Shawshank Redeems Cinema and How!

Rating: 10/10 (18 March 2015)

Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free â€“ These words inscribed on the poster of The Shawshank Redemption sum up what's at stake in Frank Darabont's chef-d'oeuvre. The Shawshank Redemption shows us that there is hope even within the restricted walls of a prison.
Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins)is a prominent banker wrongly convicted of killing his wife and her paramour, who spends many years in the Shawshank prison. He forges an unforgettable friendship with Red (Morgan Freeman), a veteran of the penal system, who helps him to cope with the frightening realities of prison life. While the prison walls shield Red and the other prisoners from the depredations of an ever-changing world, it has the exact opposite effect on Dufresne, who exploits every possible opportunity to bring a taste of the outside world to himself and his fellow convicts. Their bond forms the backbone of the film.
Tim Robbins is right at the top of his game as he paints a fascinating portrait of an unjustly incarcerated inmate and brings an innate humanity to Stephen King's principal character. Freeman is exceptional as Red and his narrative much of which is taken verbatim from King's story, holds the story together and like a skilled conductor, waves a baton to orchestrate our emotions.
Frank Darabont uses his powers as a supreme storyteller and an astonishing craftsman to breathe life into a genre that I thought had been dead since The Great Escape. He leaves us a poignant film with a powerful message of hope, and redemption, masterfully told. The film's greatest triumph is its earnestness that makes even those moments that might have felt slushy, achieve the dignity of genuine tragedy. It is deeper than most films; about continuity in a lifetime, based on friendship and hope that can reduce the most hardened into misty-eyed wonderment.
The Shawshank Redemption warrants repeated viewing!