hopefully be remembered as one of the best films of 2006.
Returning to gangland sees Scorsese tackling the underworld from a slightly different perspective. Set in the world of the Irish mafia, it differs from his Italian-American gangster pictures by showing us contrasting elements on both sides of the law in the shape of Leonardo Di Caprio's police mole within the gang and Matt Damon's gang mole within the police. As the police force led by Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin struggle to take down Jack Nicholson's kingpin, the two moles become aware of each other's existence and are soon caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse.
All of which might sound familiar and to no surprise, for as has been widely publicised, The Departed is a Western riff on the classic Hong Kong series Infernal Affairs that told the same story. It might be a little unoriginal, but with a pro like Scorsese at the helm, it avoids the inevitable disaster that awaits most Hollywood remakes (stand up The Ring, The Wickerman, The Fog, The Omen blah blah blah) by the twin virtues of having its own identity and a terrific cast. For where the Hong Kong original was a slick thriller, this one is covered in dirt.
The Boston underworld here comes across as a bleak and unwelcoming landscape with little of the criminal romance of Goodfellas to be found. The gangs do not lounge in jazz clubs or casinos here but dingy, whiskey soaked bars and quayside warehouses filled with rats. Urban decay is all too evident and when the violence comes, it hits you like a jackhammer. The gun shots sound incredibly loud and forceful and when they strike human flesh, heads are blown apart with stark realism and zero fanfare. Fist fights as well remain taut and ugly, Di Caprio breaking his own wrist in a brawl through punching too hard as his foe is rammed through a glass window. Violence here has pervaded even everyday life and when Jack Nicholson emerges from the back of a bar drenched in blood with no explanation, it is treated as just one of those things that needs no questions.
As previously mentioned as well, the cast is on fire. Di Caprio has banished all memory of the floppy haired teenage heart throb and emerged as an unquestionable successor to De Niro's place as Scorsese's on screen muse. Faced with a life or death situation, he throbs with nervous, aggressive energy and his eyes have never seemed more dangerous, yet he is supposed to be the good guy. Jack let go Rose, Jack let go. Matt Damon meanwhile proves himself once again, his role as Detective Sullivan overflowing with moral dilemmas as the polar opposites of his situation come into conflict.
They are not the only ones to be celebrated though as Jack Nicholson puts in one of the finest appearances of his long and glittering career. As mafia kingpin Frank Costello, he moves from one dirty situation to another, delivering racist barbs to Chinese gang members and having people murdered with a wicked grin etched on his face, displacing his venom with a malicious sense of humour. Martin Sheen and Alec Baldwin deliver fine performances as reliable old hands but perhaps it is Mark Wahlberg who comes out strongest. His Captain Dignam is one of the most hard-assed police officers you're ever likely to see and he encapsulates him perfectly, as well as getting some of the film's best lines. With this and Four Brothers it could be argued he is trying to cap the market for overly macho, angry young men but it must be said, he is one of the most memorable things in the movie.
However, if one thing stands in the way of this film and the Oscars it is the undeniable remake syndrome. For all its strong points, it is still a retelling of an existing story and the lack of total originality might be to Scorsese's disadvantage. Nonetheless, it puts paid once and for all to the argument that remakes are a waste of time and is a very worthy version of the Hong Kong original.