Shutter Island (Thriller Analysis)

 

Camera                                                                                          

There is an over the shoulder shot of Teddy Daniels where he is looking in the mirror at his reflection. Typically, when a character is staring intensely at their reflection in a mirror, usually something is wrong or they are thinking about something. The way he stares right into his own eyes might imply some internal conflict within him and perhaps hints at a big reveal about his character. These types of shots, when using a mirror are typical of thrillers as they reveal a characters emotions and imply a dark hidden secret adding to the tension and making the audience ask questions, which is key in a thriller.
An establishing shot of a ship is used right at the beginning of the scene to create an eerie and mysterious atmosphere to set the scene. The shot is complete with a dark mist and grey sky which is seen a lot in thrillers as it creates a spooky and almost chilling ambience. The establishing is used to set the scene for the entire film, so it is importance that it creates a large impact because it informs the reader in some cases of what is going to occur within the film.

Sound 

In this scene there is the ambient sound of rattling chains, heard when Teddy is walking through the boat. This type of chiming and clashing sound creates a sinister and spooky atmosphere as rattling chains can be associated prisoners or slaves being locked up and trapped, which create tension and makes the reader question what that boat is or was used for. Rattling chains are used a lot in thrillers and horrors and they have connotations of torture and fear, again building the drama and tension.
There is also non-diegetic music in the background of this scene that slowly builds tension and creates an eerie atmosphere. The sound is a dragged out  low pitched sharp noise which is apparent throughout and stays at a constant volume and pitch. Even though this non-diegetic sound doesn't build into a crescendo, tension is still created in a less obvious way, as the dull low pitched sound keeps the audience's suspense at a continuous rate until the next scene, dragging out the tension and drawing the audience in.

Mise-en-Scene

The costume in this scene is old fashioned, both characters are wearing long duster coats and hats, which add a sense of mystery. This is a popular costume choice in thriller as the old fashioned style creates a more mysterious or even creepy atmosphere which are typical conventions in thrillers. As well, the hats and long coats insinuate that Teddy and Chuck are detectives which again adds mystery and makes the reader ask questions about what will happen later on in the narrative.
The location is key to create an eerie and almost ambiguous setting as the foggy establishing shot of the boat creating a narrative enigma straight away as we don't know what is to come from that foggy boat scene. The scene isn't necessarily in low key or high key lighting, and instead is grey and dull but still bright again adding a unusual, strange and mysterious atmosphere which is typical of thrillers.

Editing 

The most significant editing in this scene is probably the flashbacks because they give the audience an insight into the narrative of the film which gets the reader asking continuous questions. The flashbacks also create a tension and sense of drama as they insinuate more to come, adding a hint of mystery because we want to know what happened in Teddy's life and how that will affect the narrative. The flashback also portrays him as the focal character and adds suspense as the audience questions his motives.