Yesterday morning, when I woke, I decided I was not going to go to class. I chose to see the new Scorsese film "Shutter Island". I had been looking forward to this movie ever since last fall. I am a huge fan of Scorsese's work and I've loved mystery films since I was a child. The film was suppose to come last Christmas but was delayed due to some release window issues. I was vey dissapointed but I convinced myself it was all for the better. So, with all that said, did "Shutter Island" live up to it's hype and would I regret my decision of skipping class?
I felt "Shutter Island" was a great film. It reminded me of the old mystery films I use to watch with my mom when I was a child. "Shutter Island" is not the non-stop horrorfest that the trailer makes it out to be. The film definitely has it's thrills but the pacing is not as fast as you would expect. If you have seen the trailer, then you have an idea of where the film is going.Eventhough the marketing gives away some huge plot points, it does not detract from your enjoyment of the film. The story does a good job of keeping the viewer guessing the entire time. It may seem that there are entirely too many red herrings throughout the movie but by the end everything makes sense.
While Scorsese's style is not as pronounced as it is in his other films, it is visible. The audience gets a few freeze frames, white lighting, and quick whips. There are some dream sequences in the film that are done really well. Directorially, I wouldn't rank this as high as some of his other films, like "The Departed" or "Gangs of New York", but it's a worthy entry to his filmography. T
As with any Scorses film, the acting is top notch. DiCaprio is very good in the film. The only thing that was kind of distracting was his accent. His character's bostonian accent comes and goes especially in scenes that require yelling. It's nothing too bad but it is noticeable. Ben Kingsley is very, very good in this film. In my opinion, he had the best performance in the film, which is saying alot because Kingsley is very hit or miss. The film is cast very well.
Two other items worth mentioning are the film score and the cinematography. The score and cinematography a perfect fit for this film. The cinematography provides a sense of dread and gloom to every scene. Even scenes that are in bright daylight feel creepier than they actually are. The score works equally well. Everytime the music kicked in, I would get goosebumps.
While I enjoyed "Shutter Island", there were some problems that are present in the film. As I stated above, I did have a problem with DiCaprio's accent. I felt there was an issue with the pacing. The first and third act of the film are very strong and have a very well paced but there are a few scenes in the middle that kind of just lull for awhile. For instance, there is a scene where the two main characters are running through a graveyard. This scene doesn't really add anything to the plot and sort of drags on for awhile. Scenes like this really interupted the pacing of the film and definetly weakened the impact of the subsequent scene.
Final Verdict: "Shutter Island" is a great cerebral mind bender. I would give it a solid A-.
- "Don't you get it? You're a rat in a maze."
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