Kid reviews for Shutter Island

Common Sense says

Twisty, disturbing Scorsese thriller too intense for most.
Based on our expert review

Parents say

age 15+
Based on 31 reviews

Kids say

age 14+
Based on 73 reviews
Teen, 13 years old Written bytesscooper77 August 4, 2020
this is one of my favorite movies ever. craziest plot twist ive ever seen. the age you watch it at depends on how much you can handle because it is super intense. a must watch.
Teen, 14 years old Written by12345g43 April 26, 2020


I watched at this age and absolutely loved it, it’s gripping and intense and to this day is my all time fave movie. Could potentially bother some children, as it is more psychological then scary which they may not be able to handle.
Teen, 13 years old Written byDoruksesli April 4, 2020

One of the best movies ever

This is an amazing movie but it’s extremely intense.
Teen, 15 years old Written byHannahCoe April 2, 2020

Good movie...inappropriate parts

It is a really good movie and not too confusing. There is no sex between two people, but complete male nudity is shown. I mean, you can see everything. The word fuck is said more than a dozen times, and there is some drinking and smoking but that's not really a big deal. Just be aware that there is full nudity.

This title contains:

Sexy stuff
Kid, 12 years old February 2, 2020

Umm alright then

Shutter island is not that gory, except the concept may scare children under the age of 14. The ending does have a huge plot twist, but the movie is based on psychopaths that are denying the gruesome truth. There is WAY to much drinking and drugs and hundreds of dead, frozen bodies

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
Teen, 14 years old Written byAria Papadopoulou October 5, 2019

Good but not for young children

The movie is really good but it contains violence and dead people. So, if you are not youmger than 13 I strongly recommend it.

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Teen, 15 years old Written byarmcd73 July 26, 2019

Intriguing Plot, but Some False Depictions of Mental Illness

I am a big fan of mystery movies, especially those involving murders. There’s not too much brutality (in my opinion), and it isn’t scary, but I had some issues with how it portrayed the WWII scene and mental illness treatment. If your child watches this movie, they need to be old enough to understand that this is not necessarily an accurate depiction of mental hospitals or treatments, and it greatly exaggerates the history of the war scene (it fails to mention that the guards executed at Dachau we’re SS soldiers - Hitler’s elite - so it gives you the impression that the soldiers were innocent, which they were not).


I wish it gave a reason to why it ended the way it did. The movie does leave you asking questions like “Why did Dolores drown her children?” and “What happened to Rachel after she moved out of the cave?” It may even leave you wondering if Teddy (Andrew) is innocent, considering he didn’t necessarily kill maliciously, but rather to serve justice and avenge his children, to kill a murderer that he simply could not live with.


All-in-all, I thought it was a wonderful, thought provoking movie, and I wouldn’t mind seeing it again. It took me awhile to find it, so if anyone is wondering, it is currently on Hulu.
Teen, 16 years old Written byReviewQueen0529 March 30, 2019

Mind F***

its an incredible movie. you should definietly watch it 2 times to really understand.
Teen, 13 years old Written byHeyyyyyy December 31, 2018

Shutter island

I’m a huge Leo DiCaprio fan so I begged my parents to watch this film.I watched it with my parents (my dad had already watched it)I found it very disturbing but not that scary however it is very gory so not great if ur squeamish.It rlly depends how emotionally mature u r.

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Teen, 17 years old Written byHi everyone December 31, 2018

Shutter island

I love Leonardo Dicaprio so I watched it is a great movie (one of my favourites) but it is very disturbing.I’m only 12 and I watched it with my dad (who had already watched it) and my mum.I think it really depends on how emotionally mature you are and how squeamish you are.
Teen, 15 years old Written byBonde rose June 30, 2018


this is honestly one of the best movies I've ever seen, and I'm picky with what I like so this is saying a lot! the first half is so mysterious and intriguing, you try to figure the whole thing out and when you think you do everything points to something else. then everything starts to get even more eerie then it already is and more confusing and more intriguing and you can't help but get sucked into the story. I don't want to spoil anything but let me just say you will NEVER see the end coming! this movie is better then you could ever imagine, I can't stress this enough! if you like mysteries, creepy movies you will LOVE this one. plus, Leonardo DiCaprio is beyond amazing in this role! you really feel everything he's feeling!

there isn't any sex. just one kiss but it's not really passionate. Teddy (the lead character) passes by a cell that has a few naked men in it, nothing sexual about it, just mentally ill men mumbling and pacing, the scene is only like 3 seconds so it really isn't that important just thought I would include everything. they do curse, the occasional 'fuck' 'goddamnit' things like that.
there is a scene of them talking to a mental patient and the patient says
'cock' a few times. there is a good amount of talk about torture, like old technics of trying to cure the patient with electrical shocks, cutting out parts of their brain, poking an icepick through their eyes, but none of these are done. there's a scene with kids face down in the lake, dead. a scene where a man shoots his wife, there's a good amount of blood.

the reason I put 15+ is this is a very intricate story and you really need to focus and it would be hard for some to keep up. also its rather dark so I guess you should just know your kid and base your decision off of them.
Teen, 14 years old Written byOwenDaBoss January 3, 2018

18+ rating is ridiculous

It’s like common sense media gets off on being incensed. Realistically, teenagers can handle the violence (for God’s sake, you’re telling me somebody who can legally drive a car can’t handle some real world violence?) The images are moderately disturbing at most. Anyone over the age of 12 has heard words infinitely worse than those featured in this movie. Teenagers will be FINE.
Teen, 16 years old Written bybiovox14 October 12, 2017

Slightly disturbing, but excellent

So this movie was a little disturbing. There is one scene where a man evidently attempted suicide, and failed, so his brains are on the floor, but he's still alive. Drowned children, disturbing talk of torture, and odd dreams, though not all that disturbing. It was actually a pretty light movie all things considered, and the ending is fantastic, if not a little bit twisty. I loved it, and would advise it for most older teens. The content wasn't difficult to stomach, it could just be strange.
Teen, 15 years old Written byzoomba23 September 3, 2017

Fantastic Thriller, Messes With Your Mind

This is a brilliantly crafted psychological thriller from one of the best directors of all time. The plot twists and turns, and draws you into the movie so much that you almost become part of the movie. While there are one or two slightly disturbing scenes, anyone that can handle the sight of blood will be fine while watching this. There is a massacre of innocent civilians during a flashback, however, the gore is not abundant and all you really see is people falling after being shot. There's also a scene with a Nazi without some of his head, and as a result there's a fair bit of blood, but again, anyone who can handle blood will be absolutely fine. Language can be an issue, but let's be honest, what 14 year old hasn't heard the word sh*t or c*ck before? This is the 21st century, not the 1930s. The real intriguing thing about this movie is Leo DiCaprio's hapless 'detective,' as he becomes trapped in his own fantasy land and must experience traumas and startling revelations on his quest to discover what really happens on Shutter Island. Don't show this to anyone under 14, as the violence may upset them, and the convoluted plot will almost certainly confuse them, as it did me. Okay, that's enough from me, enjoy the movie!
Teen, 13 years old Written byRavenSecets August 12, 2017

Appropriate for mature teens

At times I was confused by the story lines especially with all the flashbacks of his past. Their are characters that are mentally insane and unstable, which some kids may not understand about. Their is also a lot of violence and blood. If you want to watch it with the family, I would ensure that they aren't bothered by violence and to explain to them that some characters are not behaving how you normally should. Bottom line, I would say teens age 13 and up if they can handle advanced movies.

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Teen, 14 years old Written byDaBlob March 9, 2017

It's a good movie

Hey I don't get why people think it's a bad movie. It's phsycological and fascinating and although it didn't scare me, I'm still thinking about it and turning it over in my mind. All in all, I'd give it a shot because it's really worth it, and the acting was superb. There was a bit of "ripe" language, but not anything a mature person couldn't handle. Maybe some people are just too sensitive. I dunno.
Teen, 14 years old Written byjpick91 February 24, 2017

Favorite Movie

A truly astonishing psychological thriller. Probably one of the best movie ever made. You will be on the edge of your seat the entire time. The entire movie will terrify you the entire way through. There are multiple twists in the movie, but the ending is the one that gets you, and sticks to you for days. The entire concept of the movie is genius. The twist ending is genius. The entire movie makes you question reality, and whats real, and whats being put on and faked. Leonardo Dicaprio is amazing in this movie. There is some nudity, where you see graphic nudity of men in a prison cell. You see some of the men's penis, but not up close. There is not much violence, but there are some strong and disturbing scenes. Teddy's dream sequences are very scary, and will be considered disturbing. The entire concept of mind trickery and the entire plot is disturbing, and the ending is all the more disturbing. The entire movie messes and tricks with your mind, leaving you wondering and shocked at the end. Truly an amazing movie experience, and I highly reccomend watching it.

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Sexy stuff
Drinking, Drugs & Smoking
Teen, 17 years old Written byTornadosplash44 February 11, 2017

Another amazing yet disturbing film by Scorsese

I loved this film from beginning to end with the acting, plot, and mystery. Plus it has a twist ending. Leo did a great job with his role too! Although this film has tons of language involving uses of f**k, s**t, c**k, the "N" word and more. The film also contains some brief nudity, this involves a group of male prisoners shown naked (rear and frontal nudity shown). However this film does have plenty of disturbing violence. Most of the violence are flashbacks that are quite disturbing. This involves piled dead bodies, children drowned by their mother, bloody deaths, prison violence and more. Overall this film is a great but disturbing thriller that is best left for teens 17 and up.

This title contains:

Violence & scariness
Sexy stuff
Teen, 17 years old Written byOllieMall101 July 14, 2016

Mind Bending

Shutter Island is a thought provoking, creepy thriller! While the main theme of the film is intense, I believe teens 15 and up should be able to handle it fine. The content is in no way disturbing, and I was fine watching it. The movie makes you really think, and there is no sexual content. There are about 19 f-words, but other than that it is quite clean. If you can handle the violence/creepiness, put this movie on your list! 3
Teen, 15 years old Written bymelbob November 24, 2014


I DID NOT SAY NOT FOR KIDS I THINK MY COMPUTER'S HAVING A MOMENT. Since most of Martin Scorsese's other films are rated as 18, many parents would never show them to their children even though arguably they are suitable. This film is rated 15 and although the trailer makes it seem very disturbing, to be honest it really isn't. I was 13 when I watched this film and it was probably the first Martin Scorsese film I ever saw. In my opinion, kids are less rounded as people if they have not seen one Martin Scorsese film and this film is the perfect opportunity to do so. The book is also very good. There is nothing scarring about this film and I'm very surprised that it's only rated 3 stars on this website. REPEAT I WOULD SAY 12 AND UP!