Goodfellas v The Departed
As far back as we can remember, we’ve always wanted to do a Martin Scorsese movie battle. Swearing, shouting, shooting and Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones – it’s all here. Read the mother****ing arguments and decide. Warning: this battle may contain some bad language. You think that intro’s funny? Funny how?!
Ross McD: Goodfellas
You’re a **in’ mumbling stuttering little ****. You know that?
Any idea where The Depaahted is set? Did you want to say ‘Boston’, but found yourself saying ‘Bwaah-stin’ instead? Don’t worry, it’s completely natural. It’s just the body’s way of excreting excess ham. The Depaahted is indeed set in Bwaah-stin, where Ire-ish criminals do more than sit around all day drinkin’ cups of cwaah-ffee. The Depaahted also contains more ham than Babe, Babe 2: Pig In The City, and Babe 3: Pigs In Space put together.
Don’t get me wrong, The Departed is good fun, but therein lies its problem – it’s probably too much fun. It’s hilarious. Try sitting through it without breaking your sh*te laughing at the comical overacting, the shamelessly gratuitous use of foul language and that delicious vowel-crammed Bwaah-stin accent. If you look closely, or even casually glance sideways, you’ll notice old hands Sheen, Baldwin and Nicholson struggling to refrain from grinning whenever someone is spewing dialogue.
Goodfellas is Scorsese’s masterpiece. Everybody knows The Departed’s Best Picture Oscar was just a pity nod from the Academy, ashamed of itself for overlooking Goodfellas in favour of Kevin Costner’s custom-built awards schmaltz Dances With Wolves.
Ray was keen to emulate Wahlberg's acting style
Goodfellas is probably the greatest crime drama ever filmed. The characters are engrossing and terrifying at the same time. Ray Liotta’s Henry Hill may end up being a violent junkie drug-dealing adulterer, but somehow we root for him the whole way through. He represents the scum that plagues our real-life criminal underworlds, but thanks to Scorsese’s masterful direction we are behind Hill to the end. Even when he gets away with everything and is offered a clean slate, we still don’t resent him when the ungrateful pr*ck pretty much calls the audience a bunch of schnooks. Unlike The Departed, there is no way you would dare call Goodfellas funny.
While Jack Nicholson’s Frank Costello is the cuddliest baddie since the Gopher from Caddyshack, Joe Pesci’s Tommy DeVito is one of cinema’s most terrifying creations. We silently wince and pray that Billy Batts doesn’t insult the psychotic Tommy, but sadly for him he ignores our whispered pleas and tells him to get his f*ckin shinebox instead. Tommy’s not-quite-proportional retribution has even the most hardy of cinema-goers squirming in their seats.
Unfortunately, if Pesci had asked audiences his ‘funny like I’m a clown, I amuse you?’ question after they had sat through his annoying turns in Home Alone and the Lethal Weapon movies, he would have been greeted with a resounding ‘no’. But his pitbull-like Oscar-winning performance in Goodfellas is certainly the peak in a varied career.
At least Pesci’s character in Home Alone had some lines that were relevant to the film. It was actually Ross McG himself who theorised that Mark Wahlberg was never actually handed a script for The Departed: rather he was asked what he thought of certain cast members while a secret camera captured it all.
Overall, The Departed is as much a proper crime drama as Goodfellas is a homoerotic love story.
Ross McG: The Departed
I’m the guy who does his job. You must be the other guy
Poor Leonardo DiCaprio. He didn’t get the memo ahead of shooting The Departed. Alec Baldwin got it. Mark Wahlberg got it. Jack Nicholson didn’t really need to get it, but he got it. Ditto Ray Winstone. Heck, even Matt Damon got it. The memo said this: ‘Don’t worry about acting in this one, fellas – I want ham and plenty of it. Yours, Marty.’
The Departed may have finally garnered Martin Scorsese with an Oscar for Best Director, but what the Academy forgot to mention is that it was the first comedy to win Best Picture since Annie Hall almost 30 years previously. In among everybody killing everybody else, The Departed is one of the funniest films you will ever see. Baldwin grabbing his balls? Wahlberg chewing the scenery walls? Nicholson and Damon in a porno theatre with only a giant dildo between them? This ain’t acting but it sure is a riot.
And into the middle of all this drops little Leo. Poor little Leo likes to act. And thank God he does. He is scintillating in The Departed – his performance elevates the movie from dirty cop comedy to weighty dirty cop comedy. It is a subtle portrayal that should belong in a different film (one without Marky Mark) but instead it brings a much-needed extra dimension. Because of Leo, the movie’s fantastic ending has an emotional punch to go along with the plethora of punch lines.
The problem with Goodfellas is there is no Leo. There is De Niro (the old Leo) but it’s auto-De Niro. There is Pesci, and his Tommy DeVito is undoubtledy entertaining, but it’s the kind of overbearing scene-hogging performance that swallows everything else around it and ends up cartoonish. The fact that he sullied it five years later by playing pretty much the same character in the pointless Casino takes something of the shine from Goodfellas’ shoes.
'Jack, you really don't have to sit the whole way through The Legend Of Bagger Vance'
The film is undoubtedly a stylistic triumph but where is the heart? It’s hard to invest in a bunch of greaseballs who beat up women, snort coke and spout mob clichés all day. But hey, budda bing, what ya gonna do? Watch The Departed, that’s what. Its equally dislikeable bunch of bent cops and twisted robbers are offset by having a character you actually want to see make it out alive. Thanks, Leo.
On first watch, it is Damon’s slimeball who steals the show. In repeat viewings though you just can’t keep your eyes off Leo. It’s a refreshingly selfless performance – the stirring straight man to a clan of foul-mouthed funny guys. It could just be the genuine shock in his eyes at wondering what the hell Jack is gonna do next, but it looks great on screen.
In Goodfellas, the rise of Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) is enthralling but once he starts living his dream of becoming a gangster, the film has nowhere else to run. So the inevitable spiral into drugs and bad music follows – the mob really should learn to just skip the 80s altogether. The Departed is exhilarating from start to finish – its brilliant comedy Baaaahhhstan accents always guarantee a laugh, its epic 18-minute pre-credit sequence puts you in a grip you never escape from and the ending is just beautiful – as beautiful as lots of guys shooting each other in the head can be.
Goodfellas tries too hard, while The Departed is Scorsese at his most fun – as a credible police drama it makes Cop Land look like The French Connection – but as loud, over-the-top entertainment it is unsurpassable. The already-famous elevator sequence at the end is destined to go down as one of Scorsese’s best. There is nothing in Goodfellas that can match it. In fact, The Departed could be his best film. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe **** yourself…
VOTING CLOSED… RESULT:
Goodfellas: 67 %, The Departed: 33 %
GOODFELLAS TOO GOOD!
Ross v Ross 
April 30, 2009 at 10:40 am
“The problem with Goodfellas” there is no problem with Goodfellas it is as near perfection as a film can be. I can not think of any way it could have been make any better. I am not saying it is the best film ever made (but it is close) as all films are constrained by the subject matter.
The problem with The Departed is that it is a remake and the thing with a remake is you can not help comparing it to the original and you always have a reasonable idea what is going to happen next. This is probably a better film for people who haven’t seen Infernal Affairs.
Goodfellas has to be a clear winner.
April 30, 2009 at 11:16 am
Goodfellas v The Departed????? Whats the matta with you??? What is the fu**in matta with you? Its not even a contest! Goodfellas is the best crime caper/ mob drama there is. Period. any movie which features Marky Mark Walberg cannot be taken serioulsy. Goodfellas features powerhouse performances from De Nero,Liotta, and Pesci that stay with you after the movie is over. And its been over 19 years. And its still as amazing with each viewing as it was back in 1990. The Departed? Take it or leave it. Its an interesting crime movie that is unwittingly funny. Is it better than Goodfellas? Get the fu** outta here!!!!!!!!
May 1, 2009 at 10:12 am
See i must be part of the minority, as I prefer The Departed over goodfella’s. And i had seen Infernal Affairs long before i had seen the Departed. What you see in Infernal Affairs is there is more mutual respect between the undercovers, which was what was missing in The Departed. However i thought the performances were great in the Departed and cant see how people can slag off Marky Mark, who was excellent in the Departed. People just on him, because of who he is rather than what he can do!! Im not saying he’s in Leo’s league but a grand performance non the less.
And scoreses nails it with direction and the music works wonderfully, as usual, won of my favourate films of the 2000’s. As for the accents i dont know as im not from boston, isnt marky mark? so going off his accent the rest kept in line with his. I wouldnt say it was comical just that it want trying too hard, whereas goodfellas can be seen to be doing the cliched mob type too hard!
Dont get me wrong i love goodfella’s, just think Departed was better. It had me thinking about it for days, goodfellas didnt do that for me.
May 1, 2009 at 11:23 am
I thought Goodfellas was boring and unpleasant. I thought The Departed was riveting, and yeah, unpleasant. And as much as ya’ll bash on Marky Mark, he was f***ing brilliant in The Departed. I was shaking for several minutes after leaving the theater. Goodfellas… well, I was just glad it was over, but sorry I’d wasted my time.
May 1, 2009 at 11:50 am
They are both great films. Why compare them at all?
May 1, 2009 at 11:53 am
As far back as I could remember, Goodfellas owns the Mob/Gangster genre, arguably even better than the Godfather movies.
The Departed was just Scorsese having some fun using the Studio’s money.
May 1, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Agreed…this is a pretty redundant contest. Even taking into account anyone’s freedom of POV it’s still a stretch to consider The Departed as a better film than Goodfellas, which is simply one of the finest, most brilliantly conceived and structured crime films ever made, and never loses a thing with repeat viewings. The Departed is a good, fun film but it is quite plain in comparison and is hamstrung by the massive amounts of testosterone that replaced ink on the script. It becomes almost farcical and Wahlberg’s character verges on the ridiculous. I do agree that Leo’s performance is genuinely excellent, though, and he does gice a whole lot of heart to the film. But still, it’s GOODFELLAS…
May 1, 2009 at 1:58 pm
Is this some kind of a joke? Are you trying to be funny? Funny like a clown? I’m just asking cause there’s no competition here. Goodfellas makes The Departed look like a cheap straight to DVD movie. De Niro is better than Nicholson, Liotta was better in this than Dicaprio in Departed, Pesci was better than Wahlberg, the story is WAY more interesting, the filming techniques has been referenced ever since, the music well I really shouldn’t compare the excellent choice of music of Goodfellas with a trying too hard soundtrack of The Departed. Critics call Goodfellas one of the greatest movies ever made, they call The Departed a gret comeback, there’s a HUGE difference between those two statements and I can see why….Goodfellas may be the best movie of the decade.
May 1, 2009 at 3:56 pm
I’m impartial. Both fantastic movies, and I’m glad Marty made both of them (I could certainly do without Gangs of New York though). But I disagree on one thing: Goodfellas was funny. It’s funny because of the unpredictability of its characters. Joe Pesci was definitely a scary motherf***er, but his ridiculously unreasonable reactions made me chuckle a bit.
I’m even going to boldly go where no fanboy has gone before and say The Departed was by far better than Infernal Affairs.
May 1, 2009 at 4:23 pm
I wonder if “Goodfellas” was simply ruined for me by too much cultural diffusion, especially the Goodfeathers from “Animaniacs.” I saw it as little more than an unfocused rehash of a vastly superior “The Godfather” in which the main characters have vocabularies of about 100 words. How many times do you guys have to say “breaking my balls,” anyway? Use some of that stolen cash to buy a thesaurus.
“The Departed,” while not my favorite crime film, did a much better job of making me feel tense. I was insensibly paranoid by the end. Scorsese called it his “first film with a plot,” and judging from this and other classics of his that didn’t do much for me, I know exactly what he means.
May 1, 2009 at 4:25 pm
It’s easy to shoot from the cheap seats… Give them both a break. I’m a West Coaster but I’ve done some very good time with Southies. They’d break your skull for the crap you’ve spewed. Be cool, Dude. Marty made some good movies, and still does…. How many good movies have you made?
May 1, 2009 at 4:27 pm
breakin my balls Steve, youre breakin my balls – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkuoIaPhkKY
May 1, 2009 at 5:10 pm
I think Goodfellas is a good movie, but The Departed is by far the superior film. It has a plot, action, excitement and terrific acting. The Departed is a true testament to brilliant filmmaking – while Goodfellas is a very good film.
As for Mark Wahlberg – he nailed his character in The Departed and very nearly stole the show. Great supporting performances from Baldwin, Nicholson and Sheen as well.
May 1, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Goodfellas is a masterpiece like The Godfather is a masterpiece.
The Defarted sucked dead donkey balls. Scorcese should be ashamed of that piece of crap.
May 1, 2009 at 6:45 pm
Maybe this is a generational issue. Lots of people in their 20s may prefer The Departed, simply because they do not remember Goodfellas. However, anyone in the 30-and-over crowd can recite stories of boys in high school hallways saying “F**k you, pay me” over and over again.
May 1, 2009 at 9:04 pm
@Mal, Mark and Matt are both from Boston I believe.
May 2, 2009 at 1:39 am
Goodfellas wins, fu-get-a-bout-it
May 2, 2009 at 2:01 am
So the argument basically boils down to…
-Goodfellas is way better, duh.
-Pfft, no, The Departed is better, duh.
May 2, 2009 at 2:10 am
I’m not looking forward to turning 40 at the end of next year.
But I’d rather turn 40 that be the sort of dumb-punk kid who knows little about life, less about movies, thinks film history started with Tarantino and torture porn and thinks The Departed is better than Goodfellas.
May 2, 2009 at 3:02 am
When I was a kid, I used to watch “Animaniacs,” and my favorite segment was always “The Goodfeathers.” At the time I had no idea it was a parody of “Goodfellas” (voices, character names, plots, everything). When I saw “Goodfellas” in high school, the whole time I was making little connections in my mind to the stupid cartoon parody. It was funny.
Silly cartoon issue aside, “Goodfellas” is one of my favorite films, and is easily Scorcese’s best. I like “The Departed,” and frankly I think it’s better for multiple viewings (because it’s less emotionally daunting), but in terms of quality film-making, “GF” sets the bar pretty high.
May 2, 2009 at 3:44 am
WTF is wrong with this?? It’s a Goodfellas d!ck S#ck!ng @ss k!ss!ng site! Goodfellas was OK, but it was vrey predictible for a Mafia move…The F##king Departed – now that was some sh!t!! I didn’t need no Maalox for constipaton when Jason Bourne blew Leonardo DiCaprio, oh yeah! And he shot him too!! What a f##king shocker that was!!! THAT was unexpected!!! Didn’t see that MFer coming! F##k! I needed a cigarette after Marky Mark gave Jason Bourne a what for in the end!!!
OK, so maybe each one was the best, in their own time! :o) Luv Y’all!!
May 2, 2009 at 4:44 am
“Goodfellas tries too hard, while The Departed is Scorsese at his most fun”
“Weak opening paragraph line. Work on that.”
May 2, 2009 at 6:37 am
Saying that Departed is anything but a trully masterpiece of cinema is to comprove your own ignorance. Saying that Departed was only a “good comedy” is pitful.
And Cop Land is as good or better than French Connection any time of the day. What a dumb speech just to compare both films, jeez. You must have heard about Scorsese yesterday.
May 2, 2009 at 7:12 am
I’m even going to boldly go where no fanboy has gone before and say The Departed was by far better than Infernal Affairs.
May 2, 2009 at 4:57 pm
Ok, this may be the first article I’ve read that understood my opinion of Goodfellas. It is a great film, but there is so much, from Pesci’s huge performance, to the somewhat iffy drugs/music ending it feels like what a great gangster picture looks like in my mind, but when I watch it I want to see something I don’t expect. The Departed may not be a “GREAT” film, but it’s still entertaining as hell.
I don’t think anyone bothers to read these comments, but that’s my 2 cents
May 2, 2009 at 5:40 pm
I read em Vader!
Your 2 cents is greatly appreciated, will set up a PayPal account soon 😉
May 2, 2009 at 6:26 pm
theres a reason why joe pesci and ray liotta’s characters develop more and seemed more scary and believable, BECAUSE IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. THE DEPARTED WAS FICTION. they are 2 totally different films taking place in 2 totally different times in scorsese’s career. the 2 cannot be compared because they are so different you arrogant pseudo-know-it-all-wanna-be-gene-siskel-p***k
May 2, 2009 at 6:45 pm
The Departed, by far.
And for the record, I’m 34.
May 3, 2009 at 12:11 am
[…] Goodfellas v The Departed As far back as we can remember, we’ve always wanted to do a Martin Scorsese movie battle. Swearing, shouting, […] […]
May 3, 2009 at 4:12 am
I think Goodfellas had a gritty feel to it, a very real aspect to it. The Departed was a good movie too, but to someone’s point above, Goodfellas was based on a true story. I think that adds a bit to the mystique.
May 3, 2009 at 4:40 am
This is a useless topic. Comparing Goodfellas and The Departed is like comparing Schindler’s List to The Lost World: Jurassic Park. There is no competition. Goodfellas is the obvious winner.
Goodfellas and many of Scorsese’s other classic films like Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, and Raging Bull are superior to The Departed. The Departed is a good film, but it is not among Scorsese’s greats.
May 3, 2009 at 8:05 am
I liked the one with the rabbit in it
May 3, 2009 at 4:22 pm
What a joke. The Departed is a decent film. Perhaps good. Goodfellas is f**king film school.
May 3, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Yeah, I definitely do the Nicholson voice over and wrote the script to that trailer spoof, “The Depahted.” I got shot in Saginaw, Michigan and was submitted to the 2007 MTV Movie Awards. Didn’t even make the top 5. Bummer.
– Paul Walter Hauser, formerly of First Hour Movies
May 3, 2009 at 9:53 pm
Hey. The Goodfella’s had better suits. Period.
http://iloveclosing.com/2009/05/03/fashion-disasters-in-corporate-america/
Cheers
The Closer
May 4, 2009 at 3:11 am
im 18 and Ive seen both movies.The Departed was good but their is no comparison 2 the greatest mob movie ever made.I rented The Departed but i own 2 copies of Goodfellas.point blank Goodfellas sh*ts on the Departed
May 4, 2009 at 3:16 am
Wow, none of you realized this article was obviously tongue-in-cheek or is it just me? As for those who commented that Goodfellas had no plot or was predictable, um…it was a true story. What did u want, a twist ending where Gwyneth Paltrow’s head shows up in a box on Liotta’s front door step while he’s in witness protection?
By the way, The Departed was medicore, Goodfellas is a masterpiece
May 4, 2009 at 3:52 am
Goodfellas is one of the best movies, ever, in my humble opinion. I adore Scorsese. I’ll give you the fact that The Deaprted was fun, while Goodfellas is iconic and a true testimont to the mafia movie genre. God, if I had to watch one movie over and over for the rest of my life I just may pick Goodfellas.
May 4, 2009 at 8:16 pm
The Departed was …OK
Goodfellas was THE BEST GANGSTER PICTURE EVER
Period.
Hell, Goodfellas is one of the top 100 best English language movies ever, of any genre.
Period.
They are not even in the same class.
May 5, 2009 at 1:29 am
I thought the departed was great. But that films is from another movie, called “Internal affairs”, that’s like a remake or a sequel. I love the Departed. But there is no way you can say one bad thing about Goodfellas, the movie is flawless: based off a true story, the camera work is phenomenal, the acting is great, the screenplay is by the guy who wrote the book. The film is unique and original. What is the memorable scene is the departed? How about the memorable scene of joe pesci “What do you mean, I’m funny?” how about the scene with long camera shot that comes from the back into the kitchen and then to the stage. What about noticing a lot of the people in the film were later in the sopranos series. I could go on but you get my point.
August 6, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Goodfellas, even though both of these movies are totally overrated.
August 13, 2009 at 2:54 pm
I’m going with Ross McG on this one. “Goodfellas” is an undisputed classic of the genre, and there’s not much to complain about. But for sheer entertainment value, you cannot beat “The Departed.” Mark Wahlberg and Alec Baldwin trading insults? The spotty Boston accents? The insane-in-the-membrane plot twists? The ending? It’s all enjoyable as hell, and a little poetic to boot.
Ooh, idea for upcoming battle: DiCaprio vs. Damon…
December 7, 2009 at 3:23 am
First of all the fact that The Departed is absolutely bashed in this article is F’n ridiculous. The Departed was a great movie and by far one of the best movies set in Boston. I absolutely loved the movie and thought that the cast did a great job. With that said, Goodfellas is by far my favorite movie of all time and it cannot even be compared to The Departed. Goodfellas is arguably top 5 movie ever made with Scarface and The Godfather leading the way. The point of what I’m saying though is The Departed was a great movie but agreed that it will never be a great like Goodfellas.
May 18, 2010 at 6:26 pm
Goodfellas is better, sure. but you cant say the departed isn’t good, you just can’t. Goodfellas was about the gangster lifestyle in general, and Scorsese does a wonderful job getting the feel of the lifestyle, making the viewer feel like a fucking gangster too. The Departed is more about belonging, and identity. Matt Damon’s character is sorta stuck between both worlds, being a gangster but having dreams of being at the Boston Courthouse or whatever. Billy Costigan (Diccaprio) doesnt really fit in anywhere, until he begins to relate to the shrink. They’re both great movies, but Goodfellas is obviousky better. The gangsters are real people, in the Departed, not so much.
December 16, 2010 at 3:42 am
Scorsese’s timeless and brilliant Raging Bull lost the Best Director honors to Robert Redford’s directorial debut, Ordinary People in 1980. Though it was a well-acted, well-directed masterpiece in it’s own right, Ordinary People is, 30 years later, sorely dated and stylistically, mired in the early1980’s. Raging Bull on the other hand, is a gritty, American neo-realist character study and artistic masterpiece, made all the more powerful by the director’s choice to shoot in high definition black and white and by all appearances, could have been shot at anytime in the last 70 years. The opening title sequence alone is a magnificent, tiny work of slow-motion ballet and a miniature exhibition of Scorsese’s undeniable gift. As deserving as Ordinary People was, in retrospect, Scorsese’s film is much more influential and important.
Ten years later, Scorsese again takes it in the teeth by yet another actor-turned first-time director, basking poolside at the apex of his popularity. Kevin Costner’s formulaic, please-‘em all film Dances With Wolves swept in with its stock flag-waving frontiersmen, safe storyline, squeaky-clean romance and John Barry’s relentless, ear-smearing soundtrack were just the ticket for manipulating the broad ranging, but soft-minded audience. (Ironically, despite the subtle anti-racism theme woven loosely throughout the film, Costner’s love interest is a one dimensional white woman rescued and raised by the Indians rather than a native woman, the riskier choice being the depiction of a bi-racial relationship to a decidedly conservative target audience.) In the years that have followed, GoodFellas has proved one of the most influential and iconic films in the history of the medium. In stark contrast, GoodFellas has become the gold stitching in the quilt of classic American cinema. The characters and dialogue have become a part of the global pop-culture pantheon, while the director himself has crossed through the mythic ethereal portal of cinematic genius and into the domain reserved exclusively for living legends.
The Departed was indeed a make-up call; the cinematic equivalent of a sandlot do-over that served only as a reminder of how short sighted and susceptible to Hollywood influence peddlers the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is. Scorsese deserved better than to be run up on stage like a high school football team’s token mascot/equipment manager; a lovable kid with Down Syndrome, to receive what amounted to little more than a thinly-veiled and undesignated lifetime achievement award from his supposed peers, George Lucas, Steven Spielberg and Francis Ford Coppola. The entire gesture seemed contrived and disingenuous and rang hollow in the shadow of Scorsese’s staggering auteur.
Awarding Martin Scorsese Best Picture and Best Achievement In Direction for The Departed is only a flight or two up from a slap in the face because the film isn’t even among Scorsese’s top five creative efforts. Anyone who suggests otherwise is an apologist, ignorant or just plain stupid.
August 12, 2013 at 11:10 am
[…] said it before and I’ll say it again: The Departed is one of the greatest comedies ever made. Why else would Scorsese cast Baldwin, Nicholson and Wahlberg? It was the latter who got the Oscar […]
November 28, 2013 at 1:53 pm
I think both are great in their own ways…
‘Goodfellas’ is perhaps the finest gangster film we have got (yeah way way better than ‘The Godfather’). But before you start calling ‘The Departed’ a comedy, please hold it. ‘Goodfellas’ had some terrific comic sequences as well.
The tone of both the films is trademark Scorsese. Let’s not forget that ‘Goodfellas’ was the starting point in which Marty started mixing brash humor with violent drama. The cocktail of two is something that only Marty can achieve. Both films are hilarious, horrific, impactful, superbly acted, have sensational scores, and Marty’s direction was outstanding in both the cases.
‘The Departed’ I loved it because it was way way above the usual covert thriller format. Mind you, I had watched ‘Infernal Affairs’ and I found that it was good but lacking the brash charisma that only Marty could bring. The original film stuck simply to the plot which made it mechanical. ‘The Departed’ was oustanding because it fleshed out each character fantastically and everyone mattered. There were humor, romance, evil, heroism and many things at the same time.
Where ‘Goodfellas’ scores over ‘The Departed’ is a bit in the technical department- the long-shots, takes and snappy slow-motion and freeze-frames of that 1990 masterpiece are impossible to rival. Scorsese kept it laidback and basic in ‘The Departed’, despite some marvellous sequences- the Chinatown sequence, the scene of the microchip deal, or those hallucinatory sequences with Jack Nicholson. I guess that was because Scorsese wanted to explore the human quality more rather than style and this pays off quite well.
Where does ‘The Departed’ score over ‘Goodfellas’? It is hard to say that because it is as good as that film. But I think it is because you actually care for each and every character and I think there is one scene which nails the difference. When Jack is shot, with his face and body bleeding, you actually feel a tinge of sympathy for this cruel yet ultimately ill-fated gangster- you actually rewind back to all the humor and violence that gushes out of him and you know you love the guy really very much…just as you loved Tommy DeVito. I mean the violence in ‘Goodfellas’ was kind of thrilling and impersonal but the violence in ‘The Departed’ was skin-deep, it actually made you cringe.
September 1, 2014 at 8:13 pm
Scorcese is at his best and truly deserves Oscar for this film. Also notable are the performances of Matt Damon (such a great “bad-guy;” he really must do stuff like this more often), Leo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson (as always), and Mark Wahlberg (best since Rockstar). However, some in the theater with me who had seen Infernal Affairs did say that Departed did not live up to the original.