Two United States Marshals are sent to an isolated island hospital specializing in mental health treatment to look into a missing patient. “Teddy” (Leonardo Di Caprio) is a self-assured, imposing man who has recently come back from serving in Germany during the war’s final stages, while his colleague “Chuck” (Mark Ruffalo) is a seasoned officer. The facility maintains its own significant security measures and neither “Dr. Cawley” (Sir Ben Kingsley) nor his mysterious consulting doctor “Dr. Naehring” (Max Von Sydow) are receptive to “Teddy’s” assertive methods. Their investigation quickly begins to reveal unsettling things happening at the asylum, suggesting that the sixty-six (or possibly sixty-seven?) patients might be victims of some lingering Nazi activity. "Teddy" experiences memories of his life with his wife (Michelle Williams) and their children, and as events unfold, both he and the viewers find it increasingly difficult to distinguish between what’s real and what isn't. A hurricane then strikes the island, and from the resulting chaos, it becomes clear that almost nothing about “Ashecliffe Hospital” is as it initially appeared. What begins as a fairly straightforward police story delves quite deeply into aspects of human psychology throughout its progression, and while Di Caprio performs well, Sir Ben truly stands out with a convincing portrayal of menace concealed behind a bow tie and his precise command of both the language of psychiatry and the persona of someone who might have hidden intentions. Von Sydow typically just needs to appear to add layers of complexity to a story, which he does effectively – though perhaps not as much as I would have liked, and Ruffalo functions as a contrast to his partner whose grip on reality seems to be loosening. Despite not being filmed in a bleak setting, the hospital still possesses a stifling darkness where they live, work, and investigate, and as all the pieces start to come together, we remain uncertain about how things will ultimately resolve. It examines the impact of wartime trauma, the origins of trauma itself, grief, and despair, while simultaneously leading us on an intricate psychological journey for a couple of hours. What’s located in the lighthouse and will they ever reach that ferry?

Source on TMDB