An "O.K." Movie, Worshiped Because of It's Accessibility.

Rating: 1/10 (24 May 2004)

Shawshank Redemption has been elevated in popular opinion to the status of masterpiece because of one irrefutable virtue. It is accessible. Regrettably, as is true in so many cases, popular opinion is an inaccurate gauge of this picture's actual quality. The reason this film has attained its current level of acclaim is that it is impossible to misinterpret its theme or message, impossible to be offended by it, impossible to be confused by. However, as this review should show, it is entirely possible to be unimpressed by "Shawshank."
The story of Shawshank Redemption is something I might expect if I was being pitched a script by middle schoolers. The complex coincidental frameup, the daring escape, the clear cut definitions of good and evil. the timeless friendship finally and uneventfully consummated on a beautiful shoreline. Each step more unsurprising than the last, each beat more clichéd that the last. Every time the filmmakers feel like building tension or revealing something about the characters, they take the most obvious road. This might be excusable if the road didn't also lead to the most obvious destinations.
People also praise the acting in the film. While it isn't at all bad, it's hard to be impressed when the actors are playing such simplistic roles. Stereotypes when acted well are still boring.
I sincerely hope that over time, when the film has settled into history and once people are more able to set this pandering film along side its heavily plundered predecessors, it will become clear that it offers nothing new, and that what it does offer it doesn't even offer all that well.