The usually brilliant Martin Scorsese takes a turn to directing a psychological horror film. Two United States Marshals travel to an island off the east coast of the United States that reminded me of a cross between Alcatraz and an asylum. The film is very moody and the plot is twisty and supremely melodramatic, though few of the twists seem like new ideas. Real fans of the genre might be forgiven if they claim to have seen this before, but seldom seen in such masterful hands. Laeta Kalogridis wrote the screenplay based on a novel by Dennis Lehane.
The story goes something like this: A crazy lady has gone missing from a supposedly inescapable medical facility, and it falls to U.S. marshals Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo) to treck to the outrageously creepy Shutter Island and figure out what’s going on. To tell you more would be to ruin this movie, but let’s just say things get creepy quickly so you might be at the edge of your seat more than once.
This is not the reinvention of the psychological thriller, but I do know the film is clear evidence of Martin Scorsese a true master filmmaker this time around having real fun with a classic genre. Add to that the excellent acting from DiCaprio and the whole cast and you get a smart, sharp, and classy chiller, Shutter Island is top notch entertainment.