Huge disappointment

Rating: 7/10 (14 December 1999)

Like a lot of people, I was really looking forward to this movie. Though I didn't think THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION was the greatest movie ever made, I did like it a lot, I liked Stephen King's serialized novel, and I like the cast. So how did this movie go wrong? Well, "wrong" is perhaps too strong a word, since there are good things about it. All the performances are good, and there are moments of real power(***SPOILER ALERT*** Like when Sam Rockwell grabs Michael Duncan. Having read the novel, I knew it was coming, but Frank Darabont sets it up so well it truly is a shock. ***END SPOILER ALERT***). And maybe my opinion of the film is tempered by the fact the theater showing it had projector trouble about 2/3 of the way through. But I don't think that's it.
One of the reason King's stories, when he's on, are so good is his characters are just ordinary people. He doesn't try to make them insufferably noble. And while the supernatural is his territory, he makes sure he grounds it in reality. But in this movie, that goes out the window. I know John Coffey is a symbol, but in the novel he was also a real human being, and here, he's just a symbol, which gets to be tiring after awhile. And while I know this is a fable, and not a realistic story, Darabont lays things on awfully thick, especially when Hanks finds out what really happened to those two girls. If I remember correctly, in the novel, he finds that out on his own, which is part of what I meant about grounding it in reality. And while I am not among those who think movies are too long(if you think about it, a lot of the really good movies this decade have been over two hours), this feels longer than its 3 hour plus running time.
As I said, I didn't hate this movie, but considering the talent involved, it has to be counted as a disappointment.