A Cinematic Triumph

Rating: Null/10 (13 December 1999)

The Shawshank Redemption appeared and disappeared in 1994 with little steam. It was heartily acclaimed, but audiences shied away, probably because its story takes place primarily within the walls of a prison. However, many, since then, have found this wonderful gem, and have declared it to be one of the finest films ever made.
The Shawshank Redemption is the story of a young banker, Andy Dufresne, sentenced to life in Shawshank Prison in New England for the murder of his wife and her lover. The film methodically and sometimes grotesquely depicts Andy's hard time in an episodic form of many situations, sometimes positive and enlightening, other times, grisly and disheartening. Andy's guide on this trip through hell isn't Dante's Virgil, but Ellis "Red" Redding, a lifer who has a knack at "getting things." The relationship between these two inmates is slow, yet heart-warming, as is the entire pace of the film.
Andy is portrayed meticulously and intelligently by Tim Robbins, who shows the banker's transformation from scared "fish" to top dog over a course of many years. Morgan Freeman is Red, who sees his decades within the walls of Shawshank as the only true life he has ever known. These two are supported by a well-casted group, which includes cameos and extras by real-life prison inmates.
The Shawshank Redemption is a film which pulls the audience in, and while long and slow, captures the imagination and forces the viewer to remain through the entire terrific, yet frightening, journey.
Highly recommended.