Martin Scorsese's 2010 feature "Shutter Island" is a gripping psychological thriller
with one twist after another. It's also the second highest-grossing movie of the director's career.
At first, the film appears to tell the story of Teddy Daniels. He's a U.S. Marshal investigating
the disappearance of a patient named Rachel Solando from a mental hospital located on Shutter
Island, an isolated outpost in Boston Harbor. For this case, Teddy is working with his new partner,
Chuck Aule. While at the hospital, Teddy begins experiencing hallucinations,
nightmares and migraines; everything is strangely off in a way he doesn't understand.
He goes deeper and deeper down a rabbit hole of madness until he finally confronts Dr. Cawley,
who runs the Shutter Island facility. Cawley explains to him that he's not really Teddy
Daniels; instead, he's Andrew Laeddis, a traumatized man who killed his wife after
she drowned their three children. The disappearance Teddy believes he's been
investigating has actually been an experimental treatment to cure him of his manic delusions.
The Shutter Island doctors hope that by indulging Laeddis' belief he is Teddy Daniels,
he'll be able to come to the conclusion on his own about what really happened and
accept what he did. Throughout this treatment, the hospital staff has been participating in
the elaborate charade, and Chuck, Teddy's supposed partner, isn't even a U.S. Marshall.
"Don't you recognize me, Andrew? I've been your primary psychiatrist for the last two years."
One of the great things about "Shutter Island" is that it's
a very different experience watching the movie with knowledge of the twist versus not knowing.
The second time watching it, you can see all the ways Scorsese hints at what's really happening
before it's revealed. In fact, there are subtle clues in the first few minutes of the film.
While taking the ferry to Shutter Island, Teddy is throwing up in the bathroom,
which he thinks is because he's seasick. Actually, it's because he's withdrawing from
his medication and the ocean reminds him of the water in which his wife drowned their children.
Then he goes up to the deck and meets Chuck, his new partner.
Teddy doesn't seem to think it's weird that he's meeting him for the first time
on deck. Logically they would have gotten on the ferry together.
Since the film doesn't make a point of underlining how strange Teddy and Chuck's introduction is,
it's easy to accept it as a normal event. But it's the first bit of foreshadowing
that things are not what they seem at Shutter Island and something is very off with Teddy.
There are other intriguing hints about the "Shutter Island" twist contained in
the opening scene. One such moment is when Teddy doesn't have a cigarette lighter.
As a patient, he's probably not allowed to have one because it's a dangerous item.
Additionally, the boat's bathroom area looks suspiciously like the kind of cell
where a patient living in a 1950s institution would be held. But it's the meeting of Chuck
and Teddy that should immediately tip off viewers that something strange is afoot.
Looking back on the film, numerous other clues lead up to the big twist. It's a movie that
rewards multiple viewings, and you'll realize certain moments come across differently with the
knowledge of Teddy's true identity. For instance, when Teddy and Chuck first arrive on the island,
the guards seem to tense up and grip their rifles a little tighter. Initially, audiences may think
there are secrets on the island they need to protect. In actuality, the guards are nervous
because they know Teddy's one of the patients, and they don't know if he could snap any second.
However, the biggest clue that you might have missed occurs when the U.S. Marshals
are asked to relinquish their guns. There's a prolonged moment where Chuck fumbles getting
his firearm out of its holster. If he were actually an experienced Marshal,
he should have no problem getting it undone. The reason he has an issue
is that he's really a doctor and he doesn't know how to handle a gun properly. At first,
the scene comes across as amusing, but it gives up the entire twist right there.
With all this in mind, it just goes to show what a master filmmaker Martin Scorsese is.
He hid all of these clues in plain sight, yet most viewers were still taken by surprise.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus,
even more Looper videos about your favorite movies are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.