Director Martin Scorsese and actor Leonardo DiCaprio are together again in this movie adaptation of Dennis Lehane's thriller, Shutter Island.
DiCaprio plays U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels, who with his new partner, Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from Ashecliffe, a hospital for the criminally insane located on an island off the coast of Massachusetts. Daniels pursued this case for personal reasons, but it soon looks like he may have been brought there by the powers that be who wish to hide the unethical and illegal happenings at Ashecliffe, which include some controversial treatments by Dr. Cawley (Ben Kingsley). It appears the entire staff of the hospital might be involved in what is going on at Ashecliffe, and they don't make Teddy's investigation very easy.
When a hurricane strikes the island, cutting them off from the mainland, some of the most dangerous criminals escape in the confusion. As Teddy uncovers more clues, he begins to doubt everything he knows, even his own sanity.
My husband and I went to see Shutter Island in the theater on opening weekend. We had a choice between this movie and The Book of Eli starring Denzel Washington, but I wasn't in the mood for a post-apocalyptic movie, so we opted for the former. Now I wish I had given The Book of Eli a shot.
I have never read the novel, so I didn't know much about Shutter Island going in. This is definitely a movie that you need to pay attention to or you might get lost. DiCaprio has said in interviews that viewers need to see the movie a few times to pick up on everything--I'm just not willing to spend the money to do that considering the husband and I were left a bit disappointed.
This is definitely not one I would consider bringing kids under 13 to see considering the violent and graphic nature of Teddy's dreams and visions. Speaking of dreams and visions, Michelle Williams (Dawson's Creek, Brokeback Mountain) gives an excellent performance as Teddy's deceased wife Dolores, who appears to him throughout the movie.
While I not a huge fan of DiCaprio, he provided a good portrayal of Teddy Daniels. The viewer sympathized with the reasons he pushed for the assignment at Ashecliffe, despite the outcome. The bigger style of clothes from 1954 didn't wear well on DiCaprio's slender frame. And while Teddy Daniels was supposed to be from Boston, his accent wasn't quite as convincing as this viewer, who has lived in Massachusetts her entire life, would have wanted.
The ending was perhaps the greatest disapointment, since both my husband and I felt it could be interpreted one of two ways. I'm not fond of uncertainties in movie endings, and just like Fatal Attraction's final scene, I was left wanting to know for sure that my opinions on what it meant to the movie as a whole were accurate.
A friend of mine who has read Lehane's novel said that the movie follows the book well, but that you definitely know for sure by the end of the book exactly what happened. I just might try to get my hands on a copy from my library to see what I think about the movie versus the book.
My husband and I walked away feeling a little short changed after spending $21.00 to see Shutter Island, but despite the fact that the movie's second weekend saw a 50% drop, it still beat new releases Cop Out and The Crazies to take the top spot.
It's a good plot, but I just didn't come away with the satisfied feeling of having watched a great movie.
Director: Martin Scorsese
Writers (WGA):Laeta Kalogridis (screenplay)
Dennis Lehane (novel)
Rated R for disturbing violent content, language and some nudity.
Runtime: 138 min
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