London
(ANI):
Leonardo
DiCaprio
studied
the
mentally
ill
and
watched
several
dark
documentaries
to
perfect
his
performance
in
the
new
thriller
Shutter
Island.
The
Titanic
actor
took
to
research
to
master
his
role
of
a
detective
who
tries
to
solve
a
missing
persons
mystery
in
an
asylum.
"There
was
a
tremendous
amount
of
research
done
involving
the
entrapments
of
mental
illness
and
the
suffering
that
people
go
through,
so
it
led
me
to
watch
a
lot
of
different
documentaries
on
mental
illness," the
Daily
Express
quoted
him
as
saying.
"For
a
few
weeks
there,
it
was
some
of
the
most
hardcore
film
experiences
I've
ever
had.
It
was
like
reliving
trauma
in
a
way.
It
was
pretty
intense,"
he
added.
The
star
further
continued:
"We
were
surrounded
by
it
(mental
illness)
every
day.
We
were
surrounded
by
dilapidated
walls
of
an
old
mental
institution.
We
had
somebody
there
who
was
guiding
us
through
the
history
of
mental
illness,
the
pathways
of
treating
it
and
the
different
forms
of
treatment."