Nearly two decades ago, Martin Scorsese gave us ‘The Departed,’ an impeccable thriller that remains a masterpiece for many reasons. From the convincing performance of Matt Damon to the unmatched intensity of Jack Nicholson, the movie continues to send shivers down the spine.
And what stands out completely is its unhinged nature. But do you know it was Nicholson’s chaotic input that made the film what it was? Looking back at an iconic scene that reiterated Nicholson’s flair for chaos and conundrum, Damon couldn’t help but feel flabbergasted.
Matt Damon Recalls The Rewritten Scene In ‘The Departed‘
During his 2019 appearance on the ‘What a Joke’ podcast, Matt Damon spoke about his performances and roles that stood out to him. But when it came to his observations during the filming of ‘The Departed’, he found it important to talk about one of his co-stars.
It was about Jack Nicholson rewriting one of the movie’s most essential scenes. It features his character, Costello, shooting a woman, but guess what? The writing team originally opted for a man in the script, not a woman. The improvisation was one-eighth of a page, but that’s not even the interesting part. Each time Nicholson said, “Now you could end it there, but if you leave the camera rolling,” it made it funnier.
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The first time, he remarked that “she fell funny.” Then, Costello would chop her up, as the actor suggested the second time. The third time would have the character “f— her up”. Each time Nicholson narrated his input, the team replied, “Now that’s a very sinister line.”
It reached a crescendo when Frank (Ray Winstone) told him, “Francis, you oughta see someone.” Interestingly, this wasn’t the first time Nicholson gave his two cents on a movie. He has a penchant, a fancy for the unhinged, and here’s how it was mirrored in his performances.
Jack Nicholson’s Fancy For The Unhinged And Chaotic
If you thought this performance of Nicholson sums up chaos, wait till you watch him in ‘The Shining.’ The infamous axe scene wasn’t in the script to begin with. But when the sequence made it to the movie, it was pure horror on Shelley Duvall’s face.
The only exception to Nicholson’s suggestion was that the weapon was a roque mallet. However, Stanley Kubrick changed it to an axe because he felt it looked more visually menacing. He received considerable hate from fans and critics for his relentless direction of Duvall.
As for Nicholson, his deranged performance as Jack Torrence was impeccable. The actor even broke down the door a couple of times to practice for the scene in question, which completely jarred and traumatized Duvall. The prop department had to rebuild the door constantly.
This is the aftermath of method acting, one could say. There are moments when directors expect actors to deliver their best, and this sequence was one such case. But it was most certainly not the last. Even for ‘The Witches of Eastwick,’ the actor went berserk to play the charismatic Daryl Van Horne.
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He played the Devil and delivered the most notable monologue, hinting at something more intense. While yelling at Cher, Pfeiffer, and Susan Sarandon, he made the crew uneasy. Back to his reworked script in ‘The Departed,’ most fans disagree with his vision.
While some viewed his flair for chaos as impressive, others found it cringeworthy. But if there’s one thing we know for sure about the actor, it’s his unparalleled knack for portraying unpredictable, deeply unsettling, and darkly sinister characters.
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