Oct 10, 2008 12:46 AM
2020 Views
(Updated Nov 28, 2017 10:46 PM)
So often, I am asked what my favorite films are and with that comes an expectation of what will be revealed by that list. Mine has somewhat changed over time, but many are etched in stone as the list evolves through time and wisdom. The Shawshank Redemption has been reviewed so many times, but I felt inspired enough to begin a listing of my favorite films, not necessarily in order and perhaps to remind those who ask me, Here is one on MY list!
Andy(Timothy Robbins *) allegedly killed his wife and her lover in the heat of passion, hers, not his. For that, this well-intended banker was sentenced to life at Shawshank maximum-security prison. There, as prisoner number 37927, he was beaten, raped and belittled by the other inmates, the guards and the Warden himself. Andy befriends Red(Morgan Freeman*) who is the man who can get just about anything, with his “20% profit, of course.” Andy tells Red he wants a chiseling tool to make chess pieces because he is going to teach Red to play Chess, among other things. Red just laughs when he receives the hammer, laughing at himself for thinking that Andy might possibly use the hammer to chisel his way out. This tool, though is very small and indeed too small for digging a hole. out of the prison wall.
Andy and Red have an in-depth relationship and discover that there is HOPE beyond the prison walls and they talk about what they would do if they were ever let free and where they would go. Shortly after, their prison mate, Brooks, who is released after fifty years, finds that he cannot survive in the free world. He tries to matriculate into the world via a halfway house and job at a local grocery as a “bagboy, ” but he gives up and hangs himself in his room.
Later, Tommy(Gil Bellows) is sentenced to Shawshank Prison and we learn that he knew a prisoner that bragged about a murder that turns out to be that of Andy’s wife and her lover. He was falsely accused and now the truth can be told, but the Warden cannot let Andy leave…He is too useful as his personal accountant, who is “”investing money” on his behalf for early retirement. So, he kills Tommy and Andy is to remain in prison.
Throughout the film, there are great metaphors, allegories and symbolism for freedom and prison: Brooks’ Crow, the Tiny Chisel and easily defined. One can enjoy the story unfolding with not too much to read into every scene, yet enough to really chew on for a long time after the movie’s finish.
Stephen King, writing as Richard Bachman and so well translated into film, originally wrote this tale as a short story. The only memorable King story that was undeniably a masterpiece. Andy and Red’s relationship was so well defined and relayed that as the two find peace together in another place, we know that the ending is just perfect.
The final scene on the clean beach of the Pacific, standing a top an old faded wooden boat, the Shawshank Redemption made its full circle.
What remains with me each time I watch this movie is the deep desires, appreciation of what matters in life and what feeds our soul. It can be stated in so many ways, but for me, a truly great film is one that can be seen over and over and still one can walk away with something new and enriching.
