Through all the work and all the turmoil, here I am to post an entry! :). Once again Bretty McBretterson has recommended me another great film, The Departed. And I think that nickname for Brett (among the many I give to him) really suits the flavor of the movie, considering we're delving deep into the secret world of the Irish mafia of Boston...so Mr. McBretterson, here we go!

I'm going to start by saying that Martin Scorsese is one of my favorite film directors, if not my all time favorite. He just so brilliantly captures the human experience on film, especially disappointment, sadness (ah, yes, remember my whole fascination with bleak cinema?), betrayal, and especially desperation. And of course, who could forget his memorable masterpieces depicting mob and gang life? No (Italian)American director understands true Italian cinema like he does, nor does any one else capture it as he does, couched within his American-themed movies. I recall there being a remake of the Italian classic Umberto D with an old man and his cat called Harry and Tonto. Though it was a valiant effort, and he was following a brilliant masterpiece, his own version paled in comparison. And though some people may disagree with me, it lost the magic that Umberto D had. It removed all traces of the neorealist experience and any inherent Italian traits that the movie possessed. If anyone should have re-done that movie, it should have been Mr. Scorsese (where is that man when you need him??). Remember Scorsese's Mean Streets? It reads as a re-make of Fellini's I Vitelloni! He wasn't straight up copying it, nor butchering it, but taking some cinematic elements from Fellini and making them his own. Alas, I digress. I just love gushing about Scorsese and mocking other directors who try to walk in his footsteps. My apologies. On to The Departed!!

There is no doubt in my mind that this was a brilliant film: it kept me hanging until the very last second, it was unpredictable, it was edgy. Let's not forget the tension that was persistently built where I couldn't take my eyes off the screen even for a second. I refused to pause the movie and get up to pee HAHAHA, no joke. You hung on every word to see where the story would go. The twists and turns were remarkable!

Clearly the theme of this movie is betrayal. And it's not just betrayal from one person, but it comes at you from different angles from all the main characters. And I'm not just talking about Sullivan, Costigan, Frank, and the other obvious choices, but there are others too. For instance, let's not forget about Madolyn's steamy affair with Costigan. Bet you guys didn't even THINK of that! Here she is as a psychiatrist trying to help mentally unstable people when she has her own tremendous problems. And, really, there is not one virtuous or 100% trustworthy character in this movie. They all betray, lie, cheat, manipulate, and are self-serving. Oh, the joys of a bleak movie! I LOVE IT!

By the end of the film, the police is depicted as being as just as bad as the mafia. They've been reduced to the same tactics. Keep in mind they're using an undercover man to infiltrate the mafia because they consider Costigan as expendable (Dignam emphasizes this, and though Queenan does not directly say it, I'm sure he's thinking it, since he refuses to get Costigan out of that situation even when he beseeches him to). Not only that, but let's keep in mind that fantastic image of the film: where Dignam finally shoots Sullivan. Now instead of showing up at his apartment saying that he will be brought to justice, he turns to sheer violence. Granted, yes, he IS retired from the police force, but that shouldn't stop him from making a citizen's arrest.

You feel torn in the film. And what do I mean by that? Well, you feel as if you can't side with either Sullivan or Costigan. Who do you root for? Who CAN you root for??? Who's the one we want to achieve his goals? You literally remain suspended throughout the movie: you're not hoping that one or the other succeeds, but merely hoping that neither one gets caught! It is a bit reminiscent of Gillo Pontecorvo's The Battle of Algiers where both sides, the native Algerians and their European French counterparts, are committing injustices (if none of you have seen this classic, please go rent it now so you can understand what I'm talking about). There really is no "good" or "bad" guy. Once again, I feel that Scorsese takes this idea from an Italian classic. I'm sure someone out there can write a paper on it...HINT HINT!

Now here I sit praising the hell out of this film. Of course I loved it, but unfortunately, I found some unsightly flaws. I'll start with the biggest blunder of the entire film that almost destroyed it for me: the rat that crawls on the banister at the ending. HATED HATED HATED this ending. That's the ONE flaw I simply can't get past. It was way too much "in your face" symbolism at the wrong time and turned out to be kind of lame, rather than the chilling effect that Scorsese was going for. I mean, here we have this amazing and gruesome homocide. That should be the final image left in our mind, Sullivan's blood spilled in his own apartment, the bag of donuts tossed onto the floor. Think resonance, that ever important cinematic effect, where in a previous scene Madolyn and Sullivan share a doughnut together in their new house.

Now, if Scorsese really wanted to use an actual 'rat' in the film, I would recommend it in one scene only. It would've been more effective if it had jumped out of the sewers and onto the lifeless body of Frank and started eating his flesh. NOW THAT IS BRILLIANCE! (And damn, I should've been a filmmaker). But as a final image, it was highly ineffective and almost cheapens the previous murder that stuck out so much in my mind. I'm being totally honest here: I actually rolled my eyes at that part. COME ON, SCORSESE, YOU'RE BETTER THAN THAT!!!

Naturally when one flaw arises, there will be others to follow. These are minor, I must say, and I'm willing to look past them. I'll list a couple of them. When sullivan just 'deletes' costigan's police profile, I literally said outloud "Um no?" Honestly, that doesn't (and can't!) happen in real life.....but again! I'm choosing to look past it. After all, it IS just a movie. I will suspend my grip on reality and just let it be. And right before that, I highly doubt that Sullivan would keep the "Citizens" envelope right in plain sight that would pinpoint him immediately as Frank's accomplice, especially since he knows there's an undercover amidst the police squad. Though I will admit, these elements worked quite nicely for the story.

I bet some people wouldn't 'buy' Costigan just running out of Sullivan's office after he discovers Sullivan's the rat, but I did! It keeps in line with character development, since Costigan is hopped up on pills. He certainly isn't thinking straight, can't take the pressure, and probably didn't know what to do. He freaked out. I'm sure people were also annoyed by Costigan answering his phone after Queenan's death when it's coming from that same number (and Costigan knows it's from Queenan's phone). Some may say "OH THAT'S STUPID, HE WOULDN'T HAVE ANSWERED IT SINCE COSTIGAN KNOWS HE DIED"...but, once again, he's not of sound mind. It worked for me.

I will say one other thing concerning the acting. The whole cast is brilliant and worked so well together. Now, first off: Jack Nicholson. The man is a legend. This is why I'm obsessed with him. He just pulls off parts so convincingly and you forget that you're even watching a movie sometimes! And to this day I don't get why people say Leonardo Di Caprio is a bad actor. I think movies like this, especially when he pairs with Scorsese as a director, really make him shine. And his unforgettable performance in What's Eating Gilbert Grape is really a stand-out role. The only complaint I have about Leo is when he slips in and out of accents, but it's really no big deal in my opinion. Hey, accents are hard to pull off! And Marky Mark (har har. aka Mark Wahlberg) really shocked me. That was a fabulous performance, arguably even better than Nicholson. I didn't expect that from him at all.

Final Score: 9.0
I would've give it a 10 had it not been for that damn rat in the ending scene. Damn am I still tempted to go ahead and give it that 10! But I will not, despite my obvious bias towards Scorsese's brilliance.