Shutter Island Analysis

Camera- In the very first scene of the boat about to reach land it is blurred, foggy and not nice weather which gives the impression that the place that they're about to approach isn't a nice place in this establishing shot. There is also a long shot which gets the room into the camera aswell as Leonardo Di Caprio. We are able to see chains and handuffs hanging from the ceiling which is confusing as we dont know where this man is going. There is also the use of tracking which follows the character outside.

Editing- When the opening credits are on screen, the cuts are fairly slow which brings us in slowly to the film and leaves the audience wondering what the film will actually be about. The opening credits do not tell us which characters are included in the film. As the film title appears on screen the cutting rate is faster.

Mis-en-scene- The characters are dressed very old fashioned to match the time in which the film is supposed to be set. They are wearing suits which may indicate their role of power which they may have in the film or even how wealthy they are. The setting is realistic, and at the very beginning there are chains and doors slamming shut which already gives the audience an idea that people may be in confined areas or in jails etc. Generally there is a natural lighting in the scene with the man throwing up in the boat, but generally there is alot of backlighting which outlines the different props (chains, fences and more).

Sound- Sound plays a big part in this opening sequence as there was alot of non diegetic sounds being added into this scene. We can hear the sound of waves crashing, the clinking of chains, doors slamming, gates rattling and underneath all of this is an eerie tune which emphasises that the place in which the film is going to be set is possibly mysterious and generally not a nice place to be. As you watch more of the opening scene the volume of the sound increases which makes the audience more and more anxious.