Shutter Island Review

Shutter Island is the newest near masterpiece film brought to us by Martin Scorsese, following up the 2006 release of The Departed. This psychological/thriller film is based off the 2003 novel of the same title. Originally due out in the fall of 2009, it was delayed into the new year for "economic" reasons. How do you follow up with such a great movie as the Departed? By crafting something equally good, I suppose. Scorsese proves himself again with this movie showing why he really is one of the best directors of all time.

I needed a full day to fully digest this movie. The plot of Shutter Island is pretty big, and it is pretty hard to openly discuss without ruining anything in the movie. Taking place in the mid 1950's, U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels (played by Leonardo DiCaprio, his best role since The Departed, more on that later) is joined by his newly assigned partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) to discover the whereabouts of a recently escaped mental patient. When they arrive at Shutter Island however, they find out that in this prison/hospital for the mentally unstable, there are quite a few secrets to be uncovered. The staff does not cooperate with the investigation at all perpetuated by Dr. John Cawley (Ben Kinglsey) and they must rely upon the patients to get information they can use. Teddy thinks if he can uncover all the secrets of this island, this will be his big break and a big chance for him. The plot that is uncovered is psychologically distressing to both Marshal Daniels and yourself as the viewer, as it is an excellently well crafted piece.

Other than the above, I really can't go into the plot as it would go into spoiler territory. There are far too many interesting plot points to ruin for anyone. Unfortunately for myself, I knew the big "game-changing" moment of the movie before going in to see it. The Internet nowadays is not a safe place folks. Rumors and spoilers are all over the place just waiting for the next unsuspecting person. That being said, I tried to look at the movie from a different angle going in, which can be fun as well. This film is so well done however, I could not put my finger on anything until the very end, when everything is laid out on the table for us. At the end, I was very satisfied with the overall story, only having very minor complaints that are not even worth mentioning.

The acting in this movie is stellar. At any given time, you really feel like you're right there with them. This film really does a good job at sucking you in, and I believe part of the reason is because of the superb abilities of DiCaprio and company. Over the years, DiCaprio has slowly become one of my favorite actors. Back when I saw Titanic, I really though he was going to be one of those fad actors, only popular for a few years because of his handsome boyish look. Was I ever wrong. He proves himself movie after movie. The film that really showcased his talent for me was The Departed. After seeing that movie, I've made it a point to see some of his other films that I missed because I didn't think much of him. This movie is no exception. At many of Marshal Daniels points in this movie, you can feel like you can relate to him if such a thing were to ever happen to you. It really goes to show you when you put in so much effort it pays off, as you are really engrossed in the movie and care for it's characters.

The rest of the acting is right up there along with DiCaprio's. Mark Ruffalo plays the sidekick kind of role, and he pretty much nails it. Not knowing too much while you suspectingly have your own questions about his motive. Michelle Williams also stars in this movie as Officer Marshal's wife. I have to honestly say, I have not seen Michelle Williams in all too many films, and know her pretty much because of Dawson's Creek, but she did a very fine job. We don't know the reason for her appearances on the island, but when we find everything out, just wow is all I can say. I give her an A+ to be able to play such a convincing "housewife". Ben Kingsley does a great job as always, I can't really say too much about his role other than questioning him the whole time, which is the point I suppose. Lastly, Jackie Earl Haley (known for playing Rorschach in Watchmen most recently) is also in the film. He plays his usual psychotic role that he is used to playing now. I really hope he doesn't get typecast in future movies, as he is a very good actor, but he plays such a great sociopath/nutjob that I really don't mind. Overall the acting in this movie is one of the many high points of the film.

The filming and locations in Shutter Island are done in such a way to further make you feel like you're locked in a prison. There are many closeups, and behind the back views. Walks down long corridors, and climbing down cliffs are shot at just the right angles, to give you a sense of dread at times. There are a couple of scenes that do drag on a bit, such as aforementioned walks down long corridors, but overall a fine job for a Scorsese movie. The soundtrack to me was not too memorable, but the score had a very creepy feeling emanating from it. There is one main "theme" that is repeated in the movie at particularly intense scenes, and you are always expecting something big to happen at that moment. Other pieces of the film remind me of the earlier Silent Hill game series. Not exactly music, but sometimes just noise. It does it's job. For a good portion of this movie I was very tense, partly because of the music.

There are not too many things I can complain about in Shutter Island. The movie has a near perfect pace, not giving you too much information at one time. One small thing is some scenes could have been a bit shorter, and even though I knew the big plot points of the movie, most people can probably figure things out if they've got half a brain. Like I said earlier though, don't fully expect to know what's going on until the very end. You're hit like a train then. In a good way. The last 15-20 minutes of the film were some of the best scenes I've seen in film for many years. Leonardo DiCaprio's performance especially.

I recommend seeing this 100% if you're looking for a good psychological movie that will keep you guessing throughout it's entirety, or if you are tired of the same boring plots. Compared from the The Wolfman last week, Shutter Island is a breath of fresh air after escaping from a mental institution.

Out of 5 stars, I give it a 4. Definitely give it a shot!