Every once in a long while a truly inspiring film comes along that is a must see for virtually everyone. The Shawshank Redemption is one of these films.

Rating: 9/10 (26 July 2000)

Every single scene in The Shawshank Redemption, every bit of dialogue, everything that happens all beautifully serves the purpose of intensifying the impact of the story itself. The muted colors and the relaxed cinematography do a spectacular job of taking us back in time, and the message of the film is inspiring, to say the least.
What you have in the Shawshank Redemption is a film that is extremely well thought-out and put together in such a way that it is able to hold your attention even for well over two hours. The movie is about holding on to hope in even the worst circumstances, even under tremendous stress, and even when you are in that situation unjustly. However, even though Andy Dufresne is clearly the protagonist, Red is actually a more important person as far as the message of the film. He seems to embody the lessons learned in the film, and this is shown in the way that his life is transformed by his friendship with Andy.
However, there were a few things about this film that I didn't like that I think took a lot away from it. For example, even though I admit that it didn't reduce the potency of the film itself, everything worked out a little too perfectly for Andy in prison. Sure, he got beaten up and sexually assaulted, but look at the aftermath of those attacks. When the "Sisters" beat him within an inch of his life, did he get his nose broken? Was he left with any scars? Were any of his limbs casted? Did he even develop a limp? No, what happened was he spent a month in the infirmary and got out with his hair messed up. That's a pretty small price to pay for almost being beaten to death.
I also find it hard to believe that every single guard in the prison, including the warden, would allow a prisoner to do their taxes. Sure, he's got expertise in the banking field, but he's also been convicted of murder. I would think that the warden in particular, with all of his, ahem, activities, would want to kind of keep to himself as far as his finances. Another problem was the timeline. We see events that take place over long periods of time, but we are largely left to speculate about what goes on in the years that are skipped over. The film comes together as a great story, but you have to keep in mind that in between scenes that seem to run together, YEARS have gone by. The aging process wasn't done very well either. All of the characters involved looked almost exactly the same at the beginning of the movie as they did at the end. When that many years have passed, something needs to be done to try to make the actors look at least a little bit older.
Aside from these minor deficiencies, as well as a confusing title, The Shawshank Redemption is an absolutely incredible film. The setbacks can be overlooked because of the fact that the film as a whole communicates such an important and powerful message, and the film is not boring even for a second. It's intense, it's beautifully made, and it will not soon be forgotten.