Set Up: How is it used in Shutter Island

I realised looking through our blog, we hadn't posted our shutter island questions. So therefore I have had to re do them after not being able to find them.

Set Up: How is it used in this film?

What does the set up reveal to the audience about setting? Where is this place?  

 What gives you information?

The set up reveals that these two men who have just met for the first time on a new island in the middle of no where, we get this information by a member of the ship saying: “That’s the dock, the only way in and the only way out.” 

What does the set up reveal to the audience about characters?  

 Choose one character and explain HOW the set up reveals this information.

The set up reveals information about the main character Teddy Daniels, as being sea sick, however we know as the audience that this has further meaning rather than being just ill. However this is a foreshadowing of his children’s murder, We think that this is his first time he has been in contact with water since trying to save his children’s lives. The chains on the boat can represent the chains that he has been in , in shutter island for the past two years as a patient. We can also see that the patients he comes across in the set, act like they know him. Lastly chuck is placed on the left hand side of the frame which shows his dominance to Teddy who is placed on the right. This relates to Chuck being his psychiatrist in real life. 

What does the set up reveal to the audience about interrelationship between characters?  About their goals?  Are there any things you learn here that become important later on?

Chuck and Teddy seem to bond right off the bat as if they know each other. Teddy has a longing goal of being the good person because in real life his is really a monster.

Their relationship of the psychiatrist and patient already exists therefore this means there is already a connection between them.

What is this ‘world’ like?  Safe? Happy? Dangerous?  How do you know? 

This world is a dangerous world that is dark and deluded, we can tell this mysterious narrative and the surrounding settings of the island. They are prisoned within one island with only one exist to escape. The characters emphasise the fact that is ‘world’ that they are living in is a worst nightmare and living hell. The weather reflects the torment on which is happening.

What possible conflicts or strains are there that will become part of the story later on?

 later on in the story Teddy's reason for fearing water becomes apparent, as we are shown that teddy’s children were once drowned in which he was the one to attempt save them. Also Chuck's struggle with the firearm shows he isn't used to using a gun and that he may not be a detective but he is in fact a doctor at the facility. furthermore the patients at the mental institution immediately show recognition towards Teddy, and later on you understand why, with him being a patient.

How does this film opening fit with the codes and conventions of Thriller films?

The colours of the film are grey and dull, this emphasises the tedious and dull life which the characters lead.