Film Review: Shutter Island (2010)

"Come on fuckos, let's go for a ride."

Shutter Island is the latest release from living legend Martin Scorsese. It's the best film he has made in a long time. I was a fan of The Departed...but, this one is a better film in almost every way. I felt like I was watching a movie made for the lover of film as an art. From the very opening of the film all the way to the satifying ending, you can tell that Shutter Island was crafted by a master of his trade.

"Get this through your head you Jew motherfucker, you. You only exist out here because of me."

Shutter Island has such a rich cast. Leonardo Dicaprio does his thing as U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels sent to investigate the disappearance of a murderess who is believed to have escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane and is supposedly hiding out somewhere on Shutter Island. I think Leo's definately mastered his New England accent since The Departed.

"... well, you can trust in me 'cause I'm the "Do-Right Man"."

Mark Ruffalo is always a great choice for a supporting costar. He plays Teddy's partner, Chuck.

"You punch like you take it up the ass."

Silver screen legends Max von Sydow and Ben Kingsley are brilliant as the doctors in the hospital known in the film as Ashcliffe Hospital. Michelle Williams and Elias "Jose Conseco bat" Koteas are both on board playing minor-but-important roles in the film. And shit, Jackie Earle Haley even shows up to the party to lend his manic acting chops to the most memorable bit part of the film. I really love this guy's acting ability...I whole heartedly hope that the Nightmare On Elm Street remake doesn't fuck up his career.

"You gotta have two things to win. You gotta have brains and you gotta have balls. Now, you got too much of one and not enough of the other."

This is basically a psychological thriller mystery directed by one of the masters of our time. It's so much fun to watch. To say anymore would give away important plot elements of the film and spoil the good time. I actually figured it out midway through and am pretty confident you will, too. However, the very end kind of took me by surprise and wrapped everything up in a very fulfilling way for me.

"Have you ever seen what a .44 Magnum will do to a woman's pussy?"

I recommend this film strictly for those that enjoy an old-fashioned rich and rewarding cinematic experience. See it in the theater. It's not a horror by any stretch of the imagination as the trailers would lead you to believe, but you'll get something much more satisfying than something Lionsgate might put out. You'll get scenes that are much more horrific than anything Eli Roth might throw at you. You'll get something much more memorable than anything in 3D. You'll walk out of the theater wondering why more films are not made like this. And you'll thank the Lord above that Martin Scorsese is still alive and making bad ass films.

"You ain't bad, you ain't nothing. You ain't nothing!"

Solid 9 out of 10....I loved this movie.

                                

Thanks for reading,

bryan.