Martin Scorsese can’t seem to get enough of Leonardo DiCaprio. While I used to be among the skeptics of this collaboration, after watching their fourth film together, I can see how beneficial it has been for them (more so for DiCaprio – which he has admitted effortlessly in interviews). This is especially the case with their latest venture, Shutter Island – a notable departure in both genre and story from their previous partnerships.
When the musical notes start to roll under the Paramount Pictures logo from frame one (all the music in this film is selected from other soundtracks from older films from the 50s – which comprises one of the most outrageously beautiful soundtracks ever done on screen), you are engrossed in an experience. DiCaprio plays Teddy Daniels, a shady, edgy U.S. Marshall, who with a new partner from Seattle (Ruffalo), is set to investigate the disappearance of the Island’s 66th patient, Rachel Solando. But when they get to the island, things are not quite as they may seem. As Daniels picks up clues and learns information from other patients, he realizes that there is definitely more than he is being told, a grand scheme that goes beyond the walls.
Ben Kingsley is the “evil” doctor who runs this rancid facility, and he plays this role to ultimate perfection.
Had the film been released in November or December for Oscar season, Kingsley would have given Christoph Waltz a little more of a challenge in the Awards race.
Scorsese, in collaboration with extraordinaire cinematographer Robert Richardson, shoots this mental hospital as the creepiest building in film since the Bates Motel.
As expected with a team of this caliber, the production value is perfect. The set design, costumes, staging and every aspect of mise-en-scene evoke the lugubrious feel from the viewer. It allows the film to unfold like a haunted house on two legs. Part of Scorsese’s genius in telling this story is his ability to make the viewer not know which side to take and who to believe, as here we have the largest case of unreliable narrator we have ever seen. Mixed in with the real-time scenes are dream sequences which are shot so exquisitely with elaborate and lucid detail, evoking emotions of tragedy, fear, grief elevating this film beyond the typical horror flick or psychological thriller.
DiCaprio takes on the most emotionally and physically demanding performance of his career. His character is reminiscent of many film noir archetypes, such as Robert Mitchum in Out of the Past. DiCaprio finds the darkness and insanities to his character, and is so convincing because he completely immerses himself into the role, conveying the uneasiness and monstrous qualities of Teddy Daniels – he is no longer the pretty boy we saw in Titanic or even to some extent, his later films. Here, he is completely gone, insane, whacked and different. The rest of the cast that DiCaprio encounters (Emily Mortimer, Michelle Williams, Jackie Earle Haley, Max Von Sydow) is also universally excellent.
Shutter Island is a masterpiece with a few flaws. Occasionally, the film reaches beyond its grasp, but it does so with gleefully unapologetic scares and thrills. It is not a perfect film like some of Scorsese’s earlier works like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, or Goodfellas, but it is an interesting/intriguing entry in this legend’s comprehensive body of work.
Some critics have complained that the film does not build up enough suspense. What these people don’t realize is that the movie has no intention of doing this because that purpose does not exist here. Yes, it draws upon Hitchock as one of its many resourceful influences, but no, it is not necessarily suspenseful as it is dramatic. It is a mystery that at times is redolent of The Twilight Zone.
The film builds itself up to this climax of incredible dramatic power, and as you have probably heard by now or at least already expected, there is a twist ending. And the conclusion is so dark, deep, dramatic and profound, yet understated and nuanced to ultimate cinematic perfection.
Unfortunately, I do not see the film getting the success it deserves. Probably, it will churn a profit, but as far as critical acclaim and awards go – I have doubts. Paramount Pictures did not believe enough in the movie to spend the necessary amount of money to market it correctly. Paramount Exec Brad Grey blamed the economic downturn for the film’s constantly delayed release. And this movie, as a blend between a film noir, psychological thriller, and a horror to a small extent, has been stupidly marketed as an empty horror film, which in essence it isn’t.
Many other critics have compared Shutter Island to one of Scorsese’s other ventures, Cape Fear back in 1992 – but this film’s story and character development is far more complex and innovative. It is not a horror thriller, it is a psychological experiment. The protagonist is a rat in a maze, a bull in a china shop, an uncontrollable monster wreaking havoc all over the place like Frankenstein, except this character welcomes the audience to come along on this creepy journey with him.
On a Connecticut College Camel Rating Scale, out of a possible four, I’m going to give Shutter Island 3.5 Camels.
