Pure Hollywood fantasy

Rating: 5/10 (14 August 2019)

It is the performances that stand out in an overlong, sentimental and cliche film. The acting in this film is nearly flawless. Tim Robbins' understated performance is outstanding and Morgan Freeman is his equal. But to what end. Acting alone can not save a film that is overlong, (It feels like a 20 year sentence) has a hokey plot and cliche characters. Bob Gunton's insufferable Warden Norton and Clancy Brown's Captain Hadley, are as cliche as you can get. The Shawshank Redemption is a typical sentimental Hollywood fantasy, that takes itself way too seriously. As opposed to some of the more lighthearted and brisk Hollywood fantasies, which are far more easier to sit through..