ScreeningNotes’s review published on Letterboxd:
"There is no one more full of shit than a cop, except a cop on TV."
My first time watching this after seeing Infernal Affairs, and while I have a strong affinity for Hong Kong cinema and in particular Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, The Departed still stands as one of cinema's greatest remakes. Martin Scorsese takes the compelling structure of Andrew Lau Wai-Keung's exciting thriller and pumps it full of his signature pop songs, flashy montages, and irrepressible narrative momentum. With its dual structure jumping between Leo and Matt's lives it is a true study in parallel editing. Scorsese also ups the ante in terms of character development and succeeds in making both sides of the conflict appear both convincing and sympathetic.
The Departed is also one of our great contemporary tales of masculinity, of how men relate to other men. Both Leo and Matt spend the majority of the movie looking for each other in order to impress their respective male bosses while attempting to undermine the other's efforts. Nicholson and Sheen are like long lost brothers separated by their opposite stances with regards to the law. Men use men to attack some men and get into the good graces of others. Leo and Matt even use the only woman in the story to relate to each other. For this reason I present The Departed's Homoerotic Love Quadrangle, slightly adapted from my review of Infernal Affairs:
Kill Fuck Marry
Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio)
Kill: Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson)
Fuck: Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon)
Marry: Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen)
Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon)
Kill: Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen)
Fuck: Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio)
Marry: Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson)
Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson)
Kill: Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio)
Fuck: Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen)
Marry: Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon)
Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen)
Kill: Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon)
Fuck: Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson)
Marry: Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio)
Sean Dignam (Mark Wahlberg)
Kill: Everyone
Fuck: Everyone
Marry: Himself
Part of lists:
Martin Scorsese Ranked | Remakes Ranked
