Justin's Rating: Long live Oz!
Justin's Review: You may not think about this too much, but really good films that appeal to the masses and maintain rewatchability value over time take a hell of a lot of work on the filmmaker's parts. If they do their job right, you won't even notice what they do - you'll just enjoy a well-crafted movie like The Shawshank Redemption, Jaws, or The Sixth Sense. Nothing stands out spectacularly in Shawshank, but everything is done to near perfection: the acting, the sets, the story, the cinematography, the music.

Based on a short novel by Stephen King (which I read before I ever saw this film), The Shawshank Redemption tells the long tale of one Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), a shrewd banker who gets framed and sent to one of the toughest prisons for life. In there he makes friends with "The Guy Who Can Get You Anything", Red (Morgan Freeman). Freeman narrates this movie from an old timer's perspective, and darn it if it doesn't just draw you in. Andy is a very complex man who both the characters and the film itself observes with perplexity. Who is this quiet man? Did he really kill his cheating wife? What's up with his various little quirks? Even at the end of the movie there's still a lot to Andy that we never figure out, and that's most of the charm. The friendship of Andy and Red is one of contrasting natures with a similar purpose, which blossoms into a story where hope overcomes a world that just tries to beat it out of you.

One of my favorite aspects of Shawshank is that it just sits back and tells a tale, you know, in a long, leasurely fashion. Nothing moves fast in prison, and although events keep occurring, you do get a sense of the long period of time Andy and Red spend behind bars. Many of the typical prison motifs are present, including the evil warden, the vicious prison guard, escape attempts, and bad gay guys assulting the not-so-bad-nor-gay guys. Like The Usual Suspects, Shawshank has somewhat of a surprise ending, although the story is constantly working up to revealing this through clues and plot points. Even once you've seen the movie (or read the book) and know what happens, the film is still satisfying to watch again and again. It also appeals to a wide audience, so it's the perfect kind of movie to watch with your family, your date, or even by yourself.

About my only complaint with Shawshank is that the author is rarely ever acknowledged. Stephen King is one of my favorite authors, and not because he can freak me out with all sorts of horrific monsters and the like. He's just excellent when it comes to creating believable and fascinating characters, and giving them a wonderful story to live through. Other great examples of King's non-horror movie adaptions include the coming-of-age The Body and the recent The Green Mile. Give the guy a break, will ya?

Didja Notice?
The mug shots on Red's (Morgan Freeman's) parole papers are actually pictures of Freeman's son, who also supplied one of the voices for the "fresh fishes" scene.
Federal Income Taxes were due on March 15th, not April 15th as they are today.
Beer bottles did not have twist-off tops in 1949.
The man who cried and was beaten when Andy first arrived is listed and credited as "Fat Ass" -- the other inmates' nickname for him.

The Movie Store!
The Shawshank Redemption: Movie [VHS]
The Shawshank Redemption: Movie [DVD]
The Shawshank Redemption: Soundtrack [CD]
The Shawshank Redemption: The Shooting Script: by Frank Darabont, Stephen King
Different Seasons with Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption: by Stephen King
The Shawshank Redemption: The Poster

Intermission!
The movie is very faithful to the novella, although there are many noticable changes, mostly due to the timeline. The novella had a good half dozen wardens through the thirty or fourty years of Andy's imprisonment. In Stephen King's original story, Red was written as an Irishman. In the movie, they left the line "Maybe it's 'cause I'm Irish" in the movie even after they cast Morgan Freeman as Red.

Also, just to prove he's a huge wanker, Leonard Maltin only gave this film 2 and a half stars. This film is #3 on the IMDb's top 250 film list! That guy seriously cheeses me off. Write to him and demand he donate his brain to animal testing or something, will you, my fair mutant readers?

Groovy Quotes:

Warden: I believe in two things: discipline and the Bible. Here you'll receive both. Put your trust in the Lord; your ass belongs to me. Welcome to Shawshank.

Red: Let me tell you something my friend. Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane.

If you liked this movie, try these:
The Green Mile
The Player
Out Of Sight