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Question
So I've watched Shutter Island and I have some questions that need answers. Please read each point and reply individually to that point if you can.
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When Teddy / Andrew arrive on the ferry with Chuck / Dr Sheehan, is Dr Sheehan actually there with him and throughout the movie or is he hallucinating his presence? The reason I bring this up is because near the end of the movie Dr Cawley gaslights Teddy by saying he arrived on the island alone and never had a partner... Either that is true or the Dr is gaslighting him for some reason?
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Was the storm that occurred throughout the entire movie even real? The reason I ask is because the plaster on Teddy's head never comes off despite him being absolutely soaked multiple times throughout the movie. It only comes off when he takes a shower. Also there were fallen trees everywhere and the garden area was a mess but the next day the garden is in pristine condition all the trees were standing, like the storm never even happened?
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Is ward C even real or is Teddy hallucinating this as well? Because it's incredibly dark and dingy like a torture chamber where the patients are locked in underground concrete cells without clothing and with no lights or even a bed, with water leaking everywhere like a damn sewer... Seems very unlikely (even in the 1950') when the movie took place that patients would be placed in such horrendous unliveable conditions.
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When he find Noyce and talks to him, he recognises him like he has met him before, outside of the hospital? Noyce says he is in the hospital because of Teddy... Did Teddy arrest him or something? What's the back story here?
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The patients that he interviewed, like when he was scratching the pencil on the paper, the lady who was smoking who asked for a glass of water and then wrote "run" on his pad etc where they members of staff acting the role or were they actual patients? Because if they were real patients then why didn't any of them just tell him he is Andrew? One of the patients he interviewed was wearing a nurse outfit at the end of the movie... Also mentally ill patients wouldn't be capable of going along with some elaborate plot where they have to act and lie etc.
I really appreciate it if you can explain each point and clarify because this movie is amazing, it's probably the best movie I've watched about schizophrenia.
Thank you!
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Q&A
I have seen Shutter Island at least 50 times. It is my favourite film, I probably watch it once a month. I also have an academic background in psychology (probably why I enjoy the film so much). So I will attempt to help you out.
Yes, Dr Sheehan is actually with him as his partner Chuck. He is not a hallucination, he is supervising him through the role play scenario. Ensuring Teddy’s safety and the safety of others while facilitating the attempt to help him realize the truth. This is supported by other characters interacting with this character.
The only hallucinations are his wife (and daughter), shooting Dr Cawley and the cave scene with “Rachel Salondo”. He also hallucinates the absence of water, such as when the female “run” patient drinks from a glass and Teddy cannot see the glass. His children were drowned so there is ongoing issues with Teddy and water throughout the film. And of course his dreams are not reliable/real memories either.
When Teddy insists on separating from Chuck the decision is made to pretend he doesn’t have a partner. The movie doesn’t explain why. I would assume it’s to exacerbate his confusion, pushing him forward to chase this conspiracy narrative to its ultimate conclusion - the confrontation in the lighthouse.
Yes, the storm was real, you could argue it is bad timing for the role play scenario however it prevents Teddy from leaving the island. So perhaps it was chosen to attempt the run through of the role play at a time where he could be out of ward C with no danger of getting off the island. Staff are shown cleaning up the debris from the storm. Teddy could have easily just put a new bandaid on.
Ward C is real and where Teddy is normally housed, due to his dangerous violent nature when confronted with reality. George Noyce is his nearby cell mate as confirmed by his calling him Leadis. That is how he knows Teddy. He knows about teddy’s wife from their conversations at Shutter Island. They did not meet elsewhere. There were absolutely facilities in that condition during the fifties. Remember, it’s not some plush mental hospital, ward c is a prison for violent offenders.
The character of Rachel is played by a nurse as part of the role play scenario. The two prisoners he interviews during the “run” note writing scene are both patients. Probably chosen carefully due to their behaviour. The woman who killed her husband with an axe has great rapport with Dr Sheehan. There are extra guards behind Teddy and Chuck during that scene, ensuring patients safety from Teddy. Chuck also places his hands on Teddy when he yells at the male patient. Mentally ill people certainly are capable of going along with these interviews. Not everyone is detached from reality like Teddy.
I’d like to mention the more you watch the film, the more you catch each time - part of why it’s so great. So revisit it and you may glean more clues. Watch how afraid of Teddy/Laedis the staff are, they are vigilant around him. It’s very noticeable when you look for it. There are more obvious clues like Chuck not knowing how to unholster his gun at the beginning.
However, I will emphasize it’s not debatable that Teddy is really a patient if Shutter Island who killed his wife. He does indeed have a breakthrough at the end of the film and realizes he is Laedis. He hallucinates shooting Dr Cawley in the lighthouse and then cracks his plastic gun. He then remembers his children and killing his wife as we are shown directly in flashback.
He doesn’t slip back into his Teddy delusion at the end of the film, he is choosing to be lobotomized. He makes this very clear with both a distinct glance to Dr Sheehan and through the sentence “which would be worse - to live as a monster or die as a good man?”
He doesn’t want to remember. This movie is not ambiguous, as many people incorrectly claim.
Dude this is a freaking great essay/discussion on the movie Before I read it I thought I had caught most of the nuance Goodness you have great insight
I did want to state that not only were those conditions present in the 50’s but even into the 70’s I have a relative that worked in a state hospital here in the south in the 70s and I think she still has nightmares about it
Thanks my dude! I hope your relative is okay!
I love all the little clues, my favourites are the one liners that fit into conversation with Teddy. The best one for me is at the start when they first arrive to the island ‘Your staff seem a little on edge Mr. McPherson’ ‘Right now, Marshall, we all are’ To me it indicates how violent and unpredictable teddy is, combined with the fact that he’s now loose and free on the island Brilliant screenwriting due to the fact it blends into the suspicion that shutter island isn’t quite what it seems
I would read a full book of essays on your insights on to the film. Thanks for sharing!
I too love this movie and I find I enjoy a that much more with each watch. This and The Prestige.
You have no idea what a compliment that is haha.
The Prestige is another one of my favourite films. Top 5. It is endlessly rewatchable and I discover more with each watch just like Shutter Island.
I agree with you but I also think the ending is purposely ambiguous. I think that was the point. They actually get the audience to ask themselves if it’s better to kill yourself when you know the truth or live with the knowledge.
That’s not an ambiguous ending. It’s just a thought provoking statement.
To make you think “which one is he doing?”.
I agree that he knows what he is doing and is cognisant but I understand why others would disagree.
The movie doesn't give you objective answers. That's a huge part of why you're so captivated by these questions. Most of them really aren't fully answered - just like the ending of the film is open to interpretation. You're as lost as the protagonist, which is brilliant.
Just watch it again in 5 or 10 years and see how different it hits then. That'll be a lot more enjoyable compared to letting strangers on Reddit give you their version of "truth" about a truly subjective story.
The ending is not open to interpretation. He killed his wife. He remembers. He chooses to be labotomized.
It’s very clear by the line “which would be worse - to live as a monster or die as a good man?”
I agree he chooses to get lobotomized and that your take is definitely the most straightforward interpretation. However, he may not have been talking about himself getting the lobotomy when he says "die a good man". He would technically survive the procedure and be forced to "live as a monster" and would he really think he's a good man if he knows he killed his wife?
Or, if he thinks he's going to die a good man, that could indicate he thinks the others are the ones who have to live as monsters - either because he's partially relapsed or (wait for it), there really is more going on with the island than it appears. There's enough unanswered questions around things like the two seperate lighthouses and the women in the cave to make that possible, even if he did kill his wife (which I think he did).
I disagree that the ending isn't open to interpretation, which is part of why I love it so much.
Ward C, that's a dark puzzle. Could be Teddy's mind playing tricks or a glimpse into a twisted reality. Noyce's backstory adds layers, doesn't it? And those patients, real or actors, it's all part of the mind-bending ride.