Nahant considered as location for Scorsese film this spring

NAHANT - Nahant residents could have the opportunity to do some real stargazing this spring.

Leonard DiCaprio, Ben Kingsley, Michelle Williams, Martin Scorsese and Mark Ruffalo could be in town to film the upcoming Paramount Pictures movie "Shutter Island" in March or April.

Based on Dennis Lehane's 2004 novel, "Shutter Island", which is set in the 1950s, follows a pair of U.S. marshals, played by DiCaprio and Ruffalo, who go to an island off the coast of Massachusetts to investigate the disappearance of a woman from a hospital for the criminally insane. Their investigation is hampered by a hurricane, which leaves them trapped among the inmates of the asylum and the strange case takes a sinister turn.

The film, which is scheduled for release next year, has a working title of "Ashecliffe," which is the name of the hospital for the criminally insane in the book.

Department of Public Works Director/Fire Chief Robert Ward said the DPW plowed the road up to the top of East Point so crews could check out the location.

"We provided them some services so they could access the site," he said. "My understanding is nothing has been finalized yet."

Selectman Michael Manning confirmed the town has been contacted regarding using the site for filming.

"My understanding is the storyline involves a lighthouse in a remote location and they were looking for a piece of coastal land to set up a lighthouse for the movie," he said. "There should be some more news in the very near future."

East Point is not the only site in town being looked at for filming. Central Street resident Gertrude and Phil Joyce said location scouts visited their home, which hasn't been renovated since the 1950s.

"They liked the blue linoleum in the kitchen," she said. "That was the color in those days. My kitchen and whole house are 1950s. When my friends come in they say it looks like a museum."

In addition to DiCaprio, the film will star Williams, who starred in "Brokeback Mountain" and made headlines as the ex-fiancee of the recently deceased Heath Ledger," Kingsley, who is best known for his Oscar-winning performance in "Gandhi," and Ruffalo, who starred in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind."

Scorsese reportedly scouted locations in Nova Scotia, Massachusetts and Connecticut for the film before settling on Massachusetts.

According to published reports, portions of the film will also be shot in Medfield and Taunton.

Lehane's novels have been popular with filmmakers in recent years. He also penned "Gone Baby Gone," which was filmed in Boston and "Mystic River."

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