Thursday, Jun. 24, 2010

"Shutter Island"

This makes the fourth movie that Martin Scorsese has teamed up with Leonardo DiCaprio - the results are pretty much the same - a damn great movie. Scorsese has adopted DiCaprio as his new De Niro and he pushes in a new direction with a psychological thriller. Crafting with the usual blunt force that he uses in his crime dramas, he's updated his toolbox with some CGI effects. But it doesn't detract from the story - it enhances it. Returning for his second film as a Bostonian protagonist (the first was "The Departed"), DiCaprio delves out another deft portrait of a broken man trying to piece together an investigation in an environment that keeps changing the rules. The entire cast is made up of A+ actors, too many to count, they give performances that are both memorable and haunting. This movie is based on a book by Denis Lehane, who also authored "Mystic River" and "Gone Baby Gone." His text seems to transfer to screenplay then film without losing any of its punch, the bruises and tatters from his pages are translated from scene-to- scene in all of the aforementioned adaptations. A masterful movie, made by a master director, a brilliant writer, and actors who only chose scripts they believe in. Definitely worth the rent and while you're at it, pick up "Gangs of New York," "The Aviator" and "The Departed" and relive all the magic that Scorsese and DiCaprio bring to four very different movies.