The Shawshank RedemptionDiscographies Movies Reviews When this popular prison drama was released in 1994, some critics complained that the
movie was too long (142 minutes) to sustain its story. Those complaints miss the point,
because the passage of time is crucial to this story about patience, the squeaky wheels of
justice, and the growth of a life-long friendship. Only when the film reaches its final,
emotionally satisfying scene do you fully understand why writer-director Frank Darabont
(adapting a novella by Stephen King) allows the story to unfold at its necessary pace, and
the effect is dramatically rewarding. Tim Robbins plays a banker named Andy who's sent to
Shawshank Prison on a murder charge, but as he gets to know a life-term prisoner named Red
(Morgan Freeman), we realize there's reason to believe the banker's crime was justifiable.
We also realize that Andy's calm, quiet exterior hides a great reserve of patience and
fortitude, and Red comes to admire this mild-mannered man who first struck him as weak and
unfit for prison life. So it is that The Shawshank Redemption builds considerable impact
as a prison drama that defies the conventions of the genre (violence, brutality, riots) to
illustrate its theme of faith, friendship, and survival. Nominated for seven Academy
Awards including Best Picture, Actor, and Screenplay, it's a remarkable film that signaled
the arrival of a promising new filmmaker--a film that many movie lovers count among their
all-time favorites. On The DVD Back Few movies capture the triumph of the human spirit as memorably as The Shawshank Redemption. Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins star in this powerful nominee for seven Academy Awards (including Best Picture) based on a Stephen King story. Freeman plays "Red" Redding, a lifer who know the ropes at Maine's Shawshank State Prison. Robbins is new inmate Andy Dufresne, a quiet banker unjustly convicted of murder. Andy's indomitable will earns Red's friendship; his resourcefulness brings hope and change to the entire prison. Andy is full of surprises - and he saves his best for last. Written and directed by Frank Darabont (The Green Mile), The Shawshank Redemption is "an engrossing, superbly acted yarn" (Tom Charity, Time Out Film Guide). DVD Scene Index
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