What so good about "The Shawshank Redemption"

[Scientist]

Yesterday I was talking about movies with some people and as always the title The Shawshank Redemption comes up. Apparently this is "one of the best movies ever made". For instance it's at number two in the imdb charts. http://www.imdb.com/chart/top
I saw this movie once and really didn't think much of it. What's so bloody fantastic about this movie? When I ask people this they will answer like: "It's hard to explain what exactly it is that makes it so great".
Yeah, that helps a lot.

Now I'm sure some of you have seen this movie and I'm hoping you can tell me what the hell you're seeing in this movie that I'm not.

[Janderson]

Well... you see-eee, um, it's hard to explain what exactly it is that makes it so great. :P

[Scientist]

Yeah, that helps a lot

[Janderson]

Well I only remember one bit, it was like; 'He crawled through 300m of shit and made it out clean.' on a recent top 100 the celebrity-critics repeated that line a lot. Maybe it is the 'great metaphorical meaning' you get when you read between the lines, or something.

I thought it was shit personally.

[Fredrik]

I don't see how anyone can think it is shit.

Myself, I think it's a good movie. I've seen better, I've seen worse.

[Lord FlatHead]

A simple story, nicely executed. Two good leading roles. Like Fredrik says, just a good movie. I guess it got to a lot of people's emotions if it's really that popular.

[Foofoo]

I think it has the best jail break-out scene/scenes ever.

[Fletcher`]

Its mostly about emotion. I thought it was a good movie.

[Sgt_BFG]

Escape From Alcatraz was better.

[Quast]

Scientist said:

I saw this movie once and really didn't think much of it. What's so bloody fantastic about this movie? When I ask people this they will answer like: "It's hard to explain what exactly it is that makes it so great".

Why do you bother asking people what's so great about it if you don't like it?

Personaly, it's one of my favorite movies. I like it, and that's that.

[Janderson]

Fredrik said:

I don't see how anyone can think it is shit.

I was very young last time I saw it, but I'll look into it again some time.

[Doom-Child]

It was a really good movie. Although I usually can't stand Tim Robbins, I thought it was executed very well. Now that I think about it, I don't really like Morgan Freeman either. I guess the movie was just very cohesive.

DC

[darknation]

gay rape, obviously.

[Sharessa]

I don't see how people can rate it as one of the best movies of all time, but it was pretty good. I especialy like when he breaks out of jail.

Sadly, the only place I've ever seen it is on TNT or TBS or whatever. I need to see it completely uncut some day.

[Zaldron]

Scientist said:

What's so bloody fantastic about this movie?

If you can't feel it what use is to be told? Most movies that hold a special place in people's minds are not explained with such concepts as "superb directing" and "thrilling performances".

[sargebaldy]

I dunno, I thought the characters were pretty good and it had some successful emotional impact. Also it does a good job of dictating a total institution. And how he got out was pretty cool. But yeah, it's not quite as incredible as some people say.

[Ralphis]

Anyone ever get to see The Shawskank Reception?

[Lüt]

People usually say things like that about movies which don't follow the same one of 3 or 4 cut+paste Hollywood formulas, thus it is an exciting endeavor into new and uncharted territories for the average moviegoer. It seems to be a matter of relativity, nothing more.

I saw the movie in a sociology class and while I found no reason to ever watch it again, I didn't dislike watching it either. Just another average 5/10 movie which is fine in its own right but breaks no new storytelling or filmmaking ground.

[Opulent]

Like most good movies, it is how it is executed.
Red(Freeman) is the main character... Tim Robbins' character is just there as a tool.
Red expects him to cry his first night in jail(as Red obviously did his first night), but no, he doesn't. That's because he killed his wife. He's guilty.
The old man gets out and hangs himself... just like Red obviously does later. They are doomed men; they never reach Mexico, there is no money, they never get free.
"Red was here." brutal.
It isn't a great movie, but it is quite good... there aren't many movies that are clearly better than it. Yes, it is over-rated.

[Quast]

Opulent said:

The old man gets out and hangs himself... just like Red obviously does later. They are doomed men; they never reach Mexico, there is no money, they never get free.
"Red was here." brutal.

Wait...what? While everything he does mimmics the old man after they get released, his friendship with andy (and the promise they made) presumably gives him a reason to live. And we see that. He gets on a bus and goes to that field and finds the money. Then we see him meet andy. How and why do you figure he hangs himself?

[Opulent]

Quast said:

Wait...what? While everything he does mimmics the old man after they get released, his friendship with andy (and the promise they made) presumably gives him a reason to live. And we see that. He gets on a bus and goes to that field and finds the money. Then we see him meet andy. How and why do you figure he hangs himself?

You are watching the movie at face value. SOME movies actually have deeper meanings, symbolism, and allegorical plots.
Take the end of "On the Waterfront" for a simple example: Brando's character gets beaten behind the shack on the pier. In the movie(at face value), you see him stagger out beaten and everyone goes back to work. Oh no, he is dead. They beat him to death, and then everyone goes back to work. He was a bum, he didn't change anything.
Red: "There's a frightening inevitability that we must all face." He is directly telling the viewer that he knows he will kill himself. He knows he doesn't belong on the outside, he knows he can't make it. That is why it says 'Red was here.'
You really should watch better movies or read more.

[DOOM Anomaly]

Never seen it before. Though it has a funny name.

[Goat]

Opulent said:

You are watching the movie at face value. SOME movies actually have deeper meanings, symbolism, and allegorical plots.
Take the end of "On the Waterfront" for a simple example: Brando's character gets beaten behind the shack on the pier. In the movie(at face value), you see him stagger out beaten and everyone goes back to work. Oh no, he is dead. They beat him to death, and then everyone goes back to work. He was a bum, he didn't change anything.
Red: "There's a frightening inevitability that we must all face." He is directly telling the viewer that he knows he will kill himself. He knows he doesn't belong on the outside, he knows he can't make it. That is why it says 'Red was here.'

god i cant think like that

[Cyb]

Opulent said:

You are watching the movie at face value. SOME movies actually have deeper meanings, symbolism, and allegorical plots.
Take the end of "On the Waterfront" for a simple example: Brando's character gets beaten behind the shack on the pier. In the movie(at face value), you see him stagger out beaten and everyone goes back to work. Oh no, he is dead. They beat him to death, and then everyone goes back to work. He was a bum, he didn't change anything.
Red: "There's a frightening inevitability that we must all face." He is directly telling the viewer that he knows he will kill himself. He knows he doesn't belong on the outside, he knows he can't make it. That is why it says 'Red was here.'
You really should watch better movies or read more.

wow, you win the over-analysis award of the year for that one

[Dr. Zin]

Spaceballs obviously ends with Lonestar and crew dying. They don't escape the blast from the destruction of Mega-Maid (a commentary on the obsessive compulsive tendencies that run in everyone's mind), and the diner scene with the alien ripping out of the patron's chest symbolizes Lonestar's soul leaving his body. The wedding between him and Princess Vespa represents the unresolved conflicts and promises left when we die and the Winnebago speeding away shows the true futility and hopelessness of life.

[DaJuice]

I'd say it's better than just "good". It's one of those movies I enjoy every time I see.

[Sharessa]

Speaking of good movies, I just watched Dark City for the first time in years. Man, the director/writers should so sue the Wakisaki brothers or whatever for totaly ripping off their ideas to make The Matrix.

[destx]

Manrape.


Oh, and a happy ending.

[Fredrik]

Danarchy said:

Speaking of good movies, I just watched Dark City for the first time in years. Man, the director/writers should so sue the Wakisaki brothers or whatever for totaly ripping off their ideas to make The Matrix.

Yeah. Whenever I encounter a retarded Matrix fan, I can just say that The Matrix is an inferior rip-off of Dark City. Makes me feel appropriately elitist.

[Lord Raffles]

Stones are a re-occuring theme throughout the film, such as 'These Walls of stone' to the chess pieces carved from stone, to the geological references to stone. I believe this gives the central protagonist a sense of power over other prisoners, and even the Warden, as unlike anyone else within the prison who are trapped within the Walls of stone, he moulds and shapes the stones (and ultimatley breaks out of the stone).

There's also lots of references to 'cracks'. In short, this film will make a Geologist cream in their pants.