"Fear can hold you prisoner. Hope can set you free." That’s the tagline to my

favorite and one of best dramas of all time, The Shawshank Redemption. It is an adaptation of the Stephen King book Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. The movie begins with the trial of a young banker named Andy Dufresne who is sent to Shawshank Prison for the murder of his wife. He is very isolated at first but over the years he gains the respect of him fellow inmates. After 20 years of false imprisonment Andy takes matters into his own hands and escapes from Shawshank Prison. Some people would say it wasn’t even the best movie of 1994, with other more popular movies getting most of the attention. It did very poorly in the box-office; it grossed less that 30 million and audiences largely avoided it. But after the slow start, popularity for the movie exploded. The Shawshank Redemption is voted as the second best drama film of all time behind The Godfather, which I agree because this movie deserves this high praise it gets now.

This movie is loved my many people and it is known as one of the best movies of all time according to the IMDb chart, but why is that? The plot is not all that original and could be said to be predictable. Many critics complain that the movie was too long to sustain its story; also there is not much action and no special effects just men in prison uniforms talking to each other. These points can be made but it won't define the movie in my mind. Much of the credit for the success of the movie is due to the actors who play in it, and the message of hope that the movie gives. This is a story of perseverance and overcoming obstacles, with a good happy ending.

Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne and Morgan Freeman as Red give two amazing

performances. Tim Robbins gives one of his best performances of his career in The Shawshank Redemption. Tim Robbins character Andy Dufresne brings hope to the prisoners of Shawshank. Hope is the major theme of the movie. Throughout

the movie Andy gives the most hope to Red, his best friend at Shawshank. After

many years in prison, a lot of the prisoners, including Red, lose hope. As Red

is losing hope for the future Andy becomes his redeemer, in the religious sense of the word. (wikipedia) He saves Red by convincing him that there is more to the world than the prison that Red knows all to well.

Red, the other main character of the film, is played by Morgan Freeman. He was a lifetime inmate of Shawshank Prison. "There must be a con like me in every prison in America. I'm the guy who can get it for you. Cigarettes, a bag of reefer if that's your thing, a bottle of brandy to celebrate your kid's high school graduation, damn near anything within reason. Yes sir, I'm a regular Sears and Roebuck." That’s how Red was known to the prisoners, and that’s how Andy and Red met, and eventually became the best of friends. Morgan Freeman played a huge part in the success of this movie. Not only because of the acting that he did, but because his character was also the narrator. His calm, soothing voice is easy to listen to and really makes the film easy to follow. The length of the movie was in question. Many critics think that it is too long and moves too slowly. It is a long movie, but that is one of the things that are good about the plot. The story shows patience and the growth a life-long friendship, which is made even better because of the voice of Morgan Freeman.

When The Shawshank Redemption came out in 1994 it was not a huge hit. It first started to gain significant attention in the winter of 1995. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Morgan Freeman), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Sound, but it failed to win a single Oscar. It was a small film that grossed far less than the top ten money making films of that year. It was avoided in theaters, largely overlooked because of the other big movies that came out that year including; Forrest Gump, True Lies, Dumb and Dumber, and Pulp Fiction. Over the years the popularity of The Shawshank Redemption grew unbelievably considering of how it did in the box office. The slow start adds to the credibility of the movie, because now it is seen as a much better movie than all the movies that grossed much more money than it did in 1994 when it came out.

Overall, The Shawshank Redemption is one of the best dramas ever made. Despite

its flaws it is an amazing film that touches the soul, and that’s why it is

consistently voted as the second best drama according to the IMDb chart. I

believe that this is a truly great film that deserves all the praise it has

received over the years.

{You need a bibliography.}