THRILLERS ARE ALMOST always generic. But, ?regular? or ?run-of-the-mill? is a description that?s rarely used to describe Martin Scorsese?s films. For instance, even when the director and his favorite actor, Leonardo DiCaprio, allow formula to steer the story of ?Shutter Island,? you nevertheless know there?s something sinister simmering underneath the movie?s convoluted narrative iceberg:

Set in 1954, the movie follows US marshal, Teddy Daniels (DiCaprio), as he investigates the unexplained disappearance of murderess Rachel Solando?who drowned her children to death?from the heavily guarded Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane on Shutter Island.

Imminent threat

Despite the imminent threat of a hurricane, Teddy heads to the remote island, with his partner, Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo). Unfortunately, Dr. John Cawley (Ben Kingsley), the psychiatric facility?s head honcho (and Rachel?s shrink), doesn?t make it easy for the federal law enforcers to do their job. And, every query only triggers more questions!

But, Teddy knows he?s on to something: He is guided by strange visions of his departed manic-depressive wife, Dolores (Michelle Williams)?who perished in a fire two years earlier.

She tells Teddy that, like Rachel, Andrew Laeddis, the man who started the fire that took her life, is also hiding on the island. Even more baffling is the fact that Ashecliffe is supposed to house 67 inmates, but one patient is curiously unaccounted for?and nobody seems to know who or where he/she is!

Unlike most gimmicky but ultimately vacuous thrillers, Scorsese?s sleek?and ?shallower? than usual?production serves the genre, not by leaving red herrings all over the tracks (they?re almost always clues that lead to something), but by cooking up scenes that creep up on you with a mounting sense of dread and claustrophobia.

Sure, the director could have chosen to follow the path of least resistance by employing the usual tricks of the suspense-thriller trade. But, Scorsese knows only too well that the challenge lies in going against what?s conventional. Instead, he utilizes an alternately trippy and moody atmosphere, which allows the film to segue from one surprise to another?and it?s enhanced even more by the muted colors and sinister shadows conjured up by its light design and cinematography.

DiCaprio?s committed portrayal lends a lot of credibility and believability to Scorsese?s movie. The actor?s conviction helps the production break out of the thriller mold. Instructively, the psychological actuations he chooses for his character are revelatory of the stomach-churning twists that shock viewers when the credits finally roll.

As they say, surprise for its own sake isn?t always a virtue, but in ?Shutter Island,? Scorsese and DiCaprio carefully put a fresh, metaphorical spin on this overworked narrative tack.