Rating of
3.5/4
"The Departed" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 04/10/12
Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon are two cops; one is honest and taking part in appalling crimes while working undercover, the other corrupt acting under the facade of respectability. Soon it becomes necessary for them to discover each other's identity in a cat and mouse game against the clock. Scorsese's pedigree as a director shines through as this is far from the usual clunky Hollywood remake we've all come to revile. In fact, the spirit of the original is so apparent that it feels far more like the kind of Asian cinema influenced picture you'd expect from Tarantino than a Scorsese, and for that reason, anyone expecting the kind of intensity and provocativeness of Goodfellas or Taxi Driver may be disappointed. The cast are uniformly solid (although the kind of heavyweight performance you'd expect from a DeNiro is glaringly absent) and it's perfectly paced, never dragging for a minute of it's not inconsiderable length. The bleak tone, constant foul language and brutally realistic violence may offend those with delicate sensibilities, but it's hugely entertaining and although the screenwriter cheated a little by including character and plot elements from all three Infernal Affairs films, it surpasses the film it was based upon.
