Chimpomatic

The Departed

(dir. Martin Scorsese)

Jack Nicholson's Boston mob have a long term mole in the State Police department, who is keeping them one step ahead of the law. As a response, the undercover department - led by Martin Sheen and sidekick Mark Wahlberg - put their own man deep undercover with the mob. So deep that no-one knows who is to be trusted.

While the original Hong Kong version Infernal Affairs is a great story that is slickly made, the ante is up with this Hollywood re-make and Scorsese is all-in. The story is slowed down and stretched out, giving it room to breathe, grow and live - and the all-star cast make almost every role memorable.

There's a few timeless director tricks from the master Scorsese - such as some sneaky iris pulls - plus great music, pyrotechnic editing, stellar performances and of course brutal violence.

A couple of bluescreen shots show up some storyboarding boo-boos that undermine things a bit - not to mention the shockingly bad Photoshop work on the family photos. While the script is great with fantastic dialogue, the thing that most lets the film down is the original story. While the use of text messaging and mobile phones is a realistic update to the undercover story some key moments are clumsily handled. While Hong Kong movies have a habit of going with style over substance, that just won't wash with a movie of this calibre. A little bit of mystery about who was actually the rat would have helped, and the double-dating shrink just seemed to make the whole world of the movie a bit too small.

However, after dropping the ball with Gangs of New York and batting a slow and steady average with The Aviator, Scorsese is firing on almost all cylinders here - chasing after the glory days of Taxi Driver, Goodfellas or Casino. The acting is assured and superb almost throughout - particularly from DiCaprio, thoroughly impressing me for almost the first time. It's a totally entertaining masterpiece that can be watched over and over - and it has all the trademarks you'd expect from this hall-of-fame director working with the cream of the Hollywood crop.