"The Shawshank Redemption" Talkback (Spoilers)

[Hanshotfirst113]

Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/81/ShawshankRedemptionMoviePoster.jpg/414px-ShawshankRedemptionMoviePoster.jpg


Andy: That's where I want to live the rest of my life. A warm place with no memory.

Produced by Niki Marvin for Castle Rock Entertainment
Studio: Warner Brothers
Cinematography by Roger Deakins, B.S.C.
Starring Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Clancy Brown, James Whitmore
Screenplay by Frank Darabont, from the novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption By Stephen King
Directed by Frank Darabont

SYNOPSIS: Andy Dufresne, a banker falsely accused of murdering his wife, is sent to Shawshank State Prison for two consecutive life sentences. Once there, he forms a strange bond with cynical lifer "Red" Redding and a peculiar relationship with the warden. Andy's skills and intelligence help him to forge a niche and the other prisoners find that beneath his quiet exterior is a man of deep feelings, and he beings to change all of their lives.

Couldn't believe that this modern classic didn't have a talkback yet!

[HG Revolution]

I still don't know how Forrest Gump could beat out both this movie and Pulp Fiction.

[Lord Dalek]

I still don't know how Forrest Gump could beat out both this movie and Pulp Fiction.I still can't see how...

-Braveheart beat out Apollo 13
-The English Patient beat out Fargo and Big Night
-Shakespeare in Love beat out Saving Private Ryan
-Gladiator beat Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Traffic
etc... (there are alot of great mysteries with the Oscars)

[Hanshotfirst113]

Dances With Wolves beat GoodFellas and Rocky beat Network and Taxi Driver. Usually, the Oscars are a popularity contest . They decided to go with more artsy films last year, and the rating plummeted. They should probably just do what they do best. Love your new sig, BTW, HG!

[Movie06]

The Academy is full of ancient people, they'll never favor a film like The Shawshank Redemption,

[Elf]

-Braveheart beat out Apollo 13

Screw that, Heat would've destroyed both of those movies if it were nominated. Too bad it didn't.

[Lord Dalek]

Screw that, Heat would've destroyed both of those movies if it were nominated. Too bad it didn't.Agreed, but as you said... not nominated = non issue.

[Lord Dalek]

The Academy is full of ancient people, they'll never favor a film like The Shawshank Redemption,Actually by your logic they would, its Pulp Fiction that would have been scorned (and was)

[Movie06]

Actually by your logic they would, its Pulp Fiction that would have been scorned (and was)

Well, Shawshank Redemption is just an example. But I do agree that Pulp Fiction should've won an Oscar.

[Hanshotfirst113]

Well, Shawshank Redemption is just an example. But I do agree that Pulp Fiction should've won an Oscar.

It did. It won best original screenplay.

[Movie06]

It did. It won best original screenplay.

Oh. You know, I don't understand why the Academy likes The English Patient, I never like that movie to be honest.

[dark knight acolyte]

Also, if I'm not mistaken, I believe "L.A. Confidential" and "Titanic" were nominated in the same year. Don't misunderstand me, as I feel "T" was an epic and excellent film. Very moving, however...

I feel "LA" was the better movie. It captured the atmosphere and thrill of crime noir mystery and thick corruption in early LA so vividly, had a plot "to die for" (pun intended), and some of the very best award-worthy acting performances I've ever seen on screen. Very underrated.


Anyway, getting back on topic, Shawshank, while not the best film of it's year IMO, is a solid 10/10... I don't know how anyone could watch that film and objectively consider it anything below VERY GOOD.

[Hanshotfirst113]

This is truly a powerful film. The purist in my says that I shouldn't be taken in by the sentimentality, the occasional contrivance, and the odd bit of uneven dialogue. But the movie weaves an incredible spell. It's a powerful tale of hope that doesn't feel cloy. Deakins photography yields some beautiful images, my personal favorites being the beach shot at the end and the sunset on the roof. It's a slow film, but necessarily so, with its story lasting years and its message being about patience and time. And almost like Casablanca, another cinematic alchmeic miracle, everything somehow just works. The performances are superb, especially the two leads, with Robbins and Freeman turning in tearjerker stuff. Shawshank is a modern classic, a good, old-fashioned melodrama that somehow transcends what it is to become great storytelling.

[Desensitized]

Yeah, this is one hell of a great ride. Also where Morgan Freeman's "narrator voice" gained popularity.

Still though, what an ending!