Set in 1954, Shutter Island is a psychological thriller. Teddy Daniels, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, is a US Marshal investigating the disappearance of a murderess who escaped from the hospital for the criminally insane located on Shutter Island. Teddy pushed for this assignment in the hopes of finding the man who murdered his wife. Upon his arrival Teddy begins to discover that all is not well on the island. He discovers that the whole hospital is being used by the government to conduct mind altering experiments to create super spies and soldiers. The closer he gets to the truth, the closer he gets to a truth that he may not want to realize.
Leonardo DiCaprio's performance in this film continues to show why he is one of the best actors of this generation. You feel for him greatly. You are pulling for him to uncover the truth. After a string of poor movie choices, it is nice to see Ben Kingsley remind us all what a great actor he is. As Dr. John Cawley, Kingsley proved just that. Mark Ruffalo and Michelle Williams also lend strong performances to this film as well.
Shutter Island was made with great care. The setting is spot on. It feels like a mental hospital with something to hide. Each room expertly crafted to show a place in 1950's America where anything may be possible. The films run time is 2 hours and 18 minutes and there lies my only real issue with the film. Some scenes either drag on too long while others don’t seem necessary to the plot. If this was even just under 2 hours it very well may have been a better film. Even so, Shutter Island is a very good film with a twist you won't see coming.
My Rating 4 out of 5
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