The Departed

Martin Scorsese just might understand movies better than anybody else in the world, said Ty Burr in The Boston Globe. The director's 'œrelentlessly violent, breathlessly assured' new crime movie isn't going to win any Oscars. It's 'œtoo hard, too pulpy, too good' for Hollywood's big costume ball. But if this remake of a 2002 Hong Kong thriller never quite becomes more than a brilliant B movie, its exhilarating highs and ugly depths race past like a police chase. An ingenious premise makes everything else possible, said Mick LaSalle in the San Francisco Chronicle. In contemporary Boston, an undercover cop has infiltrated the inner circle of the city's most powerful mobster while a gang mole has infiltrated the police department's mob unit. But though the plot's twists and turns could have been dizzying, Scorsese delivers the whole story 'œwith pristine clarity.' What's more, he draws riveting performances from at least a half-dozen actors. His moles, Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon, 'œhave never been better.' Jack Nicholson, who fills the kingpin's shoes, shares with his director 'œa need to periodically go over the top,' said Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times. That operatic impulse 'œwill either be to your taste or not.' Even if you consider that a drawback, this film is hard to resist.

Rating: R

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up