Shutter Island - Book

Written by Isikins on November 16th 2009, 4:28 PM (0)

A summation of a book that blew my fucking mind!

Isikins's Final Verdict!

OriginalityA wonderful noir that transforms into something much deeper, and much smarter.

CharacterTeddy is so well rounded and so interesting that it is impossible to not care for him. The players around him have so much depth and interest.

ContentThere was nothing that lagged about this book, and the story kept unfolding and became more interesting as it went.

PresentationIt presents itself, on the offset, as a "what the hell happened" sort of deal. But as you find more about the island, the less you are sure of. Riveting.

Level of InfluenceBesides the fact that it may have turned the movie experience into something different, I can appreciate the film as another Scorsese picture.

Isikins's stupid "worthy-ness" nonsensical shit-ass category. Read it, I say!

Overall: 4.9166666666667/5

Agree? Disagree? Impartial? Stupid? Comment on it!

Shutter Island

There is only one reason, and one reason alone why I place Shutter Island under movie previews, and that is because there is no book review section and there is, in fact, a preview out for Martin Scorsese's latest flick of the same name. Maybe I'll add a tiny little blip at the end of this review about the preview itself, which is actually really exciting. No worries there. But one thing you can look forward to about the book, should you choose to read it (and believe me, you should) is the fact that in the mystery department, Dennis Lahane pulls no punches, and his writing is so exquisitely detailed that the mystery of Shutter Island jumps out and grabs you. I read this fucking book in two days. Granted, it's not that long, but it's enough to get you involved. I was almost immediately transported to this world of questions unanswered with mysteries and danger lurking around every corner. Lehane is brilliant, giving just enough of a twist with every chapter, but not too much to make it contrived, and not too little to make it uninteresting.

 

So it's just some mystery book, then? I mean, can I just read those old Hardy Boys books instead?

No, you can't. This is much darker, much deeper, and much more involving than any of those dime-a-dozen Hardy Boy books. Let me put some perspective on it. You get the uneasy feeling right from the get go. From the very moment you meet the overseer, Mr. Cawley, of Ashecliffe Hospital, located on the island, you automatically assume that there is something about the place that seems a bit ... off. Cawley almost speaks in cliche, James Bond villain-esque terms. Yet, it's never enough to give himself completely away. The book is about two U.S. Federal Marshals who are assigned to investigate the island, after a patient, Rachel Solondo, escapes the tightly knit walls. There's discussion all over about her kids whom she allegedly killed, her last meeting with the inmates, her escape at some point at midnight ... but none of the stories seem to add up. There is something going on at Ashecliffe hospital, and no one seems to be who they say they are.

What I loved most about this book is how Dennis Lahane is able to engage his reader within moments of starting through this twisted story. It is a complex one, yes, but not to the ridiculous point that I complained of in Duplicity. It's twisted, dark, scary, and completely riveting, and you are with U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels the entire way. It's all told from the point of view from Teddy Daniels, who is a very gifted detective, but has a tendency to lash out in violence. Dr. Cawley, the overseer of operations at Ashecliffe speaks eloquently enough to almost come off as a cliche noir villain. He describes Solondo's escape almost gleefully, "It's almost as if she evaporated straight through the walls." Daniels is no dummy, and boy does he catch on quick.

 

Oooooh, *squeee* I'm just dying to find out what the deal is!

What you need to do, then, is go to your local library (and/or bookstore) and pick up a copy and read it before the film comes out. You will be doing yourself a favor, for sure. Daniels is such an interesting character to begin with, especially when you start wondering how much of his imagination is being explored in context with what's going on around him. I'll refrain from saying that he is a character whose actions and thoughts surround that of a modern day Hamlet, but I can guarantee his moral dilemmas run deep and strike such a tragic chord that you are overwhelmed with empathy for this fellow. He's not a happy character, and he seems to be driven more through anger and hate than his willingness to perform his civic duty as a Marshal. Reading this book is an exploration of sadness mixed with noir. The villains seem to be cliche, cardboard cut-outs at first, and that is where Lehane has fun with the story. But as the story continues and you discover more about Ashecliffe, it's patients, and it's staff, you come to realize that these are not caricatures, but characters, and regardless of their motivations, they all have their respective histories, tragedies and personalities.

The question that runs theme through the book is "is everyone who they say they are?" This doesn't go for the antagonist, but for our protagonists, too. Teddy's partner, Chuck Aule, is along for the ride. As his partner, he encourages Teddy to discover this dark mystery of Shutter Island. What is everyone hiding from him? What are they afraid of letting Teddy discover? Why does every single staff member feel so apprehensive about giving Teddy the information he needs in order to solve the mystery of the missing person? What exactly is happening here? I'm excited to see Scorsese's film. Through the trailer, it seems that Leonardo DiCaprio fills the shoes of Teddy Daniels with honesty and integrity. DiCaprio has proved himself over and over as an excellent actor and has completely made up for Titanic. (More than made up for it, actually.) On top of that, you have Ruffalo as Teddy's motivating, enthusastic sidekick, Chuck. And Ben Kingsley is cast as the overseer of the institution. I'm interested in seeing what he does with the part, and how he will approach Cawley's caricature-to-character transformation.

 

I feel like you're giving an awful lot away.

I'm really not. If I was, I wouldn't have assumed your thoughts with a generic caption about the previous paragraphs. Honestly, I'm not that clever of a writer, but I'm pretty good at pretending to be good at this. I'm good at being enthusastic about a project that I immensely enjoy, and I truly enjoyed the reading of this book. I can not wait for the film, and I can not wait to see how the actors interpret the characters, and with Scorcese at the helm, one can understandably assume that he can almost do no wrong. I've never known Scorsese to fuck up material he touches because he's always handled it with such care and respect. I mean, come on! Did you even see The Departed?