Stephen King wrote an amazing story; Frank Darabont did it justice.

Rating: 10/10 (28 December 2014)

This movie is amazing, no doubt about it. Forget about all the people saying it's the most overrated movie of all time, they're just bitter. Maybe Shawshank didn't have the most amazing, jaw-dropping cinematography, camera work, etc. ever from start to finish (all the things that made films such as the Godfather so great. Granted, it's not like Shawshank had a lot to work with since a majority of the film was set at the prison), but it had an enjoyable, moving, inspirational story. It also had really enjoyable characters, particularly Andy Dufresne, who is my favorite fictional character. I liked him from the start.
Anyway, I think the Shawshank Redemption is the highest rated movie on this site because it's simply a great film. Easy to understand and follow, easy to love, and easy to be moved by. As IMDb has in the FAQ for this movie, "It is perhaps worthwhile to remember that the top 250 list doesn't really measure what individuals consider the best movies of all time. It measures the collective opinion of the films in which people have the greatest positive feel when they are rating it. People are not voting for the movie against other movies. They are voting for it based on their opinion at the time have decided to rate it on IMDb." So, when people complain about how it's overrated, just think about that.
Tim Robbins, when asked about why he chose to do this movie, (in addition to saying how he was moved and inspired by the story) said, "it's not just about prison. It's about the limitations we put on ourselves and life, and the limitations, more importantly, we allow others to place on us. And if we listen to them, and we believe what these people are saying to us, then we're really building walls around ourselves. We're really building our own prison What the film is saying in a larger way is that in order to keep alive and keep living in a strong and thorough way that oftentimes you have to look beyond the walls around you. And you have to not believe in the prison and believe in that light, and that hope, and that person that you think you can be, and the person that you believe you are, and not listen to what your boss is saying, what your spouse is saying, what your leaders are saying." I don't think I can elaborate much further. The Shawshank Redemption taught me to hold onto hope and believe in myself. I'm reminded of that Emily Dickinson poem, "Hope is the Thing with Feathers," and I think it represents a lot of what Andy stood for.