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| Also known in Taiwan as: "Fantastic." |
Directed by Frank Darabont
Starring Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, and James Whitmore
A man is convicted of killing his unfaithful wife and her lover in a fit of cold-blooded drunken anger, riddling the bodies with bullets before reloading and firing one more shot into each of their heads. Sentenced to two life terms, back to back, in Shawshank Prison, Andy Dufresne befriends a lifer named "Red" Redding. Andy and Red spend their time and resources reforming the prison library, all the while the world passes them by in the form of 20 years. As the two become what Red refers to as "institutionalized," Andy finds himself working personally for the warden and soon begins to take his own liberties.
Though only 142 running minutes, this movie seemed quite long to me, but I realize that it was necessary to convey the scenes depicting the passage of time, from one to twenty years, then skipping ahead to forty years. On a separate note, according to IMDb, I believe this movie was based off a Stephen King book, because he evidently sold the rights to the director for very cheap as a good friend, which definitely solves the riddle of just how damn good this movie is. IMDb even claims that King said that the film very closely resembles the novel, which cannot be said for most movies these days.
The lead role in this movie is played by Tim Robbins, a character named Andy Defresne. Andy is a smart man, almost too smart for his own good. He's quiet, shy, and introverted, but he's not afraid to make things happen when he wants. It takes him a good amount of time to get used to life in prison, but he never quite stops thinking and avoids succumbing to the "institutionalization" that is the subplot of the movie. Morgan Freeman (dare I say it) once again solidifies his role in American cinema as one of the greatest actors of all time. Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding is a lifer in Shawshank for murder, and he makes his living, per se, and has his fun by smuggling goods into prison for a price. Redding is resourceful, confident, and lighthearted yet dark and almost thoughtful.
One thing that absolutely blew my mind was the fact that Tom Hanks was the first person to have the lead role offered to him. I often confused Tim Robbins with Tom Hanks, as the two look eerily similar at specific angles. The mind-blowing part was the fact that Hanks was actually the lead role in "The Green Mile" a couple years later, also directed by Frank Darabont about life in a prison. It makes me wonder if they're somehow related. Separated at birth maybe?
There is an intensely deep emotion behind this story, and Morgan Freeman perfectly brings it out nearing the end of the movie. Freeman's character Red struggles to make it on the outside after forty whole years pass him by. His character does not show discomfort, though his narration implies the simple terror behind his demeanor.
I can say that I've never heard of Frank Darabont, or that you can't think of him off the top of your head either. Though chances are, he's probably had his paws on a couple things you've seen in the last couple decades, such as The Mist or Collateral. IMDb says that he watched Goodfellas every Sunday and studied the time lapse, and it is very noticeable and accurate in "Redemption." Most noticeably is the evolution of the guard uniforms over the course of decades and the aesthetics of the outside world as each character is released, looking almost modern toward the end. One very subtle thing that I caught (then confirmed on IMDb) was the fact that an arresting officer was reading Miranda Rights off of a piece of paper at the end of the movie. The officer did not know the Rights by heart, as Miranda vs. Arizona had only just been coming into effect at the time depicted. Very cool little Easter Egg, in my opinion. One thing I always comment on is the cinematography, though this movie is nothing special. Maybe what I think is special is crap.
I'm just going out on a limb and saying that if you're reading this, you've seen this movie. It's a great movie, and you can't deny that. Surprising though, is the fact that this movie flopped at the box office, big time. Even after garnering awards nominations and earning a further cool $10 million, it was still underbudget and considered a failure. No matter that it was the most rented movie of 1995
"The Shawshank Redemption" was probably one of the better movies I have ever seen. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the change of the characters as they grew to know each other and the calculating, formulating of Andy. The very end of the movie is simply sublime, with all the pieces coming together in one magnificent narrated series of flashbacks. The only way it could have been better was if it was narrated by Morga... Nevermind.
This movie really makes you think, but its not confusing. It made me think about how while were sitting here, surfing the internet and taking in all sorts of information, the world is changing around us. There's someone inventing new renewable fuels, more efficient electricity, global networks connecting billions. Its constantly changing and it will never stop, and it's especially not going to stop for one person, let alone "an old convict like me."
"I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright. And when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up does rejoice." -- Ellis Boyd Redding
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