Review: The Departed

"I don't want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me."

With this sentence, Jack Nicholson opens what may be the best American film of 2006, and it's actually a film. Sure, it's Hollywood with a pedigree cast that only somebody like Scorsese could muster - Nicholson, DiCaprio, Damon, Sheen, Wahlberg (yes, I'm moving Wahlberg to pedigree status, and I'll tell you why later), Baldwin (Alec, the good one). But it's entertaining as hell, has a point without beating a message into you like last year's top Oscar faves Brokeback Mountain and Crash. Above all else, this is damned good movie-making.

If you make another Kevin Smith movie, I'm gonna pop you one!!

In case you don't know who all is involved, this is Martin Scorsese's (Goodfellas, Casino, Taxi Driver, Cape Fear) third film with DiCaprio, and, although Leonardo truly became an actor in The Aviator (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338751/) this is the movie that solidifies that he's an actor. But the true star of the show is, of course, JACK.

You see, this has been a good year for jacks. Good ole Capn Jack Sparrow knocked one way the fuck out of the theme park, and now Nicholson reminds everyone why he's a legend.

But let's get to the story at hand: In the film, based on the Hong Kong thriller Infernal Affairs (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338564/) and adapted by the up and coming great William Monahan (Kingdom of Heaven), Jack Nicholson plays Frank Costello, a rock-star of the Irish mob in Boston. So rocking, in fact, that the special investigations unit of the BPD is focusing its attention on him. Enter two recent police academy grads: Collin Sullivan (played with the shameless assuredness of a Republican party leader by Matt Damon), and Bill Costigan (DiCaprio is incendiary; he's getting some gold this award season).

While Sullivan is the handsome All-American with the clean record, Costigan is a Southie (raised in South Boston, a notoriously tough Irish/Italian neighborhood) with connections to the Costello crew. Sullivan is sent straight to Special Investigations, while the undercover unit of the same department invents a charge, prosecutes, incarcerates, and releases Costigan to infiltrate Costello's crew. What we know before even the opening credits is that Costello has an infiltrator of his own in the force.

That much, you can gather from the trailers. Here's what you don't know: what sounds like it has the makings of a shoot-em-up (and in the hands of a lesser director, may have been) is actually one of the most engaging thrillers in recent years. Its a cat and mouse game, and both sides are using the exact same methods. As Costello says, "When I was your age, they would say you could become cops or criminals. What I'm saying is this: When you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?"

It is said that on the set of The Godfather (and damn you to cinematic hell if you haven't seen this movie) every actor that was in a scene with Marlon Brando (Pacino, Duvall, Caan, et. al.) was trying desperately to out-act him, to steal the scene from him, to not be swallowed up by him. The theory is that this made every single actor in the film work their damndest and increased its quality. The same can be said of everyone in a scene with Jack Nicholson. Although he continues to steal the show (and Scorsese appeases him with just a few scenes to chew on), everyone on screen with him at any given moment (even veteran Martin Sheen) is giving it their all.

A quick word on DiCaprio's performance - par excellence. I recall seeing this guy in The Basketball Diaries (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112461/) in the mid-90s, and said to myself 'this kid is going to be good.' My expectations may have been lofty, but he's finally fully fulfilled them. DiCaprio is totally believable as both a tough (!?) Irish thug, diligent cop, and a lonely man who is terrified for his life and losing sense of who he is, was, and will be.

Two honorable mentions who, I hope, will see some nominations coming their way from this movie: Mark Wahlberg, and Ray Winstone. As Sheen's character's right hand man, Wahlberg actually steals every scene he's in. So much so that you can't wait to see when he'll pop up next. As the only legitimately tough Irish thug from Boston (Damon's from Boston all right, but Wahlberg really is a Southie) he slips into the role like a second skin, spewing invective dialogue towards anyone who comes his way and backing it up with a good left cross.

By contrast, Ray Winstone is Costello's right hand man as Mr. French. An off the boat Irishman, Winstone's French acts the expletives Wahlberg gets to say. From a performance of few words, Winstone crafts a character who possesses the honor system of an old school gangster and the sociopathy of a real killer. He's so convincing that he almost seems to be based on a real character. He's a brutal, hulking monster who cannot be mistaken for fool.

Yes, every other critic has praised this film. Rarely are reviews unanimous. When it happens, there is a reason why. It's good. This film will not make you think of the state of the world as it is, or highlight significant social problems. Its about internal conflict and struggle, and blurred lines. It is a unique way of highlighting the age old story of cops and robbers. But this one is worth it.

So, even though, as of this publishing, it's the #1 movie in the country, and Scorsese's most financially successful film to date, go see it. After a summer of M. Night Shymalan's, Lindsey Lohan's, and other disappointing bombs, you owe it to yourself. See the Departed, cause IN THIS COUNTRY we reward good filmmaking.