A Life Sentence of Good Film- The Shawshank Redemption

Rated by Enterprise as "One of the 1000 must see movies before you die", The Shawshank Redemption is undoubtedly one of the most highly acclaimed movies in recent history. Frank Darabount's film tells the story of a wrongfully imprisoned man, Andy DuFresne, a banker from Oregon. He is given a life sentence without parole, and is sent to one of the most notorious prisons in the country, Shawshank. There, he forms a bond with Red, a fellow inmate played by Morgan Freeman. There, he had to adjust to prison life, even having to deal with a gang of rapists, who single out Andy for a long stretch of his sentence. The film takes a very humane approach, giving insight into the real personalities of the inmates. The film is cinematically extremely well made, with coherent, well made scenes and gives a very convincing sense of immersion. The characters are extremely fleshed out, with even the villains, mainly the Warden, being seemingly human. These choices help make the ending of the film much more emotional, and especially the scene where, once exposed, decides to take his own life rather than go to prison. This is an ironic moment, as the warden is the one who decided on the terrible conditions that led him to choose suicide over his own prison. Objectively, the film is extremely well made.

Subjectively, the film has its pros and cons. The feelings of connection to characters was one of the best parts of the movie. the connection between Andy and red, while a 2 person connection, made me feel as though I was a part of their connection, rather than a viewer. The suicide of Brooks evoked a sense of disappointment, rather than pure sadness. A man who spent 50 years in a prison, once finally released, became so accustomed to life inside that he couldn't handle what should have been a victory for him, and killed himself. Banter between inmates was a well needed relief from the depressing environment of the prison life, but it did not feel too forced like in recent movies that have dark topics.
Overall, I would give this a Good Good, with quality at its highest and enjoyment middle of the way up. The film did get monotonous at times. This, however, can be forgiven, as it was most likely done on purpose to reflect the monotony of a life sentence.