With only two months to go, the publicity will build. It is perhaps the most highly anticipated release of the upcoming fall sched, due out October 6th, with a stellar cast, under the eye of a legendary director. Martin Scorcese, Jack Nicholson, Leo D, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, and Alec Baldwin. Impressive, non? The trailer came out a few days ago, it looks enjoyable enough, but will you allow me a quick word for my people? Because The Departed is based on what was then the highest grossing Hong Kong film of all time, a cinematic masterpiece called Infernal Affairs with a nearly unprecedented 95% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Infernal Affairs is classic Hong Kong theatrics. Clean, quick, elegant cinematography, too many bullets, great acting, and a tragic end. Sorry, but we don"t dig sweet finales. Inherently morbid - what can I say??? Understandably, the Chinese have great affection for this film. We own it, we are proud of it, we are aware of its place on the all time list. Which is why we"re not quite sure how much better it can get, to say nothing of our fear that even under the practised, measured hand of Scorcese, it will end up junk. Please let it not be junk. And please, if you intend to see The Departed, will you consider seeing Infernal Affairs first? Click here for The Departed trailer and one more thing - do NOT see any of the Infernal Affairs sequels. As adept as we are at crafting originals, we also somehow have a tendency to piss on their legacies.