Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Wahlberg
Directed by Martin Scorcese
Rated R

The Departed, Martin Scorcese’s latest gangster epic, is every bit great filmmaking.

With a compelling storyline and phenomenal performances, it soars above its contemporaries at the theater and might just be the best film you’ll watch this year.

The film parallels the lives of two undercover police officers with the Massachusetts State Police (Damon and DiCaprio as Sullivan and Costigan, respectively) set up to keep their eyes on local mob boss Frank Costello (Nicholson), who runs the underground on the tough streets of Boston.

Working from William Monohan’s script and based on a 2002 Hong Kong film Internal Affairs, Scorcese takes the good cop/bad cop dichotomy to the hilt. The edgy and sardonic dialogue add to the realism of this suspenseful, fluid, and wittingly clever, action-packed drama.

Damon’s Sullivan is a tough-talking Irish cop, schooled in the streets by mentor Costello, who wants his young prot’g’ on the inside for extra protection to keep the pigs at bay.

Additionally, it doesn’t take Costigan (with family ties to the Irish mafia) long to capture the attention of Costello, who quickly pulls him into his inner sanctum.

The officers are each working to protect themselves and uncover (or put a lid on) the muck that has simmered long in the Beantown underworld with no idea that the other exists, until it becomes evident to both sides there’s a man inside of both packs. The rest of the film plays out like a game of cat and mouse (or rat, as the case may be), with the mouse ever aware of the cat’s next move.

What makes this movie stand out are the impeccable storytelling and flawless performances from a stellar ensemble cast, including Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin as higher ranking officials regulating the game of chase.

Jack Nicholson, one of Hollywood’s finest actors, returns to his classic evil diatribe after a brief foray into comedy (Something’s Gotta Give, About Schmidt, Anger Management) to remind us no one’s got an on-screen personal as commanding as he. Though Damon and DiCaprio hold their own against the screen legend, no one in this incredible cast rivals Nicholson’s spunk.

DiCaprio, Scorcese’s latest muse who’s starred in the remarkable director’s last three films, proves himself worthy of the praise that’s followed his career from its inception.

The Departed stands proudly among such renowned gangster films as Goodfellas, Casino, and Boondock Saints. It is a don’t-miss for fans of any genre though, as movie-making doesn’t get much better than this.