Shutter Island

Leonardo DiCaprio, known for his ability to play complex lead roles, flawlessly tackles on the character of Teddy Daniels in the 2010 film Shutter Island. Directed by Martin Scorsese, the film takes on the gloomy and unpredictable fate of any classic film noir set in the 1950s. Two US Marshals, Daniels and Chuck Aule (Ben Affleck) head to a remote Shutter Island in search of psychiatric patient, Rachel Solando, who mysteriously vanishes from Ashecliffe Hospital, a prison-hospital complex for the criminally insane.  After setting foot on the island, Daniels is quick to spiral down his own rabbit hole, constantly questioning everything he experiences, including his own sanity. As he advances in solving this mystery, it becomes clear that he also has many faults within that he must now face. It is an eerily familiar reminder of the role DiCaprio played as Dom Cobb in the 2010 film Inception.

We first meet Teddy Daniels on the ferry to Shutter Island where a dark and dreary fog encompasses the ship and sets the mood. In a dimly lit bathroom, Daniels washes his face hoping to recollect himself as he murmurs to his reflection in the mirror, already establishing a sense of disorientation. His partner, Aule, awaits him at the top of the ship, curious about his ill feelings and more importantly, his past. At this point in the film, the audience encounters the first of many flashbacks, making Daniels a questionable and unconventional hero. Once they reach the island, the two men are stuck due to inclement weather, forcing them to make their stay at the hospital a less than temporary one. During their stay, they uncover the terrible secrets hidden in the Ashecliffe hospital, namely ‘Ward C’. Every encounter with the cold and unfriendly hospital staff adds to the overarching sense of doom. Daniels is tormented by flashbacks and memories of his deceased wife, which aid in disorienting the audience as well as demonstrating Daniels’ own personal disorientation. It soon becomes unclear as to whether he is present to do meaningful work or to cope with a problem from within. It becomes evident to the audience that this anti-hero is far from perfect. Battling with his own misfortunes, Daniels can be seen fighting numerous battles from the moment he speaks to himself in the mirror to the very end of the film.

This film uses important formal techniques to improve the overall experience and quality for the viewers. With an expert use of sound, editing and computer graphics, Scorsese is able to add multiple dimensions to the establish a complete and intact film. The soundtrack for Shutter Island is consistent with the theme and overall mood. The film features various classical scores that do not add or take away from the plot. Instead, the music provides emphasis on the sentiment felt by the audience. The grand booms and melancholic tones add another layer of emotions, stressing the tone being conveyed. After the film reaches its climax and Daniels begins to realize the truth, the music recedes from high tensions towards a slower conclusion, losing the musical momentum. The film also incorporates tremendous editing because all the scenes follow coherent order. The lighthouse located near the hospital in the film never really existed. Instead, a twenty foot tall base was built for the bottom half and the top half was generated with a computer. Various scenes of the film display the lighthouse but there were no glitches causing one to notice it as mock up.

Shutter Island is a film that definitely has the audience anxiously anticipating the next twist. As each scene presents the audience with new clues, there is a conscious attempt to place the pieces together in hopes of forming a clear picture before the film concludes. Flashbacks of Daniels’ dimly lit memories encapsulate the audience, further extending the gothic mood. His experiences in World War II seem to have resulted in post-traumatic stress disorder, causing him to lose touch with his surroundings. His experiences with constant flashbacks and misinterpretations prove that he lost some sense of reasoning along the way. These flashbacks serve to disrupt the narrative of the anti-hero, a characteristic of film noir. The viewers are all tasked with establishing a clear distinction between fact and fiction in an attempt to understand the events occurring before them. However, Daniels’ reality is monochrome and dullness is indicative of his uncertain fate. As the film comes to an end, many viewers are left feeling blindsided and upset with the abrupt shift in plot. Like Daniels, the audience also feel disoriented and unsure of what really occurred. Despite this, the film remains consistent in fulfilling the role of film noir, constantly adding key characteristics of such a movie genre. Ultimately, the brilliance of such a film must be attributed to the strategic choice of film noir style.