Shutter Island - Deep Textual Analysis

The image to the left is an example of a typical, conventional thriller movie shot. The use of a dramatic, low angle conveys a sense of intimidation as the lighthouse is made to seem taller. This shot helps to illustrate the amount of power that the prison guards have over the prisoners. This is an important shot as it gives the audience an understanding of just how dangerous the inmates are. Another conventional technical aspect that is present in this shot is low key lighting. This creates a tense, gloomy and hostile atmosphere which will force the audience to feel on-edge - this is necessary as audiences of thriller films will expect a film that makes them tense. Together with the tall, barbed-wire fence and four black crows in the frame, the director has used these elements to create the tense, eerie atmosphere.
The editors have used high contrast (chiaroscuro) and colour manipulation to make the shadows in the shot dominant and to add a blue cast in the shadows. This also leads to a shot that is intimidating and atmospheric.

Low key lighting, chiaroscuro and the tint of blue are also used in the two screenshots to the right. The colour blue, which is added to the shadows, connotes coldness - which could create an uncomfortable atmosphere for the audience - and could be said to represent water which is a recurring, foreshadowing theme throughout the movie. 

These Mise-En-Scene techniques work together to create a hostile and gloomy atmosphere and are all typical conventions of thriller films.
Narrative themes such as crime and, thus, prisons are typically explored in this genre. This makes the shot of the two male characters typical as it appears to be set in a prison. Recurring themes are very typical of thriller films. The shot featuring Dicaprio's character in the shower sustains the recurring theme of water, which makes us question its significance to the character and the plot. Perhaps the character's fear of water could convey something about the characters past.

This conventional establishing shot uses low key lighting and a chiaroscuro effect which leads to the island becoming immediately antagonised. The shot also features the films recurring theme of water which is important to the narrative as it subtly reveals information about the main character's past - water symbolises reflection which suggests the idea is disturbing to the protagonist and is being repeated in his head. High levels of contrast between the light sky and near-black cliffs makes the island seem intimidating and hostile. Darkness connotes fear and evil which suggests that this shot is in place to foreshadow to the audience that the characters' time there will be tense and dangerous.

This shot is an example of how dark themes, such as prisoners and escaped convicts, are explored in Shutter Island. The searchlight suggests that the prisoners are too dangerous to escape, even to the ocean, which adds an element of danger and hostility to the scene. It also creates tension for the escaped convicts. Using a long-shot, more of the location and its scale is revealed to the audience. Revealing the scale is important because, not only does it intimidate the audience - putting them on the edge of their seat, but connotes the high number of prisoners locked away on the island. The recurring theme of water is sustained again in this shot but audience members are still unaware of what it symbolises. The withholding of narrative information (narrative retardation) makes an audience intrigued about a specific character's circumstances and the recurring theme of water makes the audience question its significance to the protagonist.

Extreme close-ups are essential to all thriller films because they are one of the easiest ways to convey a character's emotion. In the shot to the right, for example, the audience get a sense of the protagonists anger and fear and this, in turn, could lead the audience to feel the same way. Close up shots also make it easier for an audience to identify with a character which is important because it allows for an audience to follow the narrative whilst understanding a particular character and his/her emotions and it will lead to audience pleasure later in the movie.

This shot is an example of a typical character convention of most thriller films: psychotic individuals. We can tell that this character is psychotic through her darkened eyes, rough appearance and the chain that locked onto her arm. This shot is also an example of how red herrings can be used to mis-lead the audience as this lady has no significance to the plot. Narrative mis-direction is a typical convention of thriller films because audiences of thriller films expect a complex, twist-filled plot and, thus, it leads to audience pleasure.