It’s hard to bring the theme of psychology to an entertaining platform, yet Martin Scorsese pulls this imaginative feat off. Transitioning these complex characters effortlessly, Scorsese created a reality where mental disorders can be introduced to the general population. He also brought to attention the brutality and inefficient procedures that many patients are forced to endure; the invitation to this scary yet informational world allows for more attention in this medical field. If you haven’t seen the film yet, please watch it before reading this article. There are spoilers ahead.
One of the reasons for Shutter Island’s constant accolades and compliments is because of the powerful and intricate reality is built by Dr. Cawley; the detailed world and task that he has given the fake “Teddy Daniels” brings the audience on a journey that increases our attachment to the main character, who in reality is Andrew Laeddis. The planning and plot holes that the screenwriter and director need to cover are unbelievable and a truly impressive burden.
through the eyes of the watcher
As the innocent audience, we enter the movie believing that we are following Teddy Daniels, a U.S Marshal and his partner in an attempt to uncover the true hideous nature of a mental hospital on Shutter Island. We follow his every action, as well as the dreams/nightmares that he experiences throughout his visit. We are completely oblivious to reality because we are all living in the mind of this mental patient.
We follow him through his journey throughout the facility, visiting all the separate wards in an attempt to discover the true intentions of the faculty there. The entire group behind this film did not make the audience feel dumb or ignorant throughout the movie because there was no other way for the audience to immediately detect that we were living in a false reality. As the twist is brought to our attention, the tension and relief that we expected to arrive brought on new waves of shock and unexpected feelings.
When the truth is told, the entire plot flips upside down, the physiatrists and doctors become the protagonists, while the main character, who we thought was benefitting the world, suffered from delusional disorder.
the uneasy suspicion of water
Throughout the entire convoluted plotline, the presence of water gives Andrew Laeddis an uneasy feeling. This is just one example of a portion of the small hints that nod toward the false reality the hospital has created for Andrew.
We watch the entire movie through the eyes of Andrew Laeddis, the psychologically affected patient, and through this peephole, we see signs of paranoia and fear. One example of this can be seen when “Teddy” is interviewing some patients from the hospital when one of the interviewees asked for a glass of water. While drinking this glass, it shows the patient lifting nothing in her hand, and when the camera cuts to a more outward shot of the patient, the glass is empty by her side. “Teddy”, and other workers at the hospital, never mention this odd phenomenon.
Since Teddy’s true personality, Andrew Laeddis, fights in a personal conflict as the main character, he inherently has a fear of water because his wife drowned his children. Whenever he sees water or liquid now, he develops PTSD and creates a separate reality where the water is not present. This can explain the invisible water glass scene.
I’ve linked a clip above, and you can watch this scene starting at 4:08. It clearly shows how Teddy Daniels created the false reality to block out water as well as any signs that point to his children’s death.
delusion disorder and the realization
Using Google’s definition: delusion disorder, or paranoia disorder, is a serious mental illness in which a person cannot tell what is real from what is imagined. The main feature of this disorder is the presence of delusion, which are unshakable beliefs in something untrue.
This disorder tails Teddy throughout the entire plot, just out of sight of the audience. As the audience, we can obviously speculate that something is out of the ordinary; it is very apparent that the hospital is hiding something. The great thing that occurs in this film is that it pushes the climax of the movie into succinct moments that force us, the audience, to experience the realization along with Teddy.
As the realization of what is actually occurring is explained in the lighthouse, Teddy, at first, disagrees completely. Looking at what happened in the previous sections of the movie as an audience, we are inclined to agree with him because of the unnatural context that we are provided with. As the explanation grows in size and logic, we are forced to make a choice during the middle of it. This film is less of an entertainment piece, but more an interactive experience. In the end, we are nearly forced to agree with the doctors and the staff working in Shutter Island; the logic and reasoning that they are providing are too much to handle, and Teddy’s arguments are simply unlogical now.
The beauty of introducing psychological disorders to the general public takes many tries to perfect, but Martin Scorsese makes it look great. A negative side effect of the film is that it paints the medical field in a negative shade, it brings an assumption that every mental asylum houses patients like Teddy. The truth is that Teddy shows symptoms of a very severe case of delusion disorder, and it is not common at all in the general public.
The movie is graceful in the way it forces the audience to manage decisions that Teddy also has to make, while they are introducing new psychological topics with a handful of mystery and horror. Shutter Island demonstrates excellent cinematography to match its unique plot twists to provide an entertaining look into the process of mental disorder treatment.