The films begins with a title a name of a place being shown and setting the time

frame of what is next to be shown. The film is set in Boston which the title
suggests. The soundtrack in the background is Rolling Stones – Geniwine
Shelter, which is an unusual song choice for the opening of a thriller which
definitely grabs the audiences attention.

The Director Martin Scorsese is well known and infamous for making Italian
Gangster films such as Goodfellas, this is portrayed in The Departed but
with a mixture of Irish, Black and Italian people.
Next to be shown is a montage of clips of the past
and what has been happening through out the
years. We know this because we are told in the
narration and also in the mise-en-scene e.g. with
how people are dressed. The camera technique
being used in the montage is steadicam, evidence
of this were the numerous shots being zoomed in
and how the camera was very mobile which gave
an effect of being in the mist of the action. Also it
could be perceived as a collection of clips that
were documented which again tells us that this was
what happened in the past. While the montage is
being shown there are numerous non digetic
sounds such as a voice over which is the narrator
and the music. The narrator expresses his strong
points of view which gives us an incite to the
narrators character. The music has a melancholy
feel which complements the opening shots
because it makes you reflect on the past since the
music is from the 70s and the montage we assume
is from that era. Finally you see the struggle and
violence that occurred in the past through mise-en-
scene with police in riot gear and windows broken.
Its also filmed like a news report to show its
important and serious which makes it very unique
in the way its filmed.
Next is an establishing shot of Boston. Which
gives us a setting for the film. We also get a feel of
how vast this city is and establishes the mise en
scene and atmosphere to come. Also the camera
zooms in on a specific part of the city telling us the
audience where exactly the next scene will take
place.
The main character and also the person who was the narrator is
then brought to the scene. The character is introduced to the
scene via a tracking shot.

The Character when first looked upon is in shadow and his identity
is hidden through chiaroscuro lighting. By covering up the identity of
this character brings a mysterious element to the film and makes us
concentrate on this character entering the scene. The tracking shot
reinforces this affect on the audience and especially the silhoutte
shot makes the character seem intresting and crafty.
The scene then quickly cuts to a point of view
shot of the person walking towards the shop.
Which makes you see what’s going on
through the characters eyes. As he enters the
shop you see that no one looks at him or
even seems to notice him.

The point of view shot is followed by an

over the shoulder shot which shows where
the character is looking without giving away
the characters identity yet. This shot also
shows that the character is about to interact
with the other.
 Upon entering the shop it seems as if the shop
owner respects this man due to his manners
towards him and believes he's of a high
authority and it is if the man is scared this is
shown from his fearful attitude. Before words are
exchanged he quickly hands the guy over some
money which suggest this happens regularly
between the two characters.

It also seems that time is a symbol of something in this opening scene. Notice how the clock of
his watch is facing the wrong way round, and the clock face can be clearly seen. This is not the
only occurrence in the opening scene that there has been clear a shot of the watch , the watch
again is shown later on in the clip. Also this shot is at a certain angle which is used to portray an
uneasiness and tension in this scene.
 This known as a two-shot
shows the character still with
his Identity hidden showing his
authority again but not to the
owner this time but rather to
another female employee.
Once called upon she rushes
towards him by a wave of his
hand again showing his
dominance and authority. The
female is illuminated while the
main character is in shadow.
The light and dark contrast in
my opinion was a reflection on
both the characters
personalities. With the woman
in light all innocent and good.
And the man in shadow
associated as a bad and
devious person.

The female worker provides a humble attitude toward the other character even though he's taking money
from the owner, this shows she is fearful of the man who is being given the money and she doesn’t want to
cause further problems. However the mid close up of the woman shows her disgust when she takes the
money offered from him from her expression and body language.
 This medium close up shows the
owners reaction towards the
man and his reactions whilst the
man was talking to the female
worker. This reaction shot shows
the owners true feelings towards
the mysterious man. There also
is an reaction shot of the child
who is in the shop at the time

Incidental music from the beginning of the film is still being played out during
this scene. The music gets quiet while words are exchanged but at the end of
every sentence the volume picks up and is played out loud again to give
tension to the scene.
Again as you can see again there is a
close up of the mans watch but this
time it shows time has moved on, its
no longer at 2:50 but rather at 3:00.
these shots are therefore continuous
and shows how the man is on a tight
schedule and that he is meticulous
with time. This could also be a symbol
of the slogan 'time is money' as you
see the clock on backwards with the
childs hand holding coins.
This mise -en-scene shot shows
a change in scenery as you can
see the scene has now changed
to a church where various
religious activities take place with
the young boy. As we associate a
church with all good things we get
a sense of the young boy being
innocent. Also in the long shot of
inside the church we see all the
different nations of flags on the
ceiling which tells the audience
that in church all nations are
equal and of one in the house of
god. This shot is used so that we
can see the difference between
the opening montage of the past
where their were problems with
race to that of what we are
seeing. This also suggests a
number of years has past.
In the final scene of the opening sequence with
his face still not being able to be seen the
character is shot over the shoulder showing the
characters line of sight while talking to the
child. It is also a tracking shot as it follows the
character toward the young boy. Also it is at a
high angle shot showing the young boy as a
feeble and inferior character compared to the
man. Further evidence of this is when the
young boy backs up slightly when the man
approaches him. As the male character says a
big statement his identity is shown. His identity
being revealed while he says this statement
makes what he says a whole lot more powerful
and it is done in a close up showing his facial
expressions in almost a sly humorous manor,
he says “When I was your age people said that
you can become cops or criminals but today I’m
telling you when facing a loaded gun … what's
the difference?... Eh that’s my boy” This
statement brings about the main morale issues
of the film and shows an amount of intelligence
from this character. Also some people could
have a certain dislike for the character to be
saying that to a young boy especially since
young boys are very impressionable. Once this
is said the clip is cut to the present day ending
the opening sequence.