Shutter Island

[Doctor Jones]

This movie brought in $14 million yesterday.

 

[Solidus]

I give the film a 90%. I was going to give it an 88% but I dunno the more I think about the movie the more I really was amazed *not surprised* that Martin did it again. Making you think after you left the theater. Though I agree not his best, but not his worst either.

I am confused to the mixed reviews as well. To me it was the best movie so far this year.

 

[TEDDY]

Great, great movie.

Did I see the final twist coming? From a mile away. Maybe two.

But it was still a good movie. The twists and reveals were so well done that I ended up second guessing my original hypothesis. The acting was terrific from everyone, particularly Sir Ben Kingsley playing the head of the asylum who is just a tad bit too upbeat for someone who has to watch after psychos all day.

Thumbs up! Definitely not a bad film from Scorsese.(Now that I think about it, has Scorsese ever directed a terrible movie?) It's not his best film, but it's still worthy of his name.

 

[Solidus]

See I don't think the "ending" suppose to be a "twist". I will give Martin more props then that. To me the "twist" was suppose to be seen a mile away. I saw it before I even saw the movie. But that was not the point. I think the point was:

Spoiler

You are suppose to feel for Teddy/Andrew, and in a sense I felt like him. At the beginning of the movie the very first few scenes I already knew that he might be a mental patient. It clearly was stated by the doctors and you could tell it so easily. Yet, later there is a part of you thinking maybe that is not the twist. Maybe it is something more. And while you watch the movie you keep wanting it to be something else. Then that is when I understood the movie at the end. You truly almost become the main character, and you don't want him to be the "clear" mental patient that he is. You are worried that he will be insane and the twist will be what you predicted it to be.

So I just felt that it really pulled you in, in another way, it was not suppose to be a twist but a tool to want to be sane. You are hoping the whole time that those crazy conspiracies are right, and not the simple truth you probably came to a conclusion of early on. So in a sense you don't want to be insane either. The movie really talks alot about insanity, and when he is talking to Rachel it is quite interesting in their conversation. That doctors work backwards, find the person is crazy then go back in their past and find the reason. The sad fact of it is, we are all insane, because we all have something "tragic" in our lives that some one could easily connect to you being "insane".

Additionally even though its not like this in the book from what I've heard. But that final shot of the "lighthouse" kinda makes me wonder....maybe the conspiracy was right, and he was not insane. To me that is the point of the movie, aren't we all insane? But yea I loved the film. The more I think about it the more I loved it.

 

[SuperJediHero]

God there are some people I know hated the movie thought it's very bad .. LOL

 

[Figs]

But, the ending was fine as is to me but I think that extra twist would have really made the movie fantastic.

I did have a question though, when he was talking to Mark Ruffalo at the end, he says [blackout]"Is it better to die a hero than to live a monster?"[/blackout] Was that him [blackout]faking that he had regressed so that he would be killed[/blackout]? It just seemed that way to me.

Good movie, very smart. 9/10

As I mention in my response to Solidus that's how I feel on the ending.

Spoiler

That he was cured and decided to fake it that he had regressed just so he wouldn't have to live with those horrible memories of the truth.

See I don't think the "ending" suppose to be a "twist". I will give Martin more props then that. To me the "twist" was suppose to be seen a mile away. I saw it before I even saw the movie. But that was not the point. I think the point was:

Spoiler

You are suppose to feel for Teddy/Andrew, and in a sense I felt like him. At the beginning of the movie the very first few scenes I already knew that he might be a mental patient. It clearly was stated by the doctors and you could tell it so easily. Yet, later there is a part of you thinking maybe that is not the twist. Maybe it is something more. And while you watch the movie you keep wanting it to be something else. Then that is when I understood the movie at the end. You truly almost become the main character, and you don't want him to be the "clear" mental patient that he is. You are worried that he will be insane and the twist will be what you predicted it to be.

So I just felt that it really pulled you in, in another way, it was not suppose to be a twist but a tool to want to be sane. You are hoping the whole time that those crazy conspiracies are right, and not the simple truth you probably came to a conclusion of early on. So in a sense you don't want to be insane either. The movie really talks alot about insanity, and when he is talking to Rachel it is quite interesting in their conversation. That doctors work backwards, find the person is crazy then go back in their past and find the reason. The sad fact of it is, we are all insane, because we all have something "tragic" in our lives that some one could easily connect to you being "insane".

Additionally even though its not like this in the book from what I've heard. But that final shot of the "lighthouse" kinda makes me wonder....maybe the conspiracy was right, and he was not insane. To me that is the point of the movie, aren't we all insane? But yea I loved the film. The more I think about it the more I loved it.

Just saw this film and my gf and I just finished having a discussion about that very thing.

Spoiler

I think he was insane from the beginning and as Kingsley said, that he was continuously living a loop in his mind. My gf thinks he was sent their by his superiors because he was asking around too much like he said he was and that they sent him there to get drugged and forgotten so the "conspiracy" wouldn't leak to the American people. Primarily because that would look really bad for that to happen within the same country that was fighting the Nazis who were doing similar tests on the Jews.

I think he was insane from the start and by piecing the film and events that happened that's where I stand. Think about the very first scene on the boat, he can't find his cigarettes and "Chuck" gives him one of his. As a "dangerous" mental patient they would never give him his own cigarettes. Unless he was being watched, which he was, by Mark Ruffalo. Another thing is, he wouldn't have started getting drugged(if it really was a conspiracy) until he got the island, or taking that first cigarette from Ruffalo. Before he took that cigarette he was throwing up because of the water and mentions it to Ruffalo. I think that was because in his subconcious it affected him due to his kids being drowned.

I would need to see the film again but I thinking back on everything I personally believe there was more evidence to show that what Kingsley was telling him at the end was the truth and that he's been there for 2 years.

Another point my gf had about

Spoiler

the conspiracy

is, that would be a good twist since we both agreed it was fairly obvious from the trailers that

Spoiler

he was most likely the "missing" patient

Only obvious in the sense that when you've seen a number of these type of films, that's a how a number of the twists end.

 

[Solidus]

As I mention in my response to Solidus that's how I feel on the ending.

Spoiler

That he was cured and decided to fake it that he had regressed just so he wouldn't have to live with those horrible memories of the truth.

Just saw this film and my gf and I just finished having a discussion about that very thing.

Spoiler

I think he was insane from the beginning and as Kingsley said, that he was continuously living a loop in his mind. My gf thinks he was sent their by his superiors because he was asking around too much like he said he was and that they sent him there to get drugged and forgotten so the "conspiracy" wouldn't leak to the American people. Primarily because that would look really bad for that to happen within the same country that was fighting the Nazis who were doing similar tests on the Jews.

I think he was insane from the start and by piecing the film and events that happened that's where I stand. Think about the very first scene on the boat, he can't find his cigarettes and "Chuck" gives him one of his. As a "dangerous" mental patient they would never give him his own cigarettes. Unless he was being watched, which he was, by Mark Ruffalo. Another thing is, he wouldn't have started getting drugged(if it really was a conspiracy) until he got the island, or taking that first cigarette from Ruffalo. Before he took that cigarette he was throwing up because of the water and mentions it to Ruffalo. I think that was because in his subconcious it affected him due to his kids being drowned.

I would need to see the film again but I thinking back on everything I personally believe there was more evidence to show that what Kingsley was telling him at the end was the truth and that he's been there for 2 years.

Another point my gf had about

Spoiler

the conspiracy

is, that would be a good twist since we both agreed it was fairly obvious from the trailers that

Spoiler

he was most likely the "missing" patient

Only obvious in the sense that when you've seen a number of these type of films, that's a how a number of the twists end.

Yea I really loved this film, its layers are quite dense. And there are many theories that will always come out of it.

Of course any movie with "sanity/insanity" that is done well should make you think.

Spoiler

I like to look at it in multiple ways. A part of me thinks maybe the conspiracy is true. But at the same time, he very well may be insane. But interestingly enough the woman that talked with Teddy when he was looking for Rachel she wrote "Run" on his book. To me that is interesting, but I will definitely buy this on blu and try to soak more of it up. But good point about him stating to Chuck that he hates water, "too much of it".

EDIT: Additionally to me the "wanting" of the conspiracy theory to be true is the idea of sanity, wanting to be sane in such an insane world. Yet the clear "he's a patient" idea is kinda more of the obvious reality that Teddy does live in, he just does not want it to be true, just as the audience does not. But to me the ending could hint at both.

Made me want to play the original Resident Evil again too The environment was amazing.

 

[Figs]

Yea I really loved this film, its layers are quite dense. And there are many theories that will always come out of it.

Of course any movie with "sanity/insanity" that is done well should make you think.

Spoiler

I like to look at it in multiple ways. A part of me thinks maybe the conspiracy is true. But at the same time, he very well may be insane. But interestingly enough the woman that talked with Teddy when he was looking for Rachel she wrote "Run" on his book. To me that is interesting, but I will definitely buy this on blu and try to soak more of it up. But good point about him stating to Chuck that he hates water, "too much of it".

EDIT: Additionally to me the "wanting" of the conspiracy theory to be true is the idea of sanity, wanting to be sane in such an insane world. Yet the clear "he's a patient" idea is kinda more of the obvious reality that Teddy does live in, he just does not want it to be true, just as the audience does not. But to me the ending could hint at both.

Made me want to play the original Resident Evil again too The environment was amazing.

Yeah, when she

Spoiler

wrote run on his notebook, that was another clue that he might have been sane and it was a conspiracy and she was telling him to get out while he still could.

Same here but it actually reminded me of Silent Hill a lot too.

 

[Solidus]

Yeah, when she

Spoiler

wrote run on his notebook, that was another clue that he might have been sane and it was a conspiracy and she was telling him to get out while he still could.

Same here but it actually reminded me of Silent Hill a lot too.

Oh yea it had a Silent Hill thing going as well with out a doubt. I still have the first two, maybe I'll play them as well.

 

[Spider-Fan]

God there are some people I know hated the movie thought it's very bad .. LOL

My dad thought the trailer for this was bad, and I will say this is not a film for everyone. It goes places some people might be afraid of, and if you're an action man like my dad is, this film is too weird.

 

[bullets]

I thought it was great and although it was a little different than i was expecting the twist does leave you to ponder some things and it's not osmething they pulled out of a hat because it fits every moment.

 

[Dark Victory]

Geez. It seems everyone liked the movie. It makes the mixed reviews even more baffling.

Actually, my crowd seemed to hate the film. People were talking throughout, I heard a few smack their lips when they revealed the "twist", etc.

 

[LegendaryCaleb]

Everyone hated it as we left the theater but I walked out with a boyish grin...love love loved the story...the acting...the direction...8.5/10

 

[terry78]

Soylent Green is peoples.

 

[Dark Victory]

I saw the film earlier today and have been going over it in my head since. One side of me loves it while the other finds it to be underwhelming. I'll definitely see this again in theaters, possibly as early as tomorrow.

Spoiler

Though, if there's one thing I'm sure on, it's that the holocaust camp sequences were stunning. I was blown away by almost every shot, especially the aerial one of Leo looking down the path of the opened train with frozen corpses sprawled everywhere.

 

[Carmine Falcone]

See I don't think the "ending" suppose to be a "twist". I will give Martin more props then that. To me the "twist" was suppose to be seen a mile away. I saw it before I even saw the movie. But that was not the point. I think the point was:

Spoiler

You are suppose to feel for Teddy/Andrew, and in a sense I felt like him. At the beginning of the movie the very first few scenes I already knew that he might be a mental patient. It clearly was stated by the doctors and you could tell it so easily. Yet, later there is a part of you thinking maybe that is not the twist. Maybe it is something more. And while you watch the movie you keep wanting it to be something else. Then that is when I understood the movie at the end. You truly almost become the main character, and you don't want him to be the "clear" mental patient that he is. You are worried that he will be insane and the twist will be what you predicted it to be.

So I just felt that it really pulled you in, in another way, it was not suppose to be a twist but a tool to want to be sane. You are hoping the whole time that those crazy conspiracies are right, and not the simple truth you probably came to a conclusion of early on. So in a sense you don't want to be insane either. The movie really talks alot about insanity, and when he is talking to Rachel it is quite interesting in their conversation. That doctors work backwards, find the person is crazy then go back in their past and find the reason. The sad fact of it is, we are all insane, because we all have something "tragic" in our lives that some one could easily connect to you being "insane".

Additionally even though its not like this in the book from what I've heard. But that final shot of the "lighthouse" kinda makes me wonder....maybe the conspiracy was right, and he was not insane. To me that is the point of the movie, aren't we all insane? But yea I loved the film. The more I think about it the more I loved it.

Dude, fantastic post. My thoughts exactly, but I was not able to put 'em into words, so thanks. I think you really get this movie.

And Dark Victory; yeah, the camp sequences were just visual perfection. There was both poetry and horror in there. I really liked how they gradually revealed more and more about that episode of Teddy's life. It started off with these brief shots of the prisoners, puzzling images of sheets of paper raining down and getting soaked in blood. Inspiring.

 

[Carnotaur3]

I loved it. Did the opening music sound like it came from another film though? I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

EDIT: Just found out that Scorcese picked out music.

 

[Doctor Jones]

The movie's look reminded me of Bioshock deeply. Whoever did the cinematography should do the Bioshock film.

But anyway Solidus just put the whole film in another perspective for me.

Spoiler

It's question of real insanity. Are we all insane? Living in a world of what seems to be sane. It also branches out into more general question of our existance and world. How we percieve sanity. Also "insane" people. To them, insanity is sanity. They think everyone else is insane, that's why they do what they do. It's possible.

I need to see this again. My mom wanted to see it on Friday but didn't go. So I need to see this again.

 

[-Arya-]

Actually, my crowd seemed to hate the film. People were talking throughout, I heard a few smack their lips when they revealed the "twist", etc.

My audience was stunned into silence by the end of it, with a few whispers of, "This is f***ed up."

 

[Doctor Jones]

Anyone else love that long crane shot of Leo climbing back up the cliffside?

And my whole audience was just silent. I mean they were good throughout the whole film, but the end you could hear a pin drop.

 

[Nightmare]

Projected weekend gross? And comparable to the other movies out?

 

[TheComicbookKid]

Projected weekend gross? And comparable to the other movies out?

Early estimates put it at 40 million. The next highest is Valentines with 17.1 but that might go down.

 

[Dark Victory]

Anyone else love that long crane shot of Leo climbing back up the cliffside?

Shots of incredible heights never bother me, but I'd be a damned liar if I didn't lean back and say, "woah..."

 

[Spider-Fan]

My audience was stunned into silence by the end of it, with a few whispers of, "This is f***ed up."

My audience kind of gasped and went silent toward the end. When we were leaving, I heard a group say that the film was really twisted and distrubing.

I think this film had the WTF mixture of Hitchcock and Kubrick. It had the plot suspense of Hitchcock with the visual WTF of Kubrick. It was like their love child, and as fans of both...LOVE IT!!!

 

[Dark Victory]

See I don't think the "ending" suppose to be a "twist". I will give Martin more props then that. To me the "twist" was suppose to be seen a mile away. I saw it before I even saw the movie. But that was not the point. I think the point was:

Spoiler

You are suppose to feel for Teddy/Andrew, and in a sense I felt like him. At the beginning of the movie the very first few scenes I already knew that he might be a mental patient. It clearly was stated by the doctors and you could tell it so easily. Yet, later there is a part of you thinking maybe that is not the twist. Maybe it is something more. And while you watch the movie you keep wanting it to be something else. Then that is when I understood the movie at the end. You truly almost become the main character, and you don't want him to be the "clear" mental patient that he is. You are worried that he will be insane and the twist will be what you predicted it to be.

So I just felt that it really pulled you in, in another way, it was not suppose to be a twist but a tool to want to be sane. You are hoping the whole time that those crazy conspiracies are right, and not the simple truth you probably came to a conclusion of early on. So in a sense you don't want to be insane either. The movie really talks alot about insanity, and when he is talking to Rachel it is quite interesting in their conversation. That doctors work backwards, find the person is crazy then go back in their past and find the reason. The sad fact of it is, we are all insane, because we all have something "tragic" in our lives that some one could easily connect to you being "insane".

Additionally even though its not like this in the book from what I've heard. But that final shot of the "lighthouse" kinda makes me wonder....maybe the conspiracy was right, and he was not insane. To me that is the point of the movie, aren't we all insane? But yea I loved the film. The more I think about it the more I loved it.

Spoiler

Great post. My dad and I contemplated this interpretation as we walked out of the theater, adding in that we're all prisoners one way or another, and even that maybe he was possibly sane and the doctors had tricked him, even if it's far fetched. Though, I hadn't made the lighthouse connection -- great thought. I just saw it as Scorsese returning to the film's most significant setting, leaving one last haunting impression on the viewer.

As for the fact that the twist might have been more of just a, I don't know, realization, my dad also said that Scorsese's too good of a director to know that the "twist" isn't much of a shocking one, at least not in this type of medium.