Vintage: The Shawshank Redemption
After starting this review several times, I came to the conclusion that there really isn’t a good way to approach talking about this film. Since it has been rated so highly on many different film review lists, it’s difficult to really open a dialogue about it that would do it justice. In 1994, a film was created based on a Stephen King novella. This story became the basis for the film Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, though it’s commonly referred to as the simpler title The Shawshank Redemption.
The film tells the story about a man named Andy Dufresne [DuFrane], played by Tim Robbins. The story opens up with his trial, where he is accused and convicted of two counts of first degree murder. He is sent to prison to serve the remaining years of his life behind bars. But it’s hard to say that the story is actually about his time there, or even that Andy Dufresne is the main character.
The film is told from the perspective of Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding, played by Morgan Freeman. A fellow inmate of the prison, he quickly befriends Andy, and helps him adapt to prison life. There, along with several closely knit friends, the men age in jail as the years pass.
When considering the title, The Shawshank Redemption, one must ask, who is being redeemed? I don’t want to get into spoilers here, as there may be someone reading that has not yet seen the film. But I think I can say without fear, that Andy is a very strong character. Throughout his decades in prison, he never looses sight of what he desires most. He never looses those aspects of his life that carry him to the next day. From a plot point of view, this somewhat implies that the main character of this film does very little. But that’s quite the opposite (as I will argue).
I’m my point of view, the main character of this film is Red (Freeman). Near the beginning of the film, he is a younger man who committed a crime that will keep him caged for the rest of his life. Only when a new arrival comes does he begin to challenge the fact that he is not only physically caged in the prison, but mentally caged as well. It is through the actions of Andy that Red is able to redeem himself by the end of the film, bringing the story somewhat full circle.
What makes this film so powerful is that it brings the viewer so close to the characters. As the audience watches the characters break down over the years, they too start to lose hope, and experience the same feeling of hopelessness that accompanies incarceration. A powerful subplot involving one of the older inmates (Brooks) was done so well, it hammers home the meaning of lost hope, bringing the seemingly good times in prison to a strong halt. I’m not a huge fan of the writings of Stephen King, but I must admit that this is one of the most powerful character stories of all time.
Coupled with a secondary subplot involving Andy’s past, and incarceration, we are once again brought up to believe there really is hope for those that honestly deserve it. And just as it is demonstrated in earlier points of the film, that hope is smashed to pieces, leaving the men broken.
The question that this film raises is very simple: what does it take to make a man decide he must change? As I argued above, Andy’s character does very little changing over the years that he spends in Shawshank. The story is about Red, and what must happen to make him change his perspective of what it means to be caged like a bird (to borrow their analogy).
I can go on and on about how wonderful this film is, or what it may mean to different audiences. I’m sure that there are thousands of interpretations of this film, and with each, is a different review. This film is strong. It may be the definition of what a strong film should be. It’s important, though, to know that all films do not cater to the viewer. The viewer must cater to the film. There are people that don’t care for this film, and there are people that will claim it is the best film ever created.
In my perspective, it’s one of the best films ever made, but is generally misread in terms of main character. I believe that this is a film you can set your watch by, and that most epic, Oscar searching film will try to achieve for years to come. If you’ve not seen it, please please please go rent it, as it’s not the same on TBS, TNT, or USA (as it’s shown all the time). It’s a wonderful character story that will take you through the lives of men who feel they have no hope, and prove each other differently.
The film tells the story about a man named Andy Dufresne [DuFrane], played by Tim Robbins. The story opens up with his trial, where he is accused and convicted of two counts of first degree murder. He is sent to prison to serve the remaining years of his life behind bars. But it’s hard to say that the story is actually about his time there, or even that Andy Dufresne is the main character.
The film is told from the perspective of Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding, played by Morgan Freeman. A fellow inmate of the prison, he quickly befriends Andy, and helps him adapt to prison life. There, along with several closely knit friends, the men age in jail as the years pass.
When considering the title, The Shawshank Redemption, one must ask, who is being redeemed? I don’t want to get into spoilers here, as there may be someone reading that has not yet seen the film. But I think I can say without fear, that Andy is a very strong character. Throughout his decades in prison, he never looses sight of what he desires most. He never looses those aspects of his life that carry him to the next day. From a plot point of view, this somewhat implies that the main character of this film does very little. But that’s quite the opposite (as I will argue).
I’m my point of view, the main character of this film is Red (Freeman). Near the beginning of the film, he is a younger man who committed a crime that will keep him caged for the rest of his life. Only when a new arrival comes does he begin to challenge the fact that he is not only physically caged in the prison, but mentally caged as well. It is through the actions of Andy that Red is able to redeem himself by the end of the film, bringing the story somewhat full circle.
What makes this film so powerful is that it brings the viewer so close to the characters. As the audience watches the characters break down over the years, they too start to lose hope, and experience the same feeling of hopelessness that accompanies incarceration. A powerful subplot involving one of the older inmates (Brooks) was done so well, it hammers home the meaning of lost hope, bringing the seemingly good times in prison to a strong halt. I’m not a huge fan of the writings of Stephen King, but I must admit that this is one of the most powerful character stories of all time.
Coupled with a secondary subplot involving Andy’s past, and incarceration, we are once again brought up to believe there really is hope for those that honestly deserve it. And just as it is demonstrated in earlier points of the film, that hope is smashed to pieces, leaving the men broken.
The question that this film raises is very simple: what does it take to make a man decide he must change? As I argued above, Andy’s character does very little changing over the years that he spends in Shawshank. The story is about Red, and what must happen to make him change his perspective of what it means to be caged like a bird (to borrow their analogy).
I can go on and on about how wonderful this film is, or what it may mean to different audiences. I’m sure that there are thousands of interpretations of this film, and with each, is a different review. This film is strong. It may be the definition of what a strong film should be. It’s important, though, to know that all films do not cater to the viewer. The viewer must cater to the film. There are people that don’t care for this film, and there are people that will claim it is the best film ever created.
In my perspective, it’s one of the best films ever made, but is generally misread in terms of main character. I believe that this is a film you can set your watch by, and that most epic, Oscar searching film will try to achieve for years to come. If you’ve not seen it, please please please go rent it, as it’s not the same on TBS, TNT, or USA (as it’s shown all the time). It’s a wonderful character story that will take you through the lives of men who feel they have no hope, and prove each other differently.
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