the shawshank redemption review

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By Lee2008 on 20th Aug 2006

Lee2008's Ratings

Starring Actor/Actress	Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman
Where Did You See It?	Television
Value for money	10/10
Overall value	10/10
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Adapted from a short story by Stephen King, The Shawshank Redemption tells the tale of the friendship between two convicts serving life sentences. This film is one of the few Stephen King adaptations to go mainstream and not contain any supernatural occurances. It is also brilliantly narrated by Morgan Freeman through-out.
Writer and director Frank Darabont draws out strong and intense performances from Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbens. Red (Freeman) sees hope as a dangerous thing that can drive a man insane, but Andy (Robbens) believes it is fuel that keeps us going against all the odds.
Shawshank Redemption is a devoulty old fashioned prison drama, I don't want to give the plot of the film away, but something amazing happens at Shawshank prison, its suprising and inspiring to watch. You come away from the experiance blindsided by Andys inspirational example.
This film was released in 1994. It was nominated for 7 academy awards including best picture. It failed to win a single Oscar, and director Frank Darabona failed to receive a nomination for himself. which is a crime in my opinion, as this film is flawlessly acted and directed. It was up against Forrest Gump and Pulp Fiction which are great films in there own right, so I suppose it was unlucky to have such good competition that year for an Oscar.
I would recommend this film to everyone, it is a true masterpeice of cinematography and rightly deserves its 5 star status.
When I told a friend to watch this film, as he had not seen it, he loved every second of it and his only regret was he wished he had watched it when it was released 12 years ago.
This film carries a 15 certificate and contains some prison violence and a mild scene of a sexual nature.
Shawshank Redemption is a jubilant tribute to hope and an essential quality of soul.
Fear can hold you prisoner...........Hope can set you free.

7 Comments on Review by Lee2008 for The Shawshank Redemption

1. Cult Fiction on 26th Aug 2006

   I disagree that this is a good film. The ending was just too unbelievable, it took a team full of POW's to dig a tunnel in the film the great escape, so one man doing it on his own is highly unlikely. The chemistry between Tim Robbins and Sidney Poiter was as binding as the marriage vows of that lass from atomic kitten with that lad from Westside.
   Quite frankly the most predictble ending ever to have been made since 'When Harry Met Sally' hit our screens.

2. Lee2008 on 19th Dec 2006

   It took a large team of P.O.W.s six years to dig that tunnel in The Great Escape (1939-1945). It took Andy from this film 35 years and he had no help from his mates. Im not 100% sure but I would guess that the tunnel that Andy dug was also much shorter than the one that Steve McQueen and his mates dug. Andy only has to get through a few meters and then he is in sewage tunnels which where already there. He utilize's pre-dug tunnels in this film, whilst Steve McQueen and his mates do not benefit from any kind of architectural flaws. Which in fact makes your comment on the making of tunnels less believable in The Great Escape.

3. Anonymous101 on 20th Dec 2006

   Do you reckon that the prisoners who broke out of the P.O.W camp were gutted after digging for all them long and arduous six years (1939-1945). The war ended in 1945 and the P.O.W camps were liberated shortly afterwards anyway, so all these efforts were in effect futile. Steve McQueen's foolhardy decision to ride his motor vehicle into barbed wire seems just plain reckless every time I see that movie.

4. Anonymous101 on 20th Dec 2006

   It has just been brought to my attention that the break-out actually took part in the early part of 1944, well done lads!!

5. Lee2008 on 22nd Dec 2006

   Amazing. So I took the prisoners of war 1 year less than I had thought to dig that tunnel in the great escape. Does anybody know the year they were captured? Let's say the were imprisoned in the the first year of the conflict - 1939, and escaped in 1944; that's only 5 years to dig a considerable sized tunnel right under the noses of their captors. They were incarcerated for let's say 1825 days, and let's say the tunnel was approximately 2 kilometers long; that would result in a mean average of having to dig 1.09589 per day for every day of imprisonment, which I admit, is not outside the boundaries of reality, but it is at the higher end of unlikely on my scale. I must hasten to add that these figures are only approximations of mine. I would be pleased to have the exact figures/times and distances at hand. Cheers.

6. Anonymous101 on 3rd Jan 2007

   Hello mate, the prisoner of war camp Stalag III wasn't opened until April 1942, I don't know how this alters your equations as I'm not sure when the actual digging commenced but it wouldn't have started straightaway I don't believe. I will see what I can find out for you.

7. Lee2008 on 6th Jan 2007

   It has been brought to my attention that 3 tunnels named Tom, Dick and Harry were dug simultaneously, although tunnel 3 was eventually used to make the escape. 76 men escaped, however almost all were recaptured or killed, only 3 made it to safety in neutral Switzerland. The story is inspired by an actual escape from stalag III on 24th of march 1944. If the prison opened in the April on 1942 that's less than 2 years to dig the tunnels, which would support my theory of the tunnel digging in the great escape being a little far fetched. However, a disclaimer claims the escape events are true to actual events as much as possible, although Steve McQueen's motorbike scenes were fabricated, as Steve complained about his characters lack of screen time. So I feel I must apologize to cult fiction for discrediting his claims about tunnels. The claims cult made were based on true events, the tunnel digging in the Shawshank Redemption is fictitious, and for that that reason I hang my head in shame. I only hope you can find it in your heart to to accept my apology.

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The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
The Shawshank Redemption on IMDb: Movies, TV, Celebs, and more... Stephen King (short story Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption) Frank Darabont (screenplay)
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The Shawshank Redemption - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Shawshank Redemption is a 1994 American drama film, written and directed by Frank Darabont, based on the Stephen King novella, Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. The film stars Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne and Morgan Freeman as Ellis Boyd"Red" Redding. The film portrays...
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The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Stephen King (short story"Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption") Frank Darabont (screenplay) ... Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (USA) (working title) more
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