Fear can hold you Prisoner, Hope can set you Free

Rating: 10/10 (21 June 2006)

I doubt anyone can argue, that this Movie is the greatest one ever made. If there is no better movie ever made I will not be disappointed. More about that later though, one of the movie's strongest aspects, the acting.
Before watching this movie I had never heard of Tim Robbins, and after was left wondering why, the way he developed the character of Andrew Dufresne was incredible, why he hasn't been in many, many more big productions.
But the real star in this Movie was Morgan Freeman,maybe it was because he's Irish, his role as Red the 'The man who knows how to get things' was incredible. A convicted murderer, and the only guilty man in shawshank really was what made the movie, amongst other things, so good. He would have to be the best narrator EVER!! he makes you feel as though when he speaks, you're him watching the events unfold as they happen from his perspective.
The other co-stars all put in great performances, notabley Bob Gunton as the Warden, William Sadler as Heywood a fellow inmate and James Whitmore as Brooks. Clancy Brown did a great job of making you hate his character Captain Hadley, at some parts you just wanted reach through the screen and kill him yourself. And Mark Rolsten as Boggs the gay prisoner, made you shudder.
But the highlight of the acting was on the on screen chemistry between Tim Robbins and Morgn Freeman the best male lead duo that I have ever seen, the way they inspire each other and the conversations they share add another dimension to the movie.
The plot is good, with the ending coming as a complete surprise to me, probably because i was expecting something a little different to what I had expected, which is what makes this movie brilliant. Frank Darabout has done a great job as Director as he has shown us again later in the Green Mile. I cant believe this film did not perform in the Cinemas or did not win any awards. Words cannot possibley describe in detail just how good this movie is, go and see it for yourself, but be prepared for some real, prison violence. And remember, a good thing never dies.