The Shawshank Redemption

Frank Darabont, USA, 1994, 142 minutes

A young successful banker, the life of Andy Defresne (Tim Robbins) is turned upside-down when he is convicted of the murder of his wife and her lover. Sent to Shawshank prison to serve out two life sentences he is befriended by worldly-wise Red (Morgan Freeman). Andy’s initial years at Shawshank are not pleasant ones but slowly he becomes accepted and gains the respect of both inmates and guards alike. As the years go by he is given more and more responsibility by the warden Samuel Norton (Bob Grunton) - someone so knowledgeable on accountancy and tax law is a useful thing to have, especially if his services come for free. Some 18 years after Andy came to Shawshank repeat offender Tommy Williams (Gil Bellows) joins the inmate’s ranks. Andy takes Tommy under his wing and in return Tommy discloses a piece of information to Andy and Red that re-opens a great big can of worms.

The Shawshank Redemption is a film to be watched again and again. With a flowing narration and inspired script it is little wonder that nobody I have spoken to who has seen this movie has seen it only once.

A copy of Shawshank has been sitting on my coffee table for five days now waiting for me to get the time to watch it and every person who has seen it lying there has told me what a great movie it is, and let me tell you that’s a lot of people, my flat has been like a revolving door this last week. Please when you read this review consider it to be not only my own personal recommendation that you see this film, but also that of the couple of dozen waifs and strays that have recently passed by my coffee table too.

Review by Jane Birch
Written for EUFS Programme Spring 2005

What? A feelgood prison movie? That's right, but that's not all - it's really a man's movie, full of wholesome male bonding based on mutual respect earned through surviving the trials of the prison jungle, and a purely platonic (that's all it could be in Hollywood) mutual affection.

Andy Dufresne(Jim Robbins), mild-mannered banker, is put in Shawshank State Prison for the murder of his wife and her lover despite proclaiming his innocence. He soon strikes up a rapport with Red (Morgan Freeman), a prisoner in his twenty-first year of a life sentence who acts as a smuggler and trader in all manner of illicit goods for other inmates.

Despite the fact that Red and Andy are members of the same community, their social difference still finds ample expression: Red the working class man trades cigarettes and alcohol while college-boy Andy aims to build the prison a substantial library.

The Shawshank Redemption as a whole is an absolute delight, it ticks off all the prison movie clichés on the list but contains a lot of very funny ideas and has several genuinely uplifting moments, none more so than Andy's hijacking of the prison public address system to broadcast an Aria from the Marriage of Figaro.

Robbins and Freeman, as usual, turn in excellent performances. Hankies at the ready for the happy ending.

Review by Iain Harral
Taken from EUFS Programme 1995-96