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| Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) takes a moment for himself while his fellow Inmates enjoy cold Beers earned through Andy's ingenuity. |
A Study in Contrasts, The Shawshank Redemption takes us from Suffering to Redemption
"I found the Stephen King story so compelling, and so touching, that to me it was just natural as a movie." - Director Frank Darabont in conversation with Stuart Maconie for the BBC
Filmed at the Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Ohio, and based on the Stephen King novella from his 1982 novel Different Seasons, Frank Darabont's The Shawshank Redemption is one of those rare movies that stands the test of time.
Released in 1994, the film's setup is straightforward enough - Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) is a senior Bank executive wrongly convicted of the double murder of his wife and her lover. Our Hero enters the Prison, learns the rules of his new home, and gradually befriends Red (Morgan Freeman) a fellow Inmate.
Slowly but surely, Andy earns the respect and admiration of other Inmates at the jail through his actions and character. He petitions the state government to give more money for the prison's library, and, once that library is finished, helps some of the Inmates earn their High School diplomas.
Andy's executive background and financial know-how soon get him noticed by Warden Norton (Bob Gunton). The Warden deals in discipline, the Bible, and making himself rich through unethical financial trickery facilitated by Dufresne.
Placed in an environment that would break lesser men, Andy Dufresne's actions in prison teach us what hope, resilience, and survival really mean. Instead of turning inward, he chooses to look outward. This is shown in a scene where he takes an enormous risk to get the attention of the prison guards. Andy's gamble pays off, and in return for the tax help he offers the guards, he requests cold Beers for his fellow workers.
Part of the brilliance of The Shawshank Redemption is that it takes us through several years of Andy's time in prison. We join him for the long haul. It really increases your investment as a viewer into seeing what will become of Andy and Red.
As the film moves along, we see that Andy's working relationship with Warden Norton is a double edged sword. Realizing how valuable Andy is to his self enrichment schemes, the Warden decides to bury evidence that Andy is innocent of the crimes he was convicted of.
In one of the movie's most satisfying scenes, Warden Norton asks Andy to have his suit cleaned and shoes polished for the following day. As the viewer, we are made to understand this is one of the Warden's usual requests.
Only this time, when Warden Norton opens his shoe box, he finds a pair of prison shoes instead of his shiny executive loafers inside. This is just one of several clever plot twists that help us along the way as we follow Andy Dufresne's path from suffering to earned redemption.
It's no spoiler to say that Andy escapes to find his happiness in a much warmer, friendlier place.
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Author's Note: I watched The Shawshank Redemption for the first time a few weeks ago. I think it's no coincidence that Apt Pupil and Stand by Me, two other excellent films, are from the same Stephen King novel. Very rewarding material for anyone looking for some insights on humanity, along with the scares.
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