The Departed

The Departed was an award-winning 2006 movie who gained widespread recognition both for being critically acclaimed, and also for bagging 4 Academy Awards. It also did very well in the box office, making almost 200 million dollars in profit. The movie was directed by Martin Scorsese. This was the first time I've heard of him, but after this movie, you probably will read more about him in the future in this blog. The screenplay was written by William Monahan, although the screenplay was only adapted. It was still pretty solid though. The film starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, and Vera Farmiga.

The story was about a mob planting an insider in the special units department of the force, and the special units department placing a mole in the mob's internal. Swapping of spies of some sort. It exposed the workings of a police special units department and also a regular gang/mob. It explored both sides at the same time by allowing each team to have a mole, a traitor. They developed this rather simple idea into a complex, graphic production, and I must say, I was hugely impressed by it.

I actually didn't think it would live up to the hype. While researching about it, I kept reading how the movie was so good, how the movie's one of the best films, and how it landed on different top movies list. However, when I started watching the movie, I thought it was pretty normal, pretty average. There was nothing astounding about it, just a bunch of cops, being well, cops, in all sorts of senses. There were some horsing around and playful teasing, but there were also serious matters to handle. As the film progressed, I found myself being more and more involved with the story. I was becoming more and more affected by each scene. It was a constant progression and the next minute of the movie was always better than the last. By the end of the movie, I was left shocked with all the twists, most of them were really unexpected. The movie presented one surprise after the other, and all of it caught me off guard.

Jack Nicholson was freakishly disturbing in this movie. I guess that's his trademark. But even so, he still manages to present something new. He's a known actor, but, and I mean this as a compliment, I've known him as a villain. He portrays villains so well that I associate his name with such roles. This role was no different. He was a psychotic criminal and his performance was commendable. He actually freaked me out in some parts. That's how amazing he was as the mob leader. Leonardo DiCaprio also took on some heavy acting. Even Matt Damon. Actually, I think this was the first movie I've seen where Matt Damon was the bad guy. He was the traitor, and he was the devil. Mark Wahlberg being an ass in a movie also wasn't something I normally would see. These guys have always been the good guys so seeing them in new roles was quite refreshing.

The movie was a very good example of starting with an idea and expanding it. The web of all possibilities was laid out and they picked out the best elements to mix into the movie. It was actually pretty satisfying, and a little fulfilling to watch the movie. It was rich and it was full of different factors affecting the story. It had an interesting plot, and an even interesting, darker execution.

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