Follow @screenit

"THE DEPARTED" (2006) (Leonard DiCaprio, Matt Damon) (R) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons Heavy Extreme Extreme Heavy Extreme Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate Mild Mild Mild Extreme Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence Extreme Moderate Mild Moderate Extreme QUICK TAKE: Drama: Members of the Massachusetts State Police plant an insider within a mob boss' inner circle in hopes of bringing him down, unaware that he has a mole within their organization. PLOT: Billy Costigan (LEONARDO DiCAPRIO) is a cadet at the Massachusetts State Police Academy who, unlike others such as Brown (ANTHONY ANDERSON), is singled out by Captain Queenan (MARTIN SHEEN) and Sergeant Dignam (MARK WAHLBERG) as someone who doesn't fit the ideal profile of a trooper. But they really want him to go undercover as a career criminal and infiltrate the inner circle of South Boston mob boss Frank Costello (JACK NICHOLSON) who, with the aide of his thugs such as Mr. French (RAY WINSTONE), keeps tight control his various criminal enterprises. Only Queenan and Dignam know of this plan, and after he serves some token time in prison, Billy manages to meet Costello and is then pulled into the organization. At the same time, Captain Ellerby (ALEC BALDWIN) of the Special Investigations Unit also wants to nab Costello, this time regarding stolen computer technology he's reportedly going to sell to the Chinese. His lead man is fast rising detective Colin Sullivan (MATT DAMON) who's put in charge of a unit to nail the mobster. But what nobody realizes -- including his new girlfriend, psychiatrist Madolyn (VERA FARMIGA) -- is that he's actually a mole working for Costello who long ago befriended him when he was just a boy. As the police get closer to arresting Costello, he begins to believe he has a rat in his organization, just as the cops learn that he has a mole within theirs. From that point on, Billy tries to get his superiors the info they need while trying not to tip off Costello, while Colin tries to play it smooth when he's assigned to find the spy within their ranks that's really him. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teens might be interested, especially if they're fans of someone in the cast or director Martin Scorsese. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R For strong brutal violence, pervasive language, some strong sexual content and drug material. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: Considering what occurs in the film (murders, profanity, an affair, double-crossing, etc.) it's doubtful parents would consider any of the major characters (beyond MARTIN SHEEN playing a cop trying to nab Costello) as good role models. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this R-rated drama. Profanity consists of at least 237 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered. Sexually related dialogue (some if it explicit) is present, while a woman cheats on her live-in boyfriend with another guy (we see making out and partial disrobing, with sex implied). A man jokingly displays a phallus in a porn movie theater (where we see partial clips of such a film and hear more than that) and a bare-breasted woman is seen in a painting. Violence occurs throughout the film, with many people being killed by various means, but mostly by being shot, while fighting and beatings also occur. All of that's graphically portrayed with all sorts of resultant blood and gore, and those scenes and other moments of potential peril might be unsettling and/or suspenseful to viewers. All sorts of bad attitudes are present, while characters drink and/or smoke. Drug dealing is discussed and we briefly see bags of cocaine during a criminal transaction, while one character becomes hooked on prescription painkillers. Finally, some tense family material involves brief flashbacks to familial deaths. Should you still be concerned about the film's appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home, you may want to look more closely at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE A guy tells another that they're going out for beers and wonders if he wants to come, but the second man declines the offer. Billy's cousin has a beer and we then see them discussing selling drugs (as part of a police ploy to make Billy look like a criminal). Miscellaneous people drink in a bar. Colin and Madolyn have wine with dinner. Billy has a drink in a bar where miscellaneous people drink. Costello then has a shot while there. Costello has a drink. Miscellaneous people have beer. We see Mr. French and Billy prepping and/or packaging drugs, but they get a call to scramble and thus do so, with Mr. French setting a fire to cover their tracks. Madolyn gives Billy some Oxycontin and he takes several pills. Billy makes a scene in front of Madolyn, hoping to get her to prescribe additional drugs for him (she eventually does, especially after he asks why not just give him a bottle of booze and a gun). Billy takes more prescription pills. A man who Billy is roughing up states that he's high. Costello scoops up a handful of cocaine and throws it across the way, telling a woman not to move until she's numb (we don't see any use). Captain Ellerby has a beer. Costello has a drink. Billy has a beer. Various mobsters drink. We see Costello taste-testing some cocaine from many large bags that we see during a drug deal. BLOOD/GORE We see a black and white photo of a dead guy with a bloody face. Sergeant Dignam makes a fake farting sound. After a guy makes a disparaging remark to Billy, the latter hits the former on the head with a beer mug, cutting him (with bloody results). Tired of some thugs harassing a store clerk (but also needing an "in" to get to Costello), Billy beats up the two men, punching and then kicking one repeatedly, punching the second repeatedly, and then smashing that man's face and/or body with the base of a coat stand repeatedly, bloodying both men. Mr. French grabs Billy's arm (in a cast) and repeatedly smashes it to a table, causing him pain. Costello then takes a boot and repeatedly smashes Billy's arm with that, resulting in blood being on the broken cast. We see various dead and very bloody bodies. Costello retrieves a severed and bloody hand from a bag and takes a ring off one finger. Some men that Mr. French and Billy beat up are bloody. We see a man being beaten with a stick or rod of some sort (with bloody results, including some splattering onto a wall). A guy throws a toy that hits Billy on the head, with Mr. French then shooting that man dead (with bloody results). Billy has a few bloody scrapes on his head. Costello mockingly asks another person, "Or would you rather wipe my ass for me?" Billy smashes a painting down onto a guy (with bloody results), struggles with him and aims his gun at him, and then shoots him in the leg (with bloody results). Costello smashes a fly onto a table and then eats it off his hand (or makes the motion of doing so, we don't see it). Costello comes out with blood on his shirt and a lot on his sleeves (suggesting he's killed one of his people). Some thugs grab a cop, struggle with him, and the next thing we see is his body falling several stories down to the street below. We hear, but don't see the impact, but do see a lot of blood on him, the street, and Billy who was running by right when he landed. Some men who've been shot in a shootout are bloody. We later see one of them who's still rather bloody. We see a dead cop's bloody phone. Police arrive to bust Costello and his crew, resulting in a big gun battle where various people are shot and wounded or killed (via handguns, machine guns and shotguns), with bloody results. One injured driver crashes into something, his car explodes into flames, and he shoots himself in the chin, committing suicide. A cop confronts a wounded, but armed gangster (blood on his shirt and from his mouth), and shoots him (with lots of blood spewing from his mouth and more around him). Billy holds a gun on Colin and hits him on the face with it (with bloody results from his nose and mouth). When an elevator door opens, a person shoots another person in the head, with lots of blood spraying out onto the elevator wall (and we see blood around the body on the floor). The killer then surprisingly shoots another man dead (with bloody spurting out), but another man then shoots him dead (also with bloody results). A man returns home to find another man waiting for him. That second man then shoots the first in the head, killing him (with bloody results -- splattering out and also a pool on the floor). DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Costello runs a mob type organization that murders people, extorts businesses, and has stolen some valuable computer chips. Colin works as his inside contact at the police department, giving him various bits of info, such as when to avoid being captured. Costello uses derogatory phrases such as "guineas, "niggers," "homos," "Chinaman," "chinks" and more (including a mocking "No tickey, no laundry" comment to some Chinese thugs), while Colin uses the term "homos" and "queen" is later used (and a comment is made that marriage lets people realize you're not a "homo," while someone calls another "You two-faced faggot"). Some of Costello's men call a Pakistani or Indian clerk "Baboo" and the term "Mic" is used as well. The question, "What, are you f*cking retarded?" is also used. Costello asks a teen girl working behind a restaurant counter whether she had her period yet (coming on to her sexually) and then gives her some money to buy some makeup. Sergeant Dignam is belligerent toward many people, especially Billy and Colin (separately). When Billy orders cranberry juice in a bar, another man mockingly asks if he's having his period (another man jokingly asks the same thing moments later). We see a very brief flashback to Mr. French strangling a woman (possibly his wife). Costello confronts some priests and makes a mocking comment about boys sucking on "p*ckers" (referring to sex abuse charges against the Church). Colin acts like a suspect's lawyer (after the man has been arrested and is in custody) to get the man to make a call (that they then find via the last call feature on the phone). He does so to alert Costello. Mad at a subordinate technician for not setting up a surveillance camera in the back of a warehouse, Captain Ellerby hits the man and has to be restrained by others. Billy ends up breaking various laws while working undercover as a criminal in Costello's organization. Madolyn cheats on Colin with Billy. Various cops end up shooting others as a wave of double-crossing occurs at the end of the film. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" and "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling and/or suspenseful to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material. Costello and his men meet Chinese gangsters to do a criminal business deal, with Costello's men armed with handguns (we see one readied behind one's back) while the Chinese have machine guns. Colin tries to secretly inform Costello of an impending raid by sending a text message on his cell phone (that's in his pocket, and he does while standing next to other cops and his superiors). Billy follows Colin through various alleyways, with both aware of the other's presence, but don't know their identities. On orders to arrest the other guy, Billy draws his gun, while we see Colin waiting with a drawn knife. But Colin ends up stabbing an innocent man in the chest, thinking it's Billy. Billy is a bit nervous but tries not to show it when Costello discusses having a mole in his operation and what he should do about it (saying in the past that he just killed everyone). As Billy secretly meets Captain Queenan in an abandoned building, they learn that both the cops and Costello's thugs are headed their way (separately). They then try to get out of the building. Some thugs grab a cop, struggle with him, and the next thing we see is his body falling several stories down to the street below. We hear, but don't see the impact, but do see a lot of blood on him, the street, and Billy who was running by right when he landed. A mortally wounded thug implies he knows Billy is the mole (and Billy reaches for his gun), but the man dies before telling anyone. Police arrive to bust Costello and his crew, resulting in a big gun battle where various people are shot and wounded or killed (via handguns, machine guns and shotguns), with bloody results. One injured driver crashes into something, his car explodes into flames, and he shoots himself in the chin, committing suicide. Madolyn gets a CD recording implicating Colin's dealings with Costello and listens to this on headphones while Colin is in the shower. She then unplugs the headphones so he can hear it as well, and we think he's going to do something to her, but he doesn't. Billy holds a gun on Colin, hits him on the face with it (with bloody results from his nose and mouth), and then strikes him several more times. Brown then shows up and holds his gun on Billy who holds his gun on Colin, resulting in a standoff. When an elevator door opens, a person shoots another person in the head, with lots of blood spraying out onto the elevator wall (and we see blood around the body on the floor). The killer then surprisingly shoots another man dead (with bloody spurting out), but another man then shoots him dead (also with bloody results). GUNS/WEAPONS Handguns/Shotguns/Machine guns/Knives: Carried and/or used to threaten, wound, or kill others. See "Violence" for details. We see various cops shooting handguns in target practice. Costello and his men meet Chinese gangsters to do a criminal business deal, with Costello's men armed with handguns (we see one readied behind one's back) while the Chinese have machine guns. There's a 21-gun salute at a funeral. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "F*ck you," "You f*cking guineas," "You f*cking homos," "You're f*cked," "Whoopty-f*cking-do," "How f*cked up are you?" "La-di-f*cking-da," "You little f*cking snake," "Shut the f*ck up," "I'll cut your f*cking nuts off," "F*ck-head," "Get the f*ck out of here," "Go f*ck yourself," "You're a f*cking genius," "M*therf*cker," "Don't you people ever shut the f*ck up?" "What the f*ck /are we talking about/is it with you and your phone?" "Maybe someday you'll wake the f*ck up," "F*ck-stick," "Abra-f*cking-cadabra," "I'm going f*cking nuts," "F*ck you, m*therf*cker," "I'm f*cking out of here," "Who gives a f*ck?" "Who the f*ck are you?" "Jesus f*cking Christ," "What, are you f*cking retarded?" "Rat f*cks," "F*ck yourself, you piece of sh*t," "F*ck this," "I don't give a f*ck," "F*ck off," "F*cking rats," "Are you f*cking kidding me?" "F*cking rat pr*ck," "F*cking long time," "Shut your f*cking mouth," "He talks like his sh*t don't stink," "Sh*t-hole," "Up sh*t creek," "Bullsh*t" "Gives a sh*t," "Scared sh*tless," "You're hot sh*t," "Blow job," "Like a 12-year-old's d*ck" (said about something rising), "You money-grubbing whore," "D*ck-head," "Enjoy your clams, c*cks*ckers," "Shrink c*nt," "Calm down or you'll shoot (or sh*t) in your pants," "Jacking off," "I don't need p*ssy anymore, but I like it," "You're giving me a hard on," "Guineas," "Niggers," "Black chappies," "No one gives a damn," "Smart ass," "You punk," "Scumbag," "Girls" (men), "Baboo," "Losers," "Jerk off," "Freaking," "Too damn bad," "Chinaman," "Bruce Lee and the karate kids," "Douche-bags," "Chinks," "No tickey, no laundry," "Would you rather wipe my ass for me?" "Really freaking me out," "Rat bastard," "Pain in the ass," "Blow me" (said as a taunt), "Irish piss ant," "Balls" (testicles) and "You two-faced faggot." Some of the mob type violence might be enticing for some kids to imitate. A guy gives others "the finger." Sergeant Dignam makes a fake farting sound. Billy and others have tattoos. We see miscellaneous graffiti in several scenes. Colin tries to secretly inform Costello of an impending raid by sending a text message on his cell phone (that's in his pocket, and he does while standing next to other cops and his superiors). Sergeant Dignam gives "the finger" to Colin. JUMP SCENES Several sudden shootings (particularly at the end of the film) might startle some viewers. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) A mild amount of suspenseful music plays in a few scenes. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) Several songs had lyrics that we couldn't fully hear and/or understand, thus offering the possibility of them potentially containing objectionable lyrics. That said, we did hear several uses of the "s" word in one song. PROFANITY At least 237 "f" words (5 used with "mother," 4 used sexually), 25 "s" words, 19 slang terms using male genitals ("c*ck," "c*cks*cker," "d*ck," "p*ckers" and "pr*ck"), 9 using female ones ("c*nt" and "p*ssy"), 10 asses (2 used with "hole"), 3 damns, 1 S.O.B., 3 uses each of "G-damn," "Jesus Christ" and "Oh my God" and 1 use each of "Christ's sakes," "For Christ's sakes," "Oh Christ," "Oh Jesus Christ" and "Swear to God." SEX/NUDITY Costello asks a teen girl working behind a restaurant counter whether she had her period yet (coming on to her sexually) and then gives her some money to buy some makeup. There's a comment about "getting p*ssy." Brown says that after graduation (from the police academy) he'll get a "blow job," with Billy jokingly responding, "Your mother must be quite a woman." About Colin's rise through the police department, Sergeant Dignam sarcastically says it's like "a 12-year-old's d*ck." The camera focuses on a woman's clothed butt (representing Colin's point of view). We see Billy and other men shirtless in prison (Billy is there as part of a police ploy). Captain Ellerby and Sergeant Dignam trade mocking insults at each other about "f*cking" the other's wife and mother. In separate scenes, some miscellaneous women show varying amounts of cleavage. About a severed hand, Mr. French jokes about which hand the victim used when he "jerked off." Costello confronts some priests and makes a mocking comment about boys sucking on "p*ckers" (referring to sex abuse charges against the Church). Costello gives some priests what may be a lewd drawing about a nun (they then show it to her, but it's only briefly seen). We see Madolyn telling Colin that it's not uncommon and he looks uncomfortable, thus suggesting he had some erectile issue the night before. A woman asks Costello if he going to drop her off somewhere "or f*ck me or what?" About some gangsters showing up with machine guns, Costello tells them "you don't add inches to your d*ck" by doing so. Costello wants Colin to take care of police problems and thus suggests something might happen to Madolyn if he doesn't. He asks Colin, "Do you like little miss thing sucking on your c*ck?" and Colin says he does. Costello then says to fix the problem or else there will be some other guy sticking his "fat c*ck up her ass." A person tells another to calm down (in a nonsexual situation) or they'll "shoot" (or possibly "sh*t") in their pants. A woman shows some cleavage. Billy and Madolyn passionately kiss and start to undress. We then see her lying down and him pulling off her pants to reveal small panties of which we see several views as they make out and roll around on the bed. Her shirt is also open, we see her bra, and he kisses on her belly and/or elsewhere on her torso. The scene ends there, but sex is implied. Needing a place to meet Costello, Colin goes into a porn theater where we see clips of a porn film playing on the screen (and otherwise hear its audio with some sexually related sounds), but don't see anything explicit. Colin then hears male sexual sounds coming from a few rows in front of him as a man then stands up and holds a large dildo in front of his pants. It's Costello, just joking around with Colin, telling him he owns the place, but that since it's always easy for him to get "c*nt," he never understands people "jacking off" in the theater. Costello says that he doesn't need "p*ssy" anymore, but that he likes it. We see Colin and Madolyn in bed together, but they're just talking. A painting in the background of a shot shows a bare-breasted woman holding some small material over her crotch. After Costello makes an angry call (including talk of someone crawling up another's "ass"), he tells his woman, "You're giving me a hard on." She then playfully asks if he's sure that's not from all of the crawling up the "ass" talk. He tells her to watch her mouth, and she replies, "No, you watch it. Let me straighten you out" as she suggestively goes over to him (presumably to perform oral sex, but we don't see that occur). Costello is mad about where a subordinate dumped a body, telling him you don't do that "where a guy goes to get a blowjob." Madolyn shows Colin her ultrasound, showing that she's pregnant and points out a little speck that she says is the baby's penis. The two then roll around on the bed (clothed), with him ending up between her legs. SMOKING Billy smokes at least 5 times, Costello smokes several times, Mr. French and Captain Queenan smoke at least once, and a number of miscellaneous characters smoke in other scenes. TENSE FAMILY SCENES We hear that Billy's uncle was a bookie who was shot to death. Billy says that he has no family, but we later see him going to stay with his aunt and cousin. We see a flashback to Billy with his dying father in a hospital, and then see another scene showing him attending his mother's funeral. We see a very brief flashback to Mr. French strangling a woman (possibly his wife). TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Cops who work undercover and the implications of them having to behave as criminals while doing so. Costello's comment that a man makes his own way and that no one gives it to you. About Brown being a black cop in Boston, Billy jokingly tells him, "You're f*cked." Freud's comment that the Irish are impervious to psychotherapy. VIOLENCE We see miscellaneous people fighting on the streets of Boston (punching and kicking, etc.). Costello and another man shoot two bound people, execution style (no blood). Some cops grab and throw one guy down during a police raid. After a guy makes a disparaging remark to Billy, the latter hits the former on the head with a beer mug, cutting him (with bloody results). Another man then pushes Billy back to a wall, but then punches the first man in the face several times. Tired of some thugs harassing a store clerk (but also needing an "in" to get to Costello), Billy beats up the two men, punching and then kicking one repeatedly, punching the second repeatedly, and then smashing that man's face and/or body with the base of a coat stand repeatedly, bloodying both men (and injuring Billy's wrist in the process). Mr. French grabs Billy's arm (in a cast) and repeatedly smashes it to a table, causing him pain. Costello then takes a boot and repeatedly smashes Billy's arm with that, resulting in blood being on the broken cast. We see a very brief flashback to Mr. French strangling a woman (possibly his wife). Mr. French strikes and head-butts a man, and when another man reaches into his clothing, Billy hits that guy (thinking he's reaching for a gun). We see Mr. French and Billy prepping and/or packaging drugs, but they get a call to scramble and thus do so, with Mr. French setting a fire to cover their tracks. We see a man being beaten with a stick or rod of some sort (with bloody results, including some splattering onto a wall). A car is set ablaze. A guy throws a toy that hits Billy on the head, with Mr. French then shooting that man dead (with bloody results). Billy pushes and then punches Sergeant Dignam. Mad at a subordinate technician for not setting up a surveillance camera in the back of a warehouse, Captain Ellerby hits the man and has to be restrained by others. Billy smashes a painting down onto a guy (with bloody results), struggles with him and aims his gun at him, and then shoots him in the leg (with bloody results). Billy follows Colin through various alleyways, with both aware of the other's presence, but don't know their identities. On orders to arrest the other guy, Billy draws his gun, while we see Colin waiting with a drawn knife. But Colin ends up stabbing an innocent man in the chest, thinking it's Billy. Costello comes out with blood on his shirt and a lot on his sleeves (suggesting he's killed one of his people). Some thugs grab a cop, struggle with him, and the next thing we see is his body falling several stories down to the street below. We hear, but don't see the impact, but do see a lot of blood on him, the street, and Billy who was running by right when he landed. A cop opens fire on a van of gangsters, hitting one (he later dies in another scene). A brief gun battle then breaks out, with a cop also being hit before the van speeds away. Sergeant Dignam repeatedly punches Colin before being pulled away. Police arrive to bust Costello and his crew, resulting in a big gun battle where various people are shot and wounded or killed (via handguns, machine guns and shotguns), with bloody results. One injured driver crashes into something, his car explodes into flames, and he shoots himself in the chin, committing suicide. A cop confronts a wounded, but armed gangster (blood on his shirt and from his mouth), and shoots him (with lots of blood spewing from his mouth and more around him). The gangster gets off one last shot, causing the cop to shoot him repeatedly (no impact for that round of shooting). Billy holds a gun on Colin, hits him on the face with it (with bloody results from his nose and mouth), and then strikes him several more times. Brown then shows up and holds his gun on Billy who holds his gun on Colin, resulting in a standoff. When an elevator door opens, a person shoots another person in the head, with lots of blood spraying out onto the elevator wall (and we see blood around the body on the floor). The killer then surprisingly shoots another man dead (with bloody spurting out), but another man then shoots him dead (also with bloody results). A man returns home to find another man waiting for him. That second man then shoots the first in the head, killing him (with bloody results -- splattering out and also a pool on the floor). Reviewed October 3, 2006 / Posted October 6, 2006

Other new and recent reviews include:

Privacy Statement and Terms of Use and Disclaimer
By entering this site you acknowledge to having read and agreed to the above conditions.

All Rights Reserved,
©1996-2016 Screen It, Inc.