The Shawshank Redemption
In this adaptation of a Stephen King short story, Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) is an innocent man in Shawshank Penitentiary, jailed for life for the murder of his wife. He forms an unlikely friendship with fellow lifer Red (Morgan Freeman), as he adjusts to a future behind bars.
The film is universally loved and it’s easy to see why. It’s a classic battle between good and evil that avoids cliché while making the concept of hope seem so powerful and liberating that only those with a heart of stone won’t be moved. Every performance is fantastic and the finale is impossibly uplifting, a worthy ending to a movie that has proven nearly impossible to dislike.
Less1994Rating: RP16, Violence142 minsUSA
Drama
- Director:
- Frank Darabont ('The Green Mile')
- Writer:
- Frank Darabont
- Cast:
- Tim RobbinsMorgan FreemanBob GuntonWilliam SadlerClancy BrownJames Whitmore
The Shawshank Redemption | Reviews
91%82 reviewsRotten Tomatoes® Score
All reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Roger Ebert
If the film is perhaps a little slow in its middle passages, maybe that is part of the idea... to give us a sense of the leaden passage of time, before the glory of the final redemption.
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The Washington Post
The story... becomes incarcerated in its own labyrinthine sentimentality.
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The New York Times
Without a single riot scene or horrific effect, it tells a slow, gentle story of camaraderie and growth...
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