Shutter Island

Shutter Island

 

Who is the target audience?

Adults over 15

 

Is this film following the traditions of a typical thriller?

Yes, it’s quite dark and it gradually builds the tension by using subtle techniques to scare the audience, one example of this is when one of the patients stares at Teddie and tells him to shh, her hair looked like it had been pulled out, she had a gash on her neck and her eyes were black. This gives the institution an awry feel and the fact that they’re shackled suggests that it’s more like a prison than a hospital. The film also very effectively uses claustrophobia by locking the gates as soon as they enter one of the buildings; claustrophobia is a very common technique in thriller films.

 

How do you feel when you watch it? Choose three different points to write about.

You feel immersed in the film as it gradually builds tension and draws you in; this makes the film very satisfying to watch and makes it captivating. You also get a feeling of just how big the island is when you see it from an extreme long shot; this gives the audience a feeling of scope and makes you feel in awe of such a big place. When we first see the mental woman it gives the audience a fright as she comes across as extremely creepy, but it also makes you want to know more about her, for example: what made her that way, her back story, where the cut on her neck came from.

 

What do you like about the film?

I like how the film keeps the audience guessing, it never gives a definitive answer on what’s happening or what’s going to happen; this keeps the audience enticed by wanting to know what’s going to happen to the protagonist.

 

How could improvements be made?

I think that the film doesn’t really require many improvements, but one I would suggest is to possibly make it scarier to the audience. This can be done by the audience actually witnessing some of the gruesome events which have unfolded at the prison.

Can you relate to the protagonist?

I think Teddie is extremely relatable as he comes as a normal person, but further on in the film we discover a new side to him as it appears that he has previously visited the prison, but when it was a concentration camp. This distances Teddie slightly from the audience as we discover that he has killed before.