Cleverest Film Ever Made

Rating: 10/10 (6 August 2019)

This is the cleverest film ever made. Clever is defined as something that is marked by wit or ingenuity. Throughout the film there are numerous clever moments. Warden's arrest for example is one of these moments. As he hears the police sirens he looks over to the safe. The camera pushes into the knitted sign covering the safe (where he keeps his criminal acts) that reads" His judgment cometh and that right soon..." Warden opens the safe and takes out the bible inside (Andy's bible). There is a note written by Andy inside reading "You were right, salvation lay within." Warden opens the book and it is revealed that this is the location Andy kept his rock axe to escape. Within lays salvation...
The simple decision to not show the jail break until after it happens would be something Hitchcock would look down upon. This decision reduces any suspense this scene may have. Yet for this film it is so fitting. This decision highlights the cleverness of the escape rather then the escape itself. By having Red narrator the escape we realize how Andy had this planned the entire time right under our noises. And boy is the escape clever! Every thing Red says makes sense within the story. Right down to Andy asking Red to bring Rita Hayworth to him. The film cleverly sets everything up so that the escape is more satisfying. It's almost as if the film itself is written and directed by Andy Dufresne, one of the cleverest movie characters ever written. The structure of the film keeps you invested by the simple cleverness of it. It is constantly switching conflicts while all building to the third act of the film, the main conflict.
The direction and cinematography is pure cinema. The entire film is visual storytelling. Even when Red narrates he adds new information but it is all reinforced by the brilliant visuals. This film has so many moments that only the cinema can truly capture. For example, the scene where Andy plays the Italian record to the inmates over the intercom. Only cinema can capture the awe and mysterious trance this music has on the inmates who haven't listened to music for years. With the elegant words of Red mixed with the stunning visuals of an entire court yard of people stopping what they are doing and looking up, we see the hope, something most of them lost, twinkle in their eyes.
I remember the first time I saw this film. My Dad told me this was his favorite movie, yet he would not show it to me until I was older because of some of the violent scenes. That didn't stop me, one day I secretly watched the film when he wasn't home. The film blew my mind, it was one of the first times I realized the power of cinema. But most of all the film gave me hope. It gave me hope like how Andy gave all the inmates hope by building a library, by playing an Italian record, by helping a few prisoners get their high school diploma or even simply by getting all his fellow inmates cold beers after a day of hard work. These acts all gave the prisoners hope as it helped maintain Andy's hope. This movie gave me hope. It helped me get through high school and I have no doubt it will help me get through the rest of my life. The filmmakers do what Andy did for his fellow inmates, they provide the viewer with hope. And in closing I hope that you see this in this clever picture.