Genius

Rating: 8/10 (4 January 2004)

This was on sale for £5 so I had to buy it after all the rave reviews I'd heard from everybody. In hindsight, I only wish I had bought it sooner. This film is a fascinating tale of a mans journey through prison life, wonderfully illustrating his relationships with fellow inmates and staff. Stephen King had his freshest idea which knocks socks off all his other work including Stand By Me (adaptation from his novel The Body).
Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman give flawless performances in the lead roles and are supported superbly by the rest of the cast including Bob Gunton, William Sadler, Clancy Brown, Gil Bellows and Mark Rolston. Ironically for me, Mark Rolston plays one of the worst characters in history in my opinion (Drake from Aliens) so in his evil role, it had a great effect on me. The characters are key to this film as they narrate the story and move the film forward so credit must go to the casting directors for picking such an effective cast. It is understandable why Freeman was Oscar nominated for this role as he is near perfect. The smile he gives at the end if the film is more valuable than a thousand words.
The plot to this is superb; an innocent man seeking freedom, a redeemed man seeking peace and a hideously corrupt prison are all elements of a nicely complicated plot which, at the same time, is easy to follow. The events in the final quarter of the film are so intelligently conceived, well done and convincing, that the film just falls perfectly in to place. A masterpiece of a film.
Films like this are important because the film industry often ignores themes of hope in the wake of terror. Shawshank is an inspirational tale of a man's honesty and bravery against a hideously corrupt and brutal system. This is why Shawshank Redemption is still talked about and adored by all who have seen it and why it will always be talked about. Cool to see an IMDb segments in the DVD featurette!