Rating: 
Summary: Brilliance at its best
Review: theres nuthing left to say......... Brilliance at its best
Rating:
Summary: Most Excellent!
Review: My fiance was turned on to the wonderful world of King with this movie. It knocked his opinion that Stephen King just wrote horror or gore right out of the water! From here we watched Stand By Me and this remains one of his all-time favorite movies. It features a star-studded cast and is a very poignant film. Definately breaks the Stephen King stereotype for those cynics that say he can't write anything good without a lot of blood and insanity (I like most of what he's written but that's not a blanket seal of approval!).
Rating:
Summary: You remember the name of the town... Zihuatenajo.
Review: Not only the #2 ranked movie of all time on [movie sites], but here on Amazon.com, at the time of this posting, 523 of 582 reviews awarded this film five stars, the highest possible. Most of the remaining 59 reviews give it four stars. If that's not a motivation to see this movie, nothing is.The Shawshank Redemption is on my personal top ten "all-time" list, and is easily the finest adaptation of any Stephen King story. I've read many of his books, but after reading Pet Sematary and It, I was left slack-jawed. The man can flat-out write. He has a gift... creating characters so real and alive you can sense them, and creating mood and tone so deeply real, it's palpable. However, his stories oftentimes don't translate well to the screen. Some things are better left in the imagination of the reader. Happily, that wasn't the case with The Shawshank Redemption. Amazing to me was that this nearly two-and-a-half hour movie was pulled from the text of a story scarcely a hundred pages in length (in a small paperback, no less). That alone is testament to the depth and power of King's story, in my opinion. The filmmakers did a masterful job of handling the passage of time that is a crucial element to this story -- both linear time and flashbacks. It was seamless and could scarcely have been done any better. The casting was spot-on. Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Bob Gunton (as Warden Norton), and Clancy Brown (as Byron Hadley) were standouts. The few departures from the text of King's story were actually very welcome. It was much more visceral for Tommy to be shot than for him to be transferred to another prison, just as it was much more satisfying for Norton to kill himself than to be hauled away to jail. Some of the violence was difficult to watch, but, after all, this story takes place primarily within the walls of a maximum security state prison. It can't be whitewashed without diluting the impact of the overall story. This movie found new life after its release on home video, this much is certain. It didn't curry much favor with moviegoers during its theater run; many said the cumbersome title was partly to blame. Some said it was too long a movie. Others speculated the nature of the film (prison drama) was its main detraction. Perhaps, too, it was just the competition (the same year also saw Pulp Fiction, The Lion King, Forrest Gump, The Client, and more). Whatever the reason, this movie was clearly one of the most underrated of all time. Only in its home video run did it achieve the full status and appreciation it so richly deserved. Although politics have robbed many worthy films of proper "Best Picture" Oscars, in this case, The Shawshank Redemption was just outmatched by a film which was not only excellent in its own right, but exponentially more popular at the box office: Forrest Gump. However, to have had seven Oscar nominations and win nary a one was a travesty. Nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor (Morgan Freeman), Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay Adaptation, Best Film Editing, Best Sound, and Best Original Music Score, it should have at least won the award for Best Screenplay Adaptation... and possibly Best Film Editing as well. Forrest Gump was simply the Titanic of 1994, and swept the Oscars that year. If you've not availed yourself the experience of seeing this fine film, find a way to make it happen. It's an affirming human drama that will stay with you long after the movie's credits have rolled. For those not fortunate enough to have read the source material, either, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Stephen King's 1982 book Different Seasons. "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" is the first story. A quick read of this short story will give clear understanding of why someone read this tale and thought, "This would make a fantastic movie!"
Rating:
Summary: GREAT Story
Review: I don't rate many movies as 5 stars, maybe 3 or 4 total, so a 5 star rating from me means the movie is awesome. This is the best movie adaptation of any of Stephen King's books. The story is awesome, timeless, and will definitely touch anyone's heart. If you want a movie with a good story, get this one. Don't expect lots of special effects and high tech wizardry, but do expect a wonderful story that you will remeber.
Rating:
Summary: The Very Best Film that I Have Ever Seen
Review: Let me make this clear: The Shawshank Redemption is not one of my favorite movies. It is purely the very best I've ever seen-though I've never seen THE GODFATHER. I may have been only five in 1994, but now being a movie critic, I can say that some of the very best films have been in 1994-Little Women, Legends of the Fall(one of my favorites), Forrest Gump, and of course, The Shawshank Redemption. I got this movie only because my dad was recovering from hernia surgery, and because it was on his girlfriend's "Must-See Movie List". I watched it only because the other two I got I'd already seen and because my dad was busy watching Schindler's List. So I watched The Shawshank Redemption, and I was blown away. Every inch of this film is pure magic. Many critics complained about it that it was too long, but I honestly didn't think that it was long enough. It got seven nominations at the Oscars but failed to win any-it mainly lost out to Forrest Gump. I honestly thought that the Shawshank Redemption was the very best of all the nominated best picture films in '94-but I haven't seen PULP FICTION yet. Although Morgan Freeman was teriffic, Tom Hanks absoloutly shined in the title role in Forrest Gump. The cinematography was also wonderful, but I can definatly see why the Academy picked LEGENDS OF THE FALL. But what about Tim Robbins? He was the core of the whole movie, and not even a Golden Globe? For me, this film is a role model to other film makers. It is also my favorite Frank Darabont film, before THE MAJESTIC and THE GREEN MILE. Just take my advise, or anyone else's advise-see this film, because I can guarantee that you will not regret it.
Rating:
Summary: A Different Take on Prison
Review: This is a film about patience, slow moving justice, and a life-long friendship all ending with a very satisfying close to what shapes up to be a wonderful story. The main character, played by Tim Robbins, is a banker named Andy who's sent to Shawshank Prison on a murder charge, but as he gets to know a life-term prisoner named Red (Morgan Freeman), the audience is led to realize the banker's crime was probably justifiable homocide. We also realize that Andy's calm, patience, and fortitude, is more sutible to prison life than his new found friend Red thought. Shawshank Redemption shows that the typical view of a prison film which includes violence, brutality, riots and the sort, should be the only side presented. It seems that it is typically forgotten that there are also instances of faith, friendship, and survival of an entirely different kind. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, Shawshank Redemption is a remarkable film, and deserves the critical acclaim it has received as well as the hearts of the public.
Rating:
Summary: This wasn't just a good movie, it was a perfect movie
Review: Handled with delicacy, symbolism and a kind of artistry one would never expect from the King of Horror, the Shawshank Redemption is simply transformative. It will make you think about your life, about human nature, and about what a marvelous animal is man. It's one of the best movies of all time, and I don't say that lightly.
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Character Film
Review: One of the best screen adaptations of Stephen King's work to date, The Shawshank Redemption is one of the most powerful stories told by the grand master of horror, yet not a single ghost or gorey monster appears. Instead, the story is a character film about a wrongfully-imprisoned man and his struggles with a life destined to be served out in prison. People obviously more wicked than he escape punishment, from the scheming warden to an overbearing top guard, while Tim Robbins' character must silently endure their evils as one who has already been convicted and sentenced as a wrongdoer; the juxtaposition of the imprisoned good men verses the evil ones looking after them makes for a story that draws in the audience and gives them easy identification with the main characters. Somehow this wonderful film slipped by me in theaters; don't let it pass you by on DVD as well.
Rating:
Summary: This movie doesn't deserve 5 stars...
Review: ...it seserves TWENTY FIVE stars. Ok, so you already know how much I like this modern day classic. I'm not going to re-hash the plot. However, I did want to make a point on the EXCELLENT novella this movie is based on. SPOILER ALERT: For those of you who have read the novlee, I'm sure you'll know what I mean. The story actually has 2 endings. Right after Andy escapes, that's the 1st ending. Then the story picks up by Red writing in the Diary: I can't believe that I'm writing in this diary again". Then goes on with the rest of the story. END OF SPOILER Ask whoever saw this movie who wrote this story. If they don't know that it's Stephen King, they'll be surprised. I was the first time I read the story. VERY different form King's usual stuff. WHich brings me to a story I have to relate to you all: I had told a young woman from Australia about this movie. She later went to the video store with some friends. She spots this movie and decides to get it because of what I said about it. Her friends didn't want to see it because of King having wrote it. She didn't listen to her friends and rented it anyways. Well, she said that after watching the movie, her and her friends talked about the movie. They ALL liked the movie (no big surprise there!) And this woman said that the movie was TOO SHORT!!!! True story One last thing I need to say about this movie: I need 3 hours when I see it because after it's over, I like to just sit back and enjoy the feeling I get after watching it. If you want a emotionally fulfilling movie, BUY this movie, don't just rent it.
Rating:
Summary: Searching for sound track
Review: This is in the top 5 films I have ever seen. The moment when Tim Robbins plays the opera over the loud speakers is very moving. I would like to know the name of the opera and the names of the two women singing it.
| 
