THE DEPARTED.

"A History of Violence" is what they could have called THE DEPARTED, if the name had not been taken already. And just like David Cronenberg's masterpiece, Martin Scorsese's new film is an insanely fun and twisted ride. But, unlike Cronenberg's movie, Scorsese's picture fails to resonate as one of the auteur's greatest works.

Opening amidst the intense period of violence in the 1970s in Boston's predominantly Irish innercities and zipping through the INFERNAL AFFAIRS' beyond-brilliant set-up (mob grooms undercover cop, cops groom undercover goodfella), missing is Scorsese's usual sense of urgency. He saves it for later. The 20-minute opening, before a title card, should be exhausting and head-spinning, but it does improve upon the original film by using the same Hollywood stars to play younger ages as to not confuse us. Finally, though, the title drops and the music explodes: The Dropkick Murphy's signature Boston-Irish-punk sound giving us "I'm Shipping Up To Boston." Things finally get frenetic.

Now that all the set-up has been handled a little too delicately, Scorsese and company get on with the intense cat-and-mouse potboiler. Deveating very little from Andrew Lau's original film, THE DEPARTED simply Americanizes the original film; gone are the overly dramatic stings that accompany most standard Asian action pictures, here we get The Stones' "Gimme Shelter" as a sort of theme (which strikes me as arather weak choice for Scorsese). William Monahan's Mamet-esque screenplay displays games of verbal gymnastics that this fabulous cast is up for; each player is excelling at delivering this harsh, fuck-laden dialogue. Monahan is constantly elevating the B-movie leanings to greater heights with aspirations and allusions to Joyce, Shakespeare and Freud. However, his most authentic moments come from casual mentions of Irishness; this is the film that STATE OF GRACE wanted to be. The Italian-Catholic Scorsese is clearly on a similar wavelength as the Irish, making two of America's finest depictions of the two largest Irish diasporas in America (GANGS andTHE DEPARTED).

As for the cast, they are all in excellent form. Leonardo DiCaprio gets the more introspective, tortured character. He does very fine work here that we come to expectfrom him now, but compared to Tony Leung he is weak. Matt Damon, however, plays one of the most evilcharacters of recent memory; his manipulation and deceit allow himto be despicable without being entirely unlikable. He does not one-up Andy Lau so much as match his icy antagonist. With glee he saddles back into his Boston brogue; here, he is Bad Will Hunting.

Then, there's Jack. I don't even have to say his full name and you know who I'm talking about --Jack Nicholson. Nicholson is easily the most watchable actor of thelast 30 years, and again he is working on his evil mode that he elevated to a new artform in THE WITCHES OF EASTWICK and BATMAN. The Boston Jack prevents him from playing himself intially, but once Nicholson gets situated he plays "Jack" yet again, veering at times into a cartoonish category. Thankfully, THE DEPARTED shows him as an evil monster before he lets loose. In many ways, it's an extended riff on William Hurt's Philly-Irish gangster from A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE; a paranoid, violent, drunk who gets to have the best lines (notice how similar Jack and Hurt's Oscar clips will be...hint: Jack's playing drunk, too). It's not a career best performance, but watching Jack chew scenery is always a pleasure.

Two unsung heroes steal the picture whenever they are on-screen: Alec Baldwin and Mark Wahlberg. The former is an artist at deliveringthe rapid-fire obscenity-laced dialogue, while the latter deserves the Best Supporting Oscar statue. Wahlberg's intense cop is at first charicature, but eventually gives way to an honest, hardworking Boston detective. His arch is eeriely similar to that of Kang-ho Song's character in MEMORIES OF MURDER -- and similarly, the two men's antics resonate. (oh yeah! and, Wahlberg gets to use his real voice, too!) Lastly, I cannot not write a word about Vera Farmiga who is given theweight of being the only female of the film. She does strong work here with a little role, and deserves a chance to play outside of an American genre film.

While the performances and script satisfy, the only one who leaves you wanting more is Scorsese himself. It seems as though the RAGING BULL-auteur has abandoned his normally expressive movie geek camera and settled strictly for making standard grade fair. It is a backhanded compliment, as he does unbelievably tight and solid work, but there are no flourishes of visual style that he peppers his films with. An aborted attempt to approximate a Wong Kar-Wai slow motion chase through a neon-lighted street is reduced to a single shot here. Perhaps in the pursuit of Oscar, Scorsese has forgotten why is often considered America's greatest living director. THE DEPARTED is by no means a step back, but perhaps a step forward that is a more a step-to-the-side that will give way to more expressive pictures from the New York filmmaker.

While fans of INFERNAL AFFAIRS will have exactly ONE surprise waiting for them with this film, there is still so much left to recommend. It is a superior film in many respects; Scorsese makes fireworks out of the original's lackluster climax. While not entirely satisfying as a Scorsese picture, the film still stands head-and-shoulders above most Hollywood films. THE DEPARTED could have been a masterpiece, but instead it settles for greatness.