Welcome back to the first DECADE OF BEST PICTURES series of reviews where we will be taking a
look at a decade of Best Picture winners over the course of 10 days. In this
series we will be looking at the decade of Best Pictures from 2005-2015 in
reverse chronological order! This tenth entry will be for the 2006 Best Picture
winner THE DEPARTED!
The Departed is
the winner of Best Picture in 2006 and is directed by legendary filmmaker
Martin Scorsese. The film is, to date, his only to win the honor. It is a re-telling
of the Hong Kong police drama Infernal
Affairs but set and styled in Boston (a departure from Scorsese’s usual New
York backdrop). The film tells the parallel stories of two guys who become
police officers and work for and against an enigmatic Irish gangster in
Southie. The film has a stellar cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon,
Jack Nicholson, Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, and Vera Farmiga.
Overall I think The
Departed is a truly excellent crime-drama. It is a tightly woven story that
shows unique parallels between seemingly dissonant characters that moves
creatively from place to place. The film also captures Boston extremely well
and manages to maintain a level of intrigue with respect to its setting. The
performances are also spectacular. Finally, Scorsese’s filmmaking in this is on
point throughout the film.
I think the strength of both The Departed and Infernal
Affairs is the writing and the underlying premise. Having these two
characters with different backgrounds going through this story and circling
each other as, though both are working with and around the same people, neither
knows who the other is a fascinating and deeply engaging story. You’re constantly
on edge because of the writing which was brilliantly adapted by William Monahan
from the original by Alan Mak and Felix Chong. Everything that happens plays
into the total narrative and moves the plot forward through many interesting
twists. Truly, not a moment is wasted in this picture.
On top of the tightness of the writing, it also has a
genuineness to its setting. It feels very “Boston.” It certainly plays off of
local social politics quite a bit but it also has a feel and culture of the
city. Nothing in this felt generic which was cool to see and the fact that
Scorsese never wavered (despite Boston not being his usual muse) from the setting
was impressive and made the film all the more engrossing for me. It helped that
Monahan, in the adaptation, based Nicholson’s character much more off of the
infamous Whitey Bulger which added a real-world feel to this fictional story.
Being honest, however, neither the writing or the setting
would work if the performances weren’t pitch perfect throughout. Thankfully,
they are. Jack Nicholson was phenomenal. Leonardo DiCaprio was great and really
coming into his own. Matt Damon played this character to absolute perfection.
Mark Wahlberg delivered possibly the best performance of his career to date.
Alec Baldwin was highly enjoyable. Martin Sheen added the kind of gravitas
required to make the film believable. Everyone worked and the way the ensemble
worked together is what really made the film excellent.
The final great thing about this is the filmmaking.
Scorsese, though not my favorite director, is a master filmmaker. Each shot in
this film is perfectly executed and fascinating and it kept a movement and pace
that thrust the audience deeply into the film. Every frame is superb and
Scorsese uses a lot of pristine tracking shots in here that were great. He also
manages to maintain a certain lightness despite the intense drama going on
around which makes this a joy to watch.
I only have two issues with this film. I thought that some
of the love triangle stuff going on between DiCaprio, Farmiga, and Damon was
awkward and didn’t add much. Further, I thought some of the stuff in the
climactic conflict felt a bit hokey given the film as a whole. That’s it though.
Otherwise, the film is entirely on point.
The Departed is an
absolutely superb film and a deserving film for Scorsese to finally get his
much deserved Oscar. This film is tightly woven, well set, well cast, and
brilliantly well made. What more can you ask for?
Ryan’s Score: 9/10
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