You Gotta Go Home With Somebody
I've been trying to decide whether or not I really wanted to post about The Departed... or whether I should just hold onto my bile so I can move on with my life. Guess what I've decided?
That's right! I've decided to slag this year's Best Picture publicly. (S'okay-- I've had lots of practice from last year.)
The Departed ultimately doesn't work. It's a crime thriller founded on double-crosses and infiltration from both the "bad" side and the "good" side. Why is a double-cross thrilling? Because there's something at stake: we care about the human beings on one side or the other -- occasionally both -- and are subsequently worried/shocked/horrified/ excited when it becomes clear their goals, and their lives, are in danger. The way we grow close to these human beings? By going home with them. Truly being with them. Seeing what they want for their life, what they believe, and why they're willing to risk so much.
Let's look at what we have in terms of major characters in The Departed:
You gotta go home with somebody.
Let's all go home with the characters in L.A. Confidential and Heat again, shall we?
That's right! I've decided to slag this year's Best Picture publicly. (S'okay-- I've had lots of practice from last year.)
The Departed ultimately doesn't work. It's a crime thriller founded on double-crosses and infiltration from both the "bad" side and the "good" side. Why is a double-cross thrilling? Because there's something at stake: we care about the human beings on one side or the other -- occasionally both -- and are subsequently worried/shocked/horrified/ excited when it becomes clear their goals, and their lives, are in danger. The way we grow close to these human beings? By going home with them. Truly being with them. Seeing what they want for their life, what they believe, and why they're willing to risk so much.
Let's look at what we have in terms of major characters in The Departed:
- Sullivan (Matt) - Pretty much a sneaky, conniving sonofabitch. Who occasionally plays at being "good boyfriend", but never convincingly. He's just too hollow a person. He was raised to look out for #1 and that's what he does. We're sometimes "at home" with him -- but we're never really on the inside.
- Costigan (Leo) - An apparent protagonist. The good guy working to take down Costello, who sacrifices much to be able to do so. Except... who is this guy, again? What exactly is he sacrificing? I understand he "wants his identity back", but... sorry, buddy, your identity was missing long before you went undercover! This is a guy we literally do not "go home with" (I don't think we even see where he lives...). Why on earth would we be invested in him? We don't even know him well enough to know how his character is changed by the events of this story.
- Costello (Jack) - Total jerkhead whose "rat-face" I can't get out of my head. This is a man who played both mentor and villain to both Sullivan and Costigan, but I still feel nothing for him one way or the other. I don't care about him or his coke-dusted prostitutes. He's not even quite interesting enough to hold my attention (his hateful opening monologue in the past was a good start, but the character kind of empties out after that).
- Madolyn the Shrink - I think maybe we're meant to care about this character because she's a pretty lady who means well. And because she seems to see something in Sullivan and Costigan that we don't. The key being: we don't. Unfortunately, she just looks like the worst reader of human beings ever.
- Oscar-Nominated Mark Wahlberg - Who yells "fuck" very loudly in his excellent Bostonian accent and wig reclaimed from Boogie Nights. Um-- is he a character?
You gotta go home with somebody.
Let's all go home with the characters in L.A. Confidential and Heat again, shall we?
Labels: character, protagonist
posted by Jennica at 11:18 a.m.
4 Comments:
Character mishaps aside, I got involved with the struggle between Costigan and Sullivan -- but never in their relationship(s) with the shrink. I never once bought her or that subplot. I very nearly forgot she existed.
I think the performances of Damon and DiCaprio are what involved me. Even if I never really knew those characters, they worked so hard with what they had that I couldn't help but get wrapped up. It wasn't that I rooted for one of them to win, but that I knew one of them HAD to and I wanted to find out which one. Maybe a rare instance of not getting on board with the characters, but with the plot.
(Jack's rat face - the less said, the better.)
Hi Jennica--
Have you seen the original "Infernal Affairs?"
It was so brilliant - that I couldn't bring myself to see "The Departed". Call it movie snobbery! Can't recommend the original enough!
Oh, oh! I can't agree more! I got so bored watching The Departed that I pulled my laptop out half-way through to do some work.
As a self-confessed Matt Damon fan, I think he was wasted in this movie. He even looked bored. This, my friends, was was the Marty & Leo show.
Hell, I'm a writer. Great performances alone do not make a powerful movie. Great writing + great performances + great directing. That's what we all want.
How cool that you guys pretty much agree... how sad that we're stuck with this as our 2007 Best Picture!
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