An Intelligent Tale of Freedom and Hope
The Shawshank Redemption
Cast: Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton, William Sadler
Director: Frank Darabont
Movie Help Web Popcorn Kernels: 
Plot Summary: A young banker is convicted of murder and sent to the Shawshank prison, where his quiet demeanor and unconventional ways shake up the prison community.
This movie, set in the 1940s, packs an emotional wallop. Andy Dufresne (Robbins) is a young banker, first seen in his car, drinking from a bottle and holding a handgun. We learn that his wife was cheating on him, and both her and the lover end up dead. He claims that he never went through with his drunken plan, but he is convicted of their murder and sent to prison.
This is the Shawshank facility. The camera sits in the bus at it drives up to the gates, pulls in, and the line of newcomers are hustled past the jeering inmates. A group sits off to the side, led by Ellis "Red" Redding (Freeman), a long-timer and fixer, reputed to be able to procure anything for a price. He bets that Andy, picked from the line, will break down and cry on the first night. As it turns out, he is wrong. In fact, Andy is a hard man to read: quiet and thoughtful, he keeps mostly to himself.
But eventually he and Red become friends. The plot winds its way through various encounters inside the prison: while the location does not change, the prison is big enough to encompass a number of sets, including a library. Life goes on, and on: years fly by and things do change, albeit slowly. I won't reveal too many secrets, but I will say that the sub-plot of an old man, released into the public for the first time in many years, is powerful and complex.
In fact the whole movie is very well done, the acting is superb, and the plot meaty and very well written. (It probably doesn't hurt that the source material was a novella by Stephen King.) There are surprises and twists, but all hinge on the characters, what they think and feel. Not on arbitrary points just to shock or amaze. I can definitely recommend this movie to anyone who wishes a deep, intelligent look at freedom, change, and the powerful strength of hope.
