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The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

Director: Frank Darabont

Average user rating
5 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out Film Guide

In 1946 a young New England banker, Andy Dufresne (Robbins), is convicted of murdering his wife and her lover and sentenced to life at the Shawshank State Prison - twice over. Quiet and introspective, he gradually strikes up a friendship with the prison 'fixer', Red (Freeman), and over the next two decades wins the trust of the governor and guards, but in his heart, he still yearns for freedom. Darabont's adaptation of a Stephen King novella is a throwback to the kind of serious, literate drama Hollywood used to make (Birdman of Alcatraz, say) though the big spiritual resolution takes some swallowing - ditto the colour-blind relationships within the prison and the violent disavowal of any homosexual implications. Against this weighs the pleasure of discovering a first-time director with evident respect for the intelligence of his audience, brave enough to let character details accumulate without recourse to the fast-forward button. Darabont plays the long game and wins: this is an engrossing, superbly acted yarn, while the Shawshank itself is a truly formidable mausoleum.

Author: TCh 0000-00-00 00:00:00

Time Out Film Guide


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User reviews of this film

  • kmtboop37 said...
    Posted on Sep 12 2009 00:20 Amazing..a classic...watch it and see!
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  • pwincess said...
    Posted on Mar 17 2009 19:51 omg....diz moviee is wickedddd...i8 had to watch it in english due to ma c/w nd i thought it would be boarin buh trust mehhhh itz wikeddd...jus luv it....(i hope) its very ironic....jus luv it...ppl i request yuu to go nd watch it....yu'd b dyin to watch it again.!
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  • Jen said...
    Posted on Mar 10 2009 18:47 WOW!! This film is amazing! You have to watch it!
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  • WillG said...
    Posted on Feb 28 2009 22:51 This is the best fil ever made.
    End of.
    Report as inappropriate
  • Tina said...
    Posted on Aug 15 2007 13:41 I defy anyone to say they don't love this film. It is a classic! If you haven't already watched it, please do so.
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