Using almost identical white lettering on black to Scorsese's earlier GoodFellas, "Boston...Some years ago", we can expect the same elements of the crime genre that the director is so known for in The Departed. We cut to historical footage, narrated over by Jack Nicholson's character, with a Rolling Stones track, establishing the time period of the seventies, culminating with a powerful line "No-one gives it to you...you have to take it.". We then we follow his character on one of his regular money collections from a local business, where he displays his authority by intimidating the owner and openly flirting with his daughter.
The song continues throughout the scene, suggesting a rock and roll lifestyle, that the young boy at the bar seems to idolize. Frank Costello is also bathed in shadow throughout most of the sequence, perhaps to indicate the dark, mysteriousness of his life, and to also hide the fact that Nicholson is considerably older than the age of the character he is portraying here. The scene ends with an invitation for the young boy to work for him, and inevitably join his life of crime. This opening is effective because, as well as introducing two of the central characters of the film, it is again in line with many conventions of the crime genre.
The song continues throughout the scene, suggesting a rock and roll lifestyle, that the young boy at the bar seems to idolize. Frank Costello is also bathed in shadow throughout most of the sequence, perhaps to indicate the dark, mysteriousness of his life, and to also hide the fact that Nicholson is considerably older than the age of the character he is portraying here. The scene ends with an invitation for the young boy to work for him, and inevitably join his life of crime. This opening is effective because, as well as introducing two of the central characters of the film, it is again in line with many conventions of the crime genre.