Shutter Island (2010)

Drama set in 1954, U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels is investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane and is presumed to be hiding nearby.

Director:

Martin Scorsese

Writers:

Laeta Kalogridis (screenplay), Dennis Lehane (novel)

Stars:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley

Top 250 #233 | 4 wins & 27 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Teddy Daniels
Mark Ruffalo	...	Chuck Aule
Ben Kingsley	...	Dr. Cawley
Max von Sydow	...	Dr. Naehring (as Max Von Sydow)
Michelle Williams	...	Dolores
Emily Mortimer	...	Rachel 1
Patricia Clarkson	...	Rachel 2
Jackie Earle Haley	...	George Noyce
Ted Levine	...	Warden
John Carroll Lynch	...	Deputy Warden McPherson
Elias Koteas	...	Laeddis
Robin Bartlett	...	Bridget Kearns
Christopher Denham	...	Peter Breene
Nellie Sciutto	...	Nurse Marino
Joseph Sikora	...	Glen Miga (as Joe Sikora)

Storyline

It's 1954, and up-and-coming U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels is assigned to investigate the disappearance of a patient from Boston's Shutter Island Ashecliffe Hospital. He's been pushing for an assignment on the island for personal reasons, but before long he wonders whether he hasn't been brought there as part of a twisted plot by hospital doctors whose radical treatments range from unethical to illegal to downright sinister. Teddy's shrewd investigating skills soon provide a promising lead, but the hospital refuses him access to records he suspects would break the case wide open. As a hurricane cuts off communication with the mainland, more dangerous criminals "escape" in the confusion, and the puzzling, improbable clues multiply, Teddy begins to doubt everything - his memory, his partner, even his own sanity.

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Plot Keywords:

island | disappearance | partner | criminally insane | u.s. marshal | 

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Taglines:

Someone is missing.

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for disturbing violent content, language and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [France] Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

19 February 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ashecliffe

Filming Locations:

Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$80,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£2,250,178 (UK) (12 March 2010)

Gross:

$127,968,405 (USA) (4 June 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Phoenix Pictures, Sikelia Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

138 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film opened with a $41 million weekend, Martin Scorsese's best figures and (up until the release of Inception later that same year), Leonardo DiCaprio's.

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Goofs

When Teddy and Chuck are on the cliff, Chuck reaches in his shirt pocket. From the opposite view, Chuck's hands at his side, and reaches into his shirt pocket again.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Teddy Daniels: Pull yourself together, Teddy. Pull yourself together.

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Connections

Featured in Scream Awards 2010 (2010)

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Soundtracks

"WHEEL OF FORTUNE"
(1952)
Written by 'Bennie Benjamin' & George David Weiss
Performed by Kay Starr
Courtesy of Capitol Records
Under License from EMI Film & Television Music

User Reviews

Don't miss this one - review from a skeptic.

From the look of the trailer, Martin Scorsese's "Shutter Island" looks more like a horror film… This is a dangerous place where isolation rules under fascist control. A U.S Marshall is sent to an asylum to investigate a missing patient but discovers so much more. A demon? A ghost? Something more? Is this going to be as disappointing as I think it is?

I was skeptical walking into the theater, wondering if this twist could hold water. The film starts with Teddy Daniels and his new partner, Chuck, standing on a ferry. They talk about their assignment. What's suspect here is that there is no additional development. We are bam, smack right into the story without so much as an opening montage. All that we see is the men smoking a couple cigarettes. Though this is what begins as momentous development. As our hero smokes we that this isn't the glorified top lit smoking of a beauty or that of a sophisticated and confident gangster. We see that this is a harsher character with poor posture, someone who doesn't sleep well, someone with a deep past…

They are greeted at the gate by guards whose attitudes' seem immediately suspect. Soon we meet Dr Crawley, a seemingly complex and modern man who runs the asylum. However, he soon turns uncooperative with the investigation. Inmates and staff are hiding something but what? Everyone here seems off. Evidence and clues begin to appear but not before our hero seems riddled by psychosis himself. "You act like all this madness is contagious." Daniels says to the guard. Is it? Soon we begin to wonder, too, but not before he uncovers the tip of the iceberg and it's not only painfully intimate with his own past but also a mass conspiracy. The Nazis had concentration camps and the Americans have Shutter Island.

Though, it doesn't stop here, but to say anything else would do the story injustice… Kingsley is in his finest role in years. Similarly, DiCaprio reaches new levels. Amongst others Elias Koteas, Ted Levine, Michelle Williams, all play small but wonderful roles. Robert Richardson captures a world all of its own.

While Scorsese is a master of film I'd say that his specialty has been more character than story. This is a fresh balance of both. It's a mix of noir and thriller. It's only sort of a horror movie and could be compared to "The Shining" but it makes it look like it's a one trick pony.

All this praise being said it's not for everyone. The story is complex. It takes some attention. At times it's a bit bleak and dire. Of course it all makes a little less sense when you actually think about it but then again that's film. There are a couple of moments where the story gets lost within itself. Things become a bit too complicated. At this point you might begin to lose faith in its viscosity, but don't worry because the story has you right where its put you.