So with that out of the way, let's talk about Shutter Island.
We decided to go see this movie after viewing one trailer online. We both agreed that it looked like a fun, scary movie. Knowing little more than the trailer and that it was based on a book, we set off to see the movie the second night it was open.
Shutter Island is about a pair of Federal Marshals in the 1950s who go to a mental institution for the criminally insane in search of a patient who has vanished. The institution is on an island with only one way on or off - a ferry. Edward Daniels (Dicaprio) has a problem with water and we quickly learn of a tragedy in his past. His wife died in a fire in their apartment. The two Marshals are met with odd restrictions and resistance from the staff at the institution and quickly become trapped on the island due to a hurricane. The mystery deepens as we learn that Daniels has an a secret motive behind working this case and that all is not as it seems on Shutter Island... including a twist at the end of the movie.
There is some great acting in this movie. Dicaprio does a good job, though his character is so hard-boiled that there isn't much emotional range needed. When emotion is called for, however, Dicaprio does deliver. Further, Ben Kingsley does an excellent job as Dr. Cowley, the doctor in charge of the institution. You get a genuine sense that Cowley wants to help his patients with a more humane series of treatments than most psychiatric facilities provide during the time period. Even when I suspected that Cowley might be a nefarious genius behind diabolical experiments I STILL wanted him to be a good guy. Mark Ruffalo, on the other hand, comes off flat. At the end of the movie I had a hard time believing that his character was qualified for his job. (Yes I'm aware that my statement is vague, but I don't want to spoil anything.)
The visual quality of the movie is fantastic. There were no scenes in which I had any problems seeing what was going on because of lighting issues. The sets were well-designed, especially for the flashback scenes at the Dachau concentration camp.
The only production element I took issue with was the sound, though this might have been a problem with the theater's sound equipment. At one point there is a gun shot in the movie. The scene is meant to be suspenseful, and the gun shot is meant to make the audience jump - except that it can't because we're expecting it. I jumped anyway because the gun shot was so much louder than what I expected. I actually suspect that this was done intentionally - the director knew we weren't going to be shocked by a simple gun shot, so he increased the volume so we'd jump because our ear drums hurt so much.
Shutter Island was not a scary movie - the trailers are completely off. It isn't even really suspenseful. At no time did I worry about Daniels' life, and I'd figured out a lot of the plot elements before the real climax of the movie. The reality of the big twist threw me for a loop though, but not in a way that I appreciated because it failed to finish off what I had felt was a great movie. The story I had been enjoying was gone, replaced with... well, something else.
Don't get me wrong, I may not have liked the ending, but I don't regret having seen the movie. Further, the movie has gotten me interested in reading the book (purchased my copy today), and what better result can a movie inspired by a book have than to interest a viewer in reading the book?
If you haven't seen this movie, you should consider checking it out with no expectations of being scared. If you're a mystery fan there's a good chance you'll have a different reaction than I did. Lisa loved Shutter Island. If I actually had a rating system for movies, I'd give this a solid three Demented Ramblings out of five.
End of Demented Rambling.
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