A flawless movie

Rating: 10/10 (14 November 2001)

I had resisted the temptation to see this movie for quite a while, even though it was recommended to me by many friends, and I was quite impressed by the high rating on IMDB. However, I have finally seen the movie now, and I can only say that I am very impressed.
I can only say that this movie is as flawless as any movie can be. It is amazing to me how a movie with barely any action can grip you like this one just through the story, the acting and the excellent character development. The characters are extremely real and believable, and it is easy to identify with Tim Robbins' character.
Tim Robbins was actually the biggest surprise for me in this movie, and this is by far the best performance I have seen of him. However, it seems that his acting style matches the material very well. Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) should not be someone who is overly emotional, and this seems to be the perfect character for Tim Robbins.
However, the most moving performance in the movie came from James Whitmore. I will not spoil the movie by going into details, but even though his character's story is only a subplot, it is one of the strongest points of the whole movie, and his performance is absolutely memorable.
Still, with all the great performances, the star of this movie is its story. It is the story of someone who is objectively innocent when he goes to jail, and who loses a large part of his life in jail, but when he comes out of the jail, he is still a better person, because he has found his true self. The story proves that a person does not have to be guilty of a crime in the first place to find redemption, but that redemption can happen on many different levels.