The Departed (2006)
94%RT Audience Score: 94%
Awards & Nominations: Won 4 Oscars
97 wins & 141 nominations total
Featuring outstanding work from an excellent cast, The Departed is a thoroughly engrossing gangster drama with the gritty authenticity and soupy morality we come to expect from Martin Scorsese.
If you’re looking for a movie that’s got it all – action, suspense, and a killer cast – then The Departed is the flick for you. Leo, Damon, and Wahlberg are all at the top of their game, and even Jack Nicholson gets in on the fun as a ruthless mob boss. Sure, it’s violent, but that’s just a Scorsese trademark. Plus, there’s some surprising humor thrown in, especially in the banter between Baldwin and Wahlberg. So grab some popcorn and settle in for a wild ride with The Departed.
Production Company(ies)
Warner Bros., Plan B Entertainment, Initial Entertainment Group,
Distributor
Warner Bros.
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
SUNY Maritime College, Bronx, New York City, New York, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for strong brutal violence, pervasive language, some strong sexual content and drug material
Year of Release
2006
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital SDDS DTS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:2h 32m
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Language(s):English, Cantonese
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 6, 2006 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 13, 2007
Genre(s)
Crime/Mystery & thriller
Keyword(s)
starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Alec Baldwin, Vera Farmiga, Anthony Anderson, James Badge Dale, David O’Hara, Kevin Corrigan, Robert Wahlberg, Kristen Dalton, Thomas B Duffy, John Cenatiempo, Armen Garo, Joseph Riccobene, Billy Smith, Conor Donovan, Shay Duffin, Amanda Lynch, Jill Brown, Richard Hughes, James P Anderson, John Polce, John Rue, Brian Smyj, Tracey Paleo, Kristen Dalton, Sallie Toussaint, Larry Mitchell, John Farrer, Terry Serpico, Frank Ciornei, David Conley, John McConnell, John Rue, directed by Martin Scorsese, written by William Monahan, produced by Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, Graham King, crime, mystery, thriller, drama, R-rated, box office gross $132.4M, reviewed by Namrata Joshi, Jonathan Romney, Sukhdev Sandhu, Christopher Orr, Anthony Quinn, Charlotte O’Sullivan, Sean Axmaker, Stephen Silver, Robin Holabird, David Walsh, Mike Massie, Leonardo DiCaprio as Billy Costigan, Matt Damon as Colin Sullivan, Jack Nicholson as Frank Costello, Mark Wahlberg as Sgt Dignam, Martin Sheen as Capt Queenan, Ray Winstone as Mr French
Worldwide gross: $291,480,452
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $429,833,710
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 360
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 46,873,905
US/Canada gross: $132,399,394
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $195,243,703
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 363
US/Canada opening weekend: $26,887,467
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $39,649,793
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 312
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $90,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $132,719,136
Production budget ranking: 269
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $71,469,255
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): $225,645,318
ROI to date (est.): 111%
ROI ranking: 900
Matt Damon – Colin Sullivan
Jack Nicholson – Frank Costello
Mark Wahlberg – Sgt. Dignam
Martin Sheen – Capt. Queenan
Ray Winstone – Mr. French
Director(s)
Martin Scorsese
Writer(s)
William Monahan
Producer(s)
Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, Graham King
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
Won 4 Oscars
97 wins & 141 nominations total
Academy Awards
Oscar Best Achievement in Directing Winners, Oscar Best Achievement in Editing Winners, Oscar Best Picture Winners, Oscar Best Writing Winners, Oscar Nominees, Oscar Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published Winners, Oscar Winners
All Critics (284) | Top Critics (73) | Fresh (257) | Rotten (27)
The biggest draw, of course, are the star acts: Caprio, Damon and Mark Wahlberg in particular are electric.
January 17, 2019 | Rating: 4/4
Namrata Joshi
Outlook
TOP CRITIC
If you like Scorsese, or if you just like thrillers, you’ll have a good time.
February 27, 2018
Jonathan Romney
Independent on Sunday
TOP CRITIC
The Departed is an example of a cinematic master seeking to live up to the veneration with which he is regarded by his pupils.
January 25, 2015
Sukhdev Sandhu
Daily Telegraph (UK)
TOP CRITIC
Not only is The Departed not among the best of Scorsese’s films; it’s not even the best version of this film.
January 25, 2015
Christopher Orr
The Atlantic
TOP CRITIC
Nicholson is on good-to-great form as the paternal brute, and lends an inimitable relish to certain lines in William Monahan’s screenplay.
January 25, 2015 | Rating: 3/5
Anthony Quinn
Independent (UK)
TOP CRITIC
As in his remake of Cape Fear, Scorsese has mucked up a B-movie he professes to love: producing something full of twists but devoid of that lovely, fluttery, rare thing: surprise.
January 25, 2015
Charlotte O’Sullivan
London Evening Standard
TOP CRITIC
[Scorsese] turns the clever cat-and-mouse story of two rival informants scrambling to save themselves from discovery, into a star-studded mob opera spiked with grimy underworld detail and juiced with adrenaline and suspicion.
June 25, 2022
Sean Axmaker
Stream on Demand
The movie that finally brought Scorsese gold (15th anniversary)
October 14, 2021 | Rating: 4.5/5
Stephen Silver
Tilt Magazine
Violent (a Scorsese trademark) and energetic, the fast-paced, compelling story features terrific performances and surprising humor, especially in repartee between Alec Baldwin and Mark Wahlberg…
August 10, 2021
Robin Holabird
Robin Holabird
Scorsese claims to be appalled by the violence in life and in his own films, yet he continues to glamorize sociopaths.
February 14, 2021
David Walsh
World Socialist Web Site
Just might be Scorsese’s most complex, well-balanced gangster flick.
November 21, 2020 | Rating: 10/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
While Nicholson steals the film’s long set-up, the second half of The Departed becomes a psychologically taut battle of wits and nerves between Billy and Colin…
May 15, 2020
David Lamble
Bay Area Reporter…
Plot
In this crime-action tour de force, the South Boston state police force is waging war on Irish-American organized crime. Young undercover cop Billy Costigan is assigned to infiltrate the mob syndicate run by gangland chief Frank Costello. While Billy quickly gains Costello’s confidence, Colin Sullivan, a hardened young criminal who has infiltrated the state police as an informer for the syndicate is rising to a position of power in the Special Investigation Unit. Each man becomes deeply consumed by their double lives, gathering information about the plans and counter-plans of the operations they have penetrated. But when it becomes clear to both the mob and the police that there is a mole in their midst, Billy and Colin are suddenly in danger of being caught and exposed to the enemy – and each must race to uncover the identity of the other man in time to save themselves. But is either willing to turn on their friends and comrades they’ve made during their long stints undercover?
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Mark Wahlberg’s performance in The Departed is described as “electric” by critics.
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