The Shawshank Redemption

This film is arguably one of the greatest films of all time.  It’s based on the Stephen King novel, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption.  It stars Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, and Bob Gunton.  It was directed by Frank Darabont.  Darabont has worked on many other Stephen King novels that have been brought to film, such as The Mist, and The Green Mile.  The movie tells the story of Andy Dufresne (Robbins), a man wrongly convicted of killing his wife and her lover after finding them together.  We then follow Andy as he goes to Shawshank State Penitentiary, and see how he deals with the struggles of prison life.

The best part of this movie is the acting.  All the actors in this movie do such a great job portraying their characters.  This doesn’t just pertain to the heavy hitters like Morgan Freeman.  For example, Clancy Brown, one of the most underrated actors in my opinion, plays Captain Byron Hadley, the chief of the guards, a smaller role in this film.  The way that Clancy pulls off being a complete hard ass, but still somewhat likeable is truly impressive.  The best performance in the film though was Tim Robbins.  This was one of Robbin’s first big roles, and boy did he hit it out of the park.  He does a great job of showing how Andy Dufresne is changed by prison, it’s amazing to watch his character evolve throughout the film.

This movie didn’t do very well in theaters.  The budget for the film was roughly $25 million, and it only made $28.5 million over 10 weeks. (Wikipedia)  Though Shawshank Redemptions wasn’t a commercial success by any means it was met by great critical reception.  Roger Ebert, who is probably the most famous film critic of all-time, gave the film 3 ½ out of 4 stars.  Mr. Ebert said that, “If the film is perhaps a little slow in its middle passages, maybe that is part of the idea, too, to give us a sense of the leaden passage of time, before the glory of the final redemption.”

I agree with Mr. Ebert completely.  I love watching The Shawshank Redemption, but there are some parts towards the middle of the film that definitely drag.  Whether it’s Andy dealing with the library, or trying to help one of his fellow inmates get his high school diploma, these scenes really do make the movie a little lengthy and dry in parts.  With all that said, those lengthy scenes make the films ending so much better.  When Andy finally escapes Shawshank and we see this intricate plan he’s concocted over almost 20 years start to take place it feels so much more rewarding because of those scenes.  As a viewer you feel like you’ve been a prison this whole time too. 

After watching The Shawshank Redemption again, before writing this paper, I have to say it’s one of the greatest films of all time.  It perfectly encapsulates everything that’s great about a movie set in a prison.  From the ruthless guards, and inmates, to how daunting the high walls in the courtyard are.  This film easily gets a 10/10 for me.     

     

D.L.