The Shawshank Redemption

There have been a lot of prison movies made over the years, and the stories have come from almost every viewpoint that you can think of. But this movie stirs something in everyone who sees it, whether it's the story of the man who is falsely accused of murder or the desperate circumstances that he has to face on a daily basis or for whatever of a number of reasons, this movie is at the top of the list of prison films. With the outstanding acting by Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman we are shown a faithful and accurate adaptation of the Stephen King story "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption.
A bank manager in Maine is convicted for a double murder that he didn't commit, while serving his sentence he becomes admired by the other inmates and passes along his sense of hope. There isn't a lot of action in this film but what little you do have goes along way, from the interactions between the inmates to the eventual escape you are drawn into the story and at times held breathless waiting for the outcome. The friendship that is developed between Robbins' and Freeman's characters is the kind of life long friendships that most of us would strive for, but here that relationship is what keeps them alive and hoping until the end of the story. The design of props and sets that were done for the film was amazing, the look of authenticity of these things was done so well its hard to believe that your not in the 1940s.Very few of King's stories have been made into successful films, not that they aren't all entertaining they are, but the in-depth workings of the character's minds are very hard to transfer visually to the screen. But as long as they are fun and pleasing to watch, whether they're horror, fantasy or sheer terror, the audience is sure to enjoy themselves. Like King's other prison stories we are given an insight into characters that most of us wouldn't give a second look to, but we're shown the gifts that have been bestowed upon them gifts that we would not normally see. This is a very thought provoking film and it brings up a number of issues about our penal and judicial systems and how, even from the 40s, there hasn't been much change in the way things are done. We still have people falsely accused of crimes and unfortunately these people are forced into sentences that are uncalled for, with a little bit of effort maybe we can change as a society, but I doubt it not enough people want to make the effort for change.