Yesterday, I went to see The Departed; Scorsese's take on the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs. I liked how he kept the basic framework of the original but added more motivation and depth to the characters. This was a much grittier and more character-driven film than Infernal Affairs, which was more stylish and action-orientated.
It also had all of the ingredients of a Scorsese movie - great use of songs on the soundtrack, it's opening voice-over, swooping cameras and sudden bursts of brutal violence. It also had great dialogue; characters that you really wanted to listen to between the action and suspense. The one thing I think he could have left out from the original was a subplot involving a romance with a police psychologist. It seemed kind of convoluted, slowed things down and didn't really go anywhere.
The performances were great too. I liked how Scorsese left Jack Nicholson's face in darkness for much of the beginning, just letting his voice do the acting. And as for Leonardo DiCaprio, nobody can do tortured anguish like he can. He's evolving into a tough looking guy - far removed from the pretty boy in Titanic.
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