Best Picture Winner 2006: The Departed
Directed by: Martin Scorcese
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg
Other Awards: Best Director, (Martin Scorsese) Best Film Editing, Best Adapted Screenplay
Summary: Revolves around an organized crime unit set in Boston and the double agents on either side of the law.
Leonardo DiCaprio as Billy Costigan and Jack Nicholson as Frank Costello
At 2 hours and 31 minutes, The Departed is in it for the long haul. I had heard of this movie being hyped up for a while, so I was looking forward to seeing if it could live up.
I have to say, I was quite underwhelmed by the time the movie ended. First of all, it should have ended 20 minutes before it actually did. I was just about tired of the story after a solid two hours and I think it could have been edited to make it inside that time and not take away from the story, which is ironic because the movie did win for Best Film Editing.
The Departed does not deviate too much from your typical “gang crime story.” Martin Scorsese seems to have recreated this genre in recent years with his other films such as Goodfellas and Gangs of New York. (neither of which I was very impressed with either) Jack Nicholson is the ruthless mob boss Frank Costello, who trains Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) from a young age to go to the academy and infiltrate the police. Simultaneously, the police department recruits Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) right out of the academy to be their mole in Costello’s crime ring. The movie then becomes a high stakes race to find the respective spies in each organization.
Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio
There is no doubt the acting is very impressive. Leonardo DiCaprio’s character is the focal point for much of the movie and he carries the weight well. You really get to see the emotional toll it is taking on him to be a double agent. Perhaps the most interesting parts of the movie are the interactions between DiCaprio and Nicholson’s characters. The father-son theme is especially prevalent in The Departed and it’s interesting to see how their interactions play out, never knowing how it will end for the two characters and who is really fooling who.
Needless to say, with all this macho, testosterone filled action going on, there’s just no time in a 2 1/2 hour long movie to explore some female characters. The Departed passes 1/3 of the Bechdel test with just two named female characters. There’s just no excuse for that.
I know this movie is a go-to favorite for a lot of people, but I just really wasn’t sold. There was nothing about the plot that made it any different than any other movie about the world of organized crime and I do not see what made it worthy of the Best Picture Oscar. If anyone who reads this feels strongly one way or another, I would love to hear some different opinions but for now I’m definitely categorizing this movie as an overrated fan favorite. 2 1/2 stars.
TRIVIA: It is the movie with the most uses of the F-word to win Best Picture.
I am so surprised to see that you don’t like this movie because I have heard so many great things about it from so many people. I agree that the typical gang story can often be overdone (although personally I really like Goodfellas for some reason), but it seems to me that this story would be interesting because of the double agent aspect involved. You critiqued this movie very well and prompted me to want to actually watch The Departed. Also, I just really love Leonardo DiCaprio and could definitely watch him fro 2 and a half hours straight.
Great review and well researched!
Unfortunately, I have not watched the movie so I cannot say if I agree with the review or not, but I have been wanting to watch it! Now that I understand the awards given and the basic knowledge of the movie, I’m not so sure I would like it. Besides the movie Wolf of Wall Street, I’m not so sure I’m a huge fan of movies that overuse the f-word.