Writing Character-Jack Nicholson Scene As Frank Costello

Building Character Doesn’t Have to Take All Day

In the first 4 minutes of “The Departed”, you find out all you need to know about Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson, “The Bucket List”) to know him, and what kind of person he is.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4nUFxsZqpA]

His first line, intoned in voiceover is, “I don’t want to be a product of my environment, I want my environment to be a product of me.”

With this line he establishes himself as a self-starter, and also dismisses the notion a dispriviledged background is the cause of his criminality, he owns it.

A few lines later, he says, “Twenty years after an Irishman couldn’t get a fucking job, we had the presidency, may he rest in peace. That’s what the niggas don’t realize. If I got one things against the black chappies, it’s this: nobody gives it to you, you have to take it.”

This establishes him as a racist and an Irishman, and reinforces his self-starter mentality (“You have to take it”).

We then see Costello visit a small grocery store to collect what seems to be protection money.

He says “Don’t make me come down here for this.” This suggests his high position, that this is below his criminal rank.

He tells te shopkeeper’s young daughter, “You get your period yet, Carmen?”. The sexual implication of this line suggests Costello is a sexual deviant.

He then bribes little Johnny Sullivan with food and comic books into joining his ranks, further demonstrating his lack of moral scruples.

Shortly thereafter we do witness Costello kill someone, but afterward he says, “She fell funny.” and laughs.

The dark humor here shows Costello is removed from any moral feeling towards this action.

So what have we learned in 4 minutes?

• He’s a self-starter
• He’s racist
• He’s Irish
• He may be a sexual deviant
• He is high up in his criminal organization
• He is not bound by normal morality

In 4 minutes we know Frank Costello REALLY well. We know a lot about him, his personality, the way others respond to him.

The choices are sometimes subtle (“You get your period” as opposed to a more overt sexual advance) and sometimes unexpected (“She fell funny”).

This is a great example of character development for writers to look to for inspiration.