Dearly Departed
Liz and Valerie saw The Departed several weeks ago after many moons of eager anticipation. Despite their desperate attempts to distance themselves from their love of Infernal Affairs, alas, they were unable to avoid comparing Scorsese's final product to the inimitable original.
There was a lot to like about the film. Leonardo DiCaprio's mounting paranoia was convincingly executed, and the action sequences were deftly paced. Alec Baldwin's performance was enjoyable, as was MarkWahlberg's. And Liz is always happy to see David O'Hara in anything.
Unfortunately, there was also a lot that made Liz and Valerie cringe. Jack Nicholson was almost absurdly insane--in fact, during some of his scenes, the audience actually did laugh out loud. Matt Damon did his best, but alternating between a cocky half-grin and a furrowed-brow half-frown wasn't quite enough nuance for a main character. Martin Sheen was barely there, to the point that his character's fate is barely a blip on the radar when it should be a cataclysmic event. And the heavy-handed attempts at symbolism were painful to watch, including the final shot of the film, which made Liz and Valerie groan in unison.
One of the main problems in the film is the lack of empathy or sympathy with any of the characters. When stuff goes wrong, it's hard to care about anyone. Which is quite the opposite of the original; you care about everyone in Infernal Affairs--the good, the bad and even the minor, supporting characters. One person can be on screen for less than five minutes, but can break your heart in just that time. Only Leonardo Dicaprio's character in The Departed forces any feeling from the viewer, and even then it's not enough.
The difference between The Departed and Infernal Affairs may be a simple matter of culture and geography; the former film is decidedly"Hollywood," while the latter is firmly "Hong Kong." Where the latter is waltz, the former is big band. Burger versus steak, Picasso versus Pollock... the comparisons could go on forever.
Suffice it to say that Liz and Valerie definitely prefer the original. It's shorter, the pacing is better, the cinematography is better, the acting is WAY better, and the symbolism gets under your skin instead of punching you in the face. If you haven't seen the original, see The Departed first, or you'll probably be as disappointed as Liz andValerie were.
There was a lot to like about the film. Leonardo DiCaprio's mounting paranoia was convincingly executed, and the action sequences were deftly paced. Alec Baldwin's performance was enjoyable, as was MarkWahlberg's. And Liz is always happy to see David O'Hara in anything.
Unfortunately, there was also a lot that made Liz and Valerie cringe. Jack Nicholson was almost absurdly insane--in fact, during some of his scenes, the audience actually did laugh out loud. Matt Damon did his best, but alternating between a cocky half-grin and a furrowed-brow half-frown wasn't quite enough nuance for a main character. Martin Sheen was barely there, to the point that his character's fate is barely a blip on the radar when it should be a cataclysmic event. And the heavy-handed attempts at symbolism were painful to watch, including the final shot of the film, which made Liz and Valerie groan in unison.
One of the main problems in the film is the lack of empathy or sympathy with any of the characters. When stuff goes wrong, it's hard to care about anyone. Which is quite the opposite of the original; you care about everyone in Infernal Affairs--the good, the bad and even the minor, supporting characters. One person can be on screen for less than five minutes, but can break your heart in just that time. Only Leonardo Dicaprio's character in The Departed forces any feeling from the viewer, and even then it's not enough.
The difference between The Departed and Infernal Affairs may be a simple matter of culture and geography; the former film is decidedly"Hollywood," while the latter is firmly "Hong Kong." Where the latter is waltz, the former is big band. Burger versus steak, Picasso versus Pollock... the comparisons could go on forever.
Suffice it to say that Liz and Valerie definitely prefer the original. It's shorter, the pacing is better, the cinematography is better, the acting is WAY better, and the symbolism gets under your skin instead of punching you in the face. If you haven't seen the original, see The Departed first, or you'll probably be as disappointed as Liz andValerie were.
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