A visit from a friend and "The Departed"

Sometimes friends can really be what we need to get through a particular hectic series of days. I mean, we go through our normal day-to-day schedule, trying to balance the demands of work (or school), job hunting, and other activities (like paying bills, cooking, grocery shopping, etc), and you can feel a bit overwhelmed. Right when you have lost all sense of how to relax, your friends can come along and provide a reality check. My friend Jennifer from Owings Mills, MD was in town for a conference this week, and we had a chance to catch up on Friday and spend a day around Chicago doing nothing. That was a wonderful thing and was just what the doctor ordered. We had lunch at Grand Lux Café on Michigan Avenue, and we took advantage of a gorgeous Chicago fall day to go up to the Observatory Deck of the John Hancock building. I had never done this most quintessential of tourist activities, and it ended up being a lot of fun. While walking to Navy Pier to retrieve Jennifer’s car, we made an impromptu decision to see the new Scorsese film, The Departed (more on that later). All in all, my day was a much needed respite from the pressures of law school. Thanks, Jennifer!

So, since there has not been a movie review in some time, you all might be wondering what I think of Scorsese’s latest magnum opus, The Departed. First of all, one cannot find fault with the cast. Di Caprio, Nicholson, Damon (taking full advantage of his natural Boston accent), Wahlberg, and Martin Sheen all did outstanding jobs with their material. The film, a remake of the Chinese crime drama Infernal Affairs, was a tour de force for the actors. The engrossing plotline combined the best elements of the crime drama, action, spy, and police genres. I always separate the truly great films from those that are merely good by considering if I am able to remove myself from the real world and be completely engrossed and taken away by the story. This was the case here. I cinematography was gorgeous, and every shot was lovingly framed by Scorsese. My only grip would be the hamfisted editing. Scene transitions were anything but seamless, and one never gets the sense of time going by. One minute, Di Caprio’s character is just starting his undercover mission; the next, years have gone by with no visible changes other than a verbal reference. What the story lacked in developed plotlines and perfected editing was more than made up for by the acting performances. I liken it to the film Heat, an excellent film that would have been merely good without the performances of De Niro and Pacino. This is the first true Oscar contender of the year, and the performances alone are well worth the price of admission.