You ranked it higher than Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, etc.
Come on man, develop some taste
Hey, I love Taxi Driver. Just not that much. Likewise, I like Goodfellas, but I've always been a little underwhelmed or disappointed by it. People rank that film up with the Godfather. I just don't understand that.
I'm going in knowing the story from the book. I found the book highly predictable but still enjoyable and I assume I'll feel the same way about the movie. Though I was a little surprised that Scorsese would choose such a predictable script to work with.
Even as I read through some of the good reviews this movie has received, people still don't seem to love it as much as the scores they give. It's probably getting a pass by some users just because of the names associated with it and not actually the work itself. "Although it's predictable..." "bordering on cheesy.." "surprsingly cliched...." This is just random examples from reviews I saw, all of which are positive, yet had more negative things to say in the reviews then positive ones. In fact in Filligan's review he writes "I love this man." In other words, Scorsese can do no wrong, he was going to give this a good score regardless. I mean, I know we get bombarded with shit movies in January and February but just because something average comes along in a sea of shit doesn't mean it should be seen as something exceptional. I thought Scorsese was just fucking with us. There is actually a scene in probably the most emotional part of the movie where Leo just looks up at the sky and yells [spoiler]NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!![/spoiler] Scorsese has to have known how incredibly cheesy that was, being the huge film buff that he is. If Scorsese didn't take this movie so seriously I would swear that it was a comedy. Just look at Ben Kingsley in that film and try not to laugh, he's smoking a pipe with a bow tie and a shaved head. He looks like the most stereotypical doctor cliche ever in existence, hilarious.
frederic_g54 wrote:which is why people should give this a 2nd chance (*cough* Pickpocket *cough* )
I guessed the twist by watching the trailer. Me and my friend were both said "yeah, but Scorsese wouldn't be that obvious, would he?" He would, apparently.
Pickpocket wrote:Scorsese has to have known how incredibly cheesy that was, being the huge film buff that he is.
I think cheesy is overstating a bit. No, it isn't great, but I liked it because Leonardo and Ruffalo did a lot with the script (and I wouldn't have been so put off by Kingsley if I hadn't already seen his key lines in the trailers a hundred times*), there were 4 plot-lines any of which could have been the actual story, I liked the point of the movie at the ending, and I normally avoid this kind of movie like a whore with flies concentrated on her privates so I was taken somewhat by surprise. No, I won't be buying the dvd.
* "It's like she evaporated straight through the wolls."
frederic_g54 wrote:which is why people should give this a 2nd chance (*cough* Pickpocket *cough* )
I guessed the twist by watching the trailer. Me and my friend were both said "yeah, but Scorsese wouldn't be that obvious, would he?" He would, apparently.
The twist for me was [spoiler]the roleplaying experiment, not the fact that Dicaprio was the 67th patient[/spoiler] (which I hope everyone figured out based on the trailer), and it's that first one that plays better on a 2nd viewing.
I'm glad to see some discusion around my topic, as i think this movie deserves a little more attention then the typical jan/feb movies... maybe just because it's the "creame of the crop." but i would never call it "something exceptional," just entertaining as i intially posted.
Spoiler Alert*** (i'll highlight this next section in [spoiler]BLACK[/spoiler], as seems to be popular on this site).
djross - i hate to "over analyze" films, especially ones like this... which i try to just buy at face value, but there is a "theme" to this movie. (fyi - i found the "The Departed a homosexual subtext" comment interesting, and would like to know more about this... but that's for another topic).
Thus, in this spoiler, i will explain what i think Sutter Island was getting at as far as " thematically interesting".
[spoiler]The theme is disillusionment and roll playing...using these defense mechanisms to protect yourself from what you don't want to believe, extends to the other characters, and thus, everyone...and that is the point of it all. the main doctor was under this delusion that everyone could be saved, and he played into this elaborate scheme only to have that shattered. the main guard had his opinions shaped clearly as a protective shell... and so does everyone in the real world. the worldview you experience is one you create to protect you from the truths you don't want to see.[/spoiler]
Maybe that's looking to deep into this movie... again, i definitly don't want to "over analyze," but that's what i'd gather are the goals alliging with Scorces thematrical format.
PS - Let me applogize about all the spelling mistakes, i'm an engineer by trade, thus not got with grammar/words.
PSS - I agree with frederic_g54 that the [spoiler]twist was the roleplaying experiment, not the fact that Dicaprio was the 67th patient[/spoiler].. and also find it interesting that [spoiler]they give one final twist with about 30 seconds left in the movie... Did the roleplay work? And if so, Did Leo chose not to accept it due to his final comment in the movie "better to die a hero then live as a monster"[/spoiler]
Pickpocket telling someone else to develop better taste is one of the dumbest, most ironic things I have ever read on an Internet forum. I had a good laugh there.
Focus-
I liked "Shutter Island". I can't decide on an exact rating, (it's somewhere between 60 and 71) but it was enjoyable. The "twist" was suggested heavily in the trailers, and immediately obvious from the beginning of the film, but aside from that, it had just enough action, pace, and characters to sustain a bare, but existent plot. It's no masterpiece, but a pretty good film nonetheless.
A Scorsese DiCaprio movie will never be bad ... Shutter Island is the confirmation. I've read the book by Lehane and let me tell ya it was a gripping book. But about movie, well i've seen it and it's definitely not bad. Beautiful details and cinematography. The story is well adapted. I've given this movie 90 or 95 I can't remember but if you haven't seen it 1 more thing to see for ya ... To be sure I have to see this again and again ,,,
)
