In 1947 Portland, Maine, Andy Dufresne is convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, and is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences at the Shawshank State Penitentiary. Andy is befriended by contraband smuggler, Ellis "Red" Redding, an inmate serving a life sentence. Red procures a rock hammer and later a large poster of Rita Hayworth for Andy. Working in the prison laundry, Andy is regularly assaulted by "the Sisters" and their leader, Bogs.
In 1949, Andy overhears the captain of the guards, Byron Hadley, complaining about being taxed on an inheritance, and offers to help him legally shelter the money. After an assault by the Sisters nearly kills Andy, Hadley beats Bogs severely. Bogs is then transferred to another prison. Warden Samuel Norton meets Andy and reassigns him to the prison library to assist elderly inmate Brooks Hatlen. Andy's new job is a pretext for him to begin managing financial matters for the prison employees. As time passes, the Warden begins using Andy to handle matters for a variety of people, including guards from other prisons and the warden himself. Andy begins writing weekly letters asking the state government for funds to improve the decaying library.
In 1954, Brooks is paroled, but cannot adjust to the outside world after fifty years in prison, and commits suicide by hanging himself. Andy receives a library donation that includes a recording of The Marriage of Figaro. He plays an excerpt over the public address system, resulting in him receiving solitary confinement. After his release from solitary, Andy explains that hope is what gets him through his time, a concept that Red dismisses. In 1963, Norton begins exploiting prison labor for public works, profiting by undercutting skilled labor costs and receiving bribes. He has Andy launder the money using the alias Randall Stephens.
In 1965, Tommy Williams is incarcerated for burglary. He is befriended by Andy and Red, and Andy helps him pass his GEDexam. In 1966, Tommy reveals to Red and Andy that an inmate at another prison claimed responsibility for the murders for which Andy was convicted. Andy approaches Norton with this information, but he refuses to listen and sends Andy back to solitary confinement when he mentions the money laundering. Norton has Hadley murder Tommy under the guise of an escape attempt. Andy declines to continue the laundering, but relents after Norton threatens to burn the library, remove Andy's protection from the guards, and move him to worse conditions. Andy is released from solitary confinement after two months, and tells Red of his dream of living in Zihuatanejo, a Mexican coastal town. Red feels Andy is being unrealistic, but promises Andy that if he is ever released, he will visit a specific hayfield near Buxton, Maine, and retrieve a package Andy buried there. He worries about Andy's wellbeing, especially when he learns Andy asked another inmate to supply him with six feet (1.8 meters) of rope.
The next day at roll call, the guards find Andy's cell empty. An irate Norton throws a rock at the poster of Raquel Welchhanging on the cell wall, revealing a tunnel that Andy dug with his rock hammer over the last 19 years. The previous night, Andy escaped through the tunnel and prison sewage pipe, using the rope to bring with him Norton's suit, shoes, and the ledger containing details of the money laundering. While guards search for him, Andy poses as Randall Stephens and visits several banks to withdraw the laundered money, then mails the ledger and evidence of the corruption and murders at Shawshank to a local newspaper. FBI agents arrive at Shawshank and take Hadley into custody, while Norton commits suicideby shooting himself to avoid his arrest.
After serving forty years, Red is finally paroled. He struggles to adapt to life outside prison and fears he never will. Remembering his promise to Andy, he visits Buxton and finds a cache containing money and a letter asking him to come to Zihuatanejo. Red violates his parole and travels to Fort Hancock, Texas to cross the border to Mexico, admitting he finally feels hope. On a beach in Zihuatanejo he finds Andy, and the two friends are happily reunited.
In many people's definition, this is primarily a parody film American judicial system and the prison system. Because if not for the miscarriage of justice on the judicial system, it is not Andy came to Shawshank prison; and if not for the dark prison institutional corruption, it does not become Andy Norton money laundering will not be behind the machine the whole story. However, in my definition, the film should first define the dark film about humanity and redemption movie, if it is defined in the satirical world of the justice system and prison institutional limitations as if the film itself anyway the kind of deeper meaning and make the film seem superficial.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, whether the judicial system on the vulnerability or dark prison institutional corruption, which remains a fundamental of human nature and greed still dark on. If we say that Andy also wrongly jailed just because of wrongful convictions on the judicial system, then later Andy got a chance to return to overthrow error free society, but this opportunity was a threat to the security and warden Norton the whole process of money laundering system, then, is the opportunity to kill off Norton completely embodies the dark on this humanity.
Humanity is all that social rules and regulations of the party. Time no matter how the final sound system still can only rely on people to run the operation, and if the people who manage the whole system itself still with a greedy desire to watch it all, they can always find an opportunity or errors and omissions.
Andy imprisonment may also be said that the loopholes in the judicial system as well as on objective evidence to testify. But his escape was only a very helpless choice. Because in addition to complete such a way that his noble soul, he could not find any other way to accomplish this that belongs to freedom and his dreams.
We can say that all about all this is just an idea or a good idea Norton evil Bale. When a person caught in a miscarriage of justice and the demands of nowhere, I do not know his face is a kind of how despair. Perhaps not the most terrible darkness, and this is really terrible despair brings to life one can see no light in the road. I do not know Rhett calm tone in talking about Andy stayed his tiny cell silent first night was how he spent those thinking of his will is. He is about to begin a never have bright life, he is about to begin his long and no anterior life in this dark night.
Darkness, from the endless darkness enveloped him and he will always be tightly wrapped to live. Hopes and dreams from now on will be left him. He was just a good at man restrained emotion and affection, so he never lost do not know how to express her feelings of his wife, so he derailed after the wife out of the house and her lover died in bed at home. For him, it all became his peace of mind to build life in prison in a psychological basis, his atonement for him that he did not kill his wife, but his actions directly or indirectly caused the death of his wife.
Heavy guilt and fell into a deep stalemate dark wrapped him. No hope and light. What we see is a multi-heavy darkness, perhaps, we can see light and hope to bring us happiness.
I have never seen such an amazing film since I saw The Shawshank Redemption. Shawshank encompasses friendships, hardships, hopes, and dreams. And what is so great about the movie is that it moves you, it gives you hope. Even though the circumstances between the characters and the viewers are quite different, you don't feel that far removed from what the characters are going through.
ReplyDeleteIt is a simple film, yet it has an everlasting message. Frank Darabont didn't need to put any kind of outlandish special effects to get us to love this film, the narration and the acting does that for him. Why this movie didn't win all seven Oscars is beyond me, but don't let that sway you to not see this film, let its ranking on the IMDb's top 250 list sway you, let your friends recommendation about the movie sway you.
Set aside a little over two hours tonight and rent this movie. You will finally understand what everyone is talking about and you will understand why this is my all time favorite movie.