“That’s what people don’t realize. No one gives it to you. You have to take it.” This statement, uttered by the satanic and heartless crime boss Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson), sets the scene for what is to come throughout the movie “The Departed.” This movie exposes a bloody, gritty struggle for power that blurs the lines between the haves and the have-nots, the good and the bad, the real and the unreal. Director Martin Scorsese has perfected the crime genre, and “The Departed” is no exception. It’s raw. It’s relentless. And it doesn’t apologize. Inspited by Hong Kong action movies, “The Departed” is set in the shady dark side of Boston. The cops and crooks outwit each other in a deadly game of cat-and-mouse. Frank Costello undoubtedly sides completely with evil. Nicholson delivers one of his greatest supporting roles as this maniacally brutal gangster. As Costello rules the Boston underworld, his shocking lack of morals provides outstanding entertainment. Helping him is Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), who plays Costello’s inside man. Sullivan is a crooked Massachusetts state trooper working with a unit whose goal is, ironically, to bring down Costello. Obviously, he does everything possible to sabotage his unit’s objective and to keep Costello dominating the streets. Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio), on the other hand, serves as Sullivan’s antithesis. He is another detective working on the same police force as Sullivan. Undercover cop Costigan burrows deep within the ranks of Costello’s posse. Thus, the scene is set. Two rats, working directly against the other: on one side is Costello’s gangster pretending to be a cop, whereas on the other is a cop pretending to be Costello’s gangster. Pretty clever, huh? Luckily for us, the fun only begins here. Sullivan and Costigan try to impede one another’s progress. Their stories and actions run parallel and intersect at dramatic moments. Similar to the opposing ying and yang, these two forces are competing in a game of high-tech chess with high stakes. The rest of the characters are also well cast. This script has as many superstars as there are lights on the Boston skyline. On the crime side is Nicholson’s don Frank Costello, and on the crime-fighting side is a myriad of talent. The lead detective Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen) and his foul-mouthed deputy Dignam (Mark Wahlberg) are both in charge of the undercover unit. This is a ton of star power, but surprisingly, nobody tries to steal the show. The film’s plot is so interwoven and complex on many different levels, and each star has his own little golden nugget of brilliance to add. The film moves at such a snappy pace that it does not feel like a two and a half hour experience. With each betrayal and each new piece of information, an entirely new set of doors open in the plot. Eventually, the bodies begin to pile as the gritty realism and intensity of the situation sets in. But even as the chaos mounts, we begin to realize that this is the story of two trapped men trying to make sense of themselves and their surroundings. DiCaprio’s portrayal of a confused soul in the crime world captures the helplessness of an undercover cop “having to be a different guy every day.” On the other side of the coin is Damon, playing a modern-day power-hungry MacBeth with the cruelest of intentions, but he is ironically destroyed by his own back-stabbing and deceit. These two men lead us to ask: Who is good? Who is evil? “The Departed” dares to inquire but is too wise to provide any simple answers. This is such a great piece of filmmaking, a combination of both passionate struggle and intense ruthlessness. Probably too harsh and honest to win an Oscar, “The Departed” is a whirlwind of excitement and realism that roars by and leaves nothing standing in its wake. This is the way a movie should be made.
