The Shawshank Redemption (Single-Disc Edition)

By far, my favorite movie of all time. This movie had a deliverance that you wish were found in more films. Great story, great characters, great twists, great cast .. Everything can be found in this film. And I don't say that lightly. The story unfolds in 1947 when banker Andy Dufresne(Tim Robbins) is convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, based on circumstantial evidence, and is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences at Shawshank State Penitentiary. Andy quickly befriends contraband smuggler Ellis "Red" Redding (Morgan Freeman), an inmate serving a life sentence. Red procures a rock hammer for Andy, allowing him to create small stone chess pieces. Red later gets him a large poster of Rita Hayworth, followed in later years by images of Marilyn Monroe and Raquel Welch. Andy works in the prison laundry, but is regularly assaulted by the "bull queer" gang "the Sisters" and their leader Bogs (Mark Rolston). In 1949, Andy overhears the brutal chief guard Byron Hadley (Clancy Brown) complaining about taxes on a forthcoming inheritance and informs him about a financial loophole. After another vicious assault by the Sisters nearly kills Andy, Hadley severely beats Bogs resulting in Bogs being sent to another prison. Andy is not attacked again. Warden Samuel Norton (Bob Gunton) meets with Andy and reassigns him to the prison library to assist elderly inmate Brooks Hatlen (James Whitmore), a pretext for Andy to manage financial duties for the prison. His advice and expertise are soon sought by other guards at Shawshank and from nearby prisons. Andy begins writing weekly letters to the state government for funds to improve the decrepit library. In 1954, Brooks is freed on parole, but unable to adjust to the outside world after 50 years in prison, he hangs 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 his receiving solitary confinement. After his release, Andy explains that he holds onto hope as something that the prison cannot take from him, but Red dismisses the idea. In 1963, Norton begins exploiting prison labor for public works, profiting by undercutting skilled labor costs and receiving kickbacks. He has Andy launder the money using the alias "Randall Stephens". In 1965, Tommy Williams (Gil Bellows) is incarcerated for burglary. He joins Andy's and Red's circle of friends, and Andy helps him pass his General Educational Development (G.E.D.) examinations. In 1966, after hearing the details of Andy's case, Tommy reveals that an inmate at another prison claimed responsibility for an identical murder, suggesting Andy's innocence. Andy approaches Norton with this information, but the warden refuses to listen. Norton places Andy in solitary confinement and has Hadley murder Tommy, under the guise of an escape attempt. Andy refuses to continue with the scam, but Norton threatens to destroy the library and take away his protection and preferential treatment. After Andy is released from solitary confinement, he tells Red of his dream of living in Zihuatanejo, a Mexican Pacific coastal town. While Red shrugs it off as being unrealistic, Andy instructs him, should he ever be freed, to visit a specific hayfield near Buxton to retrieve a package. What happens next , you will just have to watch ! It's definitely WORTH THE WATCH if you haven't seen it. In fact, I am most confident that you will enjoy this one. More movies like this, please. I am a very satisfied customer.

Greatest movie of all time. Makes you feel good, you know? Strongly recommend.

Great movie - my husbands favorite movie of all time - oh and many times has he watched it - Alot

GREAT MOVIE, THIS INCLUDES A GREAT BONUS DISC.

I'm the 2436th person to review this movie. I first saw this movie on TV while at a girl's house I was dating. I came in at about 30 minutes into the movie but I was truly captivated by the movie and I never forgot it. More than 15 years later I saw it on DVD uncut and I liked it even more. Some things I'd forgotten about from the last time I had seen it. But one thing I will never forget is the brutality of that lead guard, played by Clancy Brown. This was a movie that wanted me to abolish maximum security prisons! The violence, the rape the intimidation the corruption! It didn't start with Attica (See My Review Of Against The Wall) but has been in existence since America's founding. Tim Robbin's character had the worst luck of anyone in the world! He was at the crime scene but did not go into the room where his wife was cheating on him. He left bullets behind and then stupidly threw his gone into the river only to not have it be discovered. Had he kept his gun the ballistics would have proved that his gun was not the murder weapon. As it stands another killer did the murder and in essence got away with the crime. This led to Andy's (Robbin's Character) being convicted for a crime he did not commit. I was amazed at the inner strength that Robbin's character Andy had. He was beaten, humiliated, raped and yet was able to still persevere without losing his mind. But that's what he had in abundance. He had a mind and he used it to outwit his enemies and friends too. In many ways his escape reminded me of the two fellows who escaped from prison a few months ago in New York. It was a tenacious desire to get one's freedom from the oppression of the Man! This is why I admired Tim Robbins and his character, Andy. Redd was portrayed so well by Morgan Freeman that the story might just as well have been about him too. I'm glad that Tom Cruise and Harrison Ford were not cast in these roles. The film would have suffered I'm sure. But I will say this, the film might have done better at the box office had the title been different. Shawshank Redemption is not really a catchy title and may have turned women and some men off entirely to seeing the film. This is what at least one writer said. Despite this I give the film Four and a Half Stars. Leonard Maltin gave it Two and a Half out of Four Stars. I disagree with that but he may have been turned off by the length of the film. The author Robert A. Berman in his fantastic book Fade In: The Screenwriting Process said something interesting. He said that he had read an article about films with bad titles. He said that almost every badly titled film did poorly at the box office. "The Shawshank Redemption, which did okay in theatres, might have done more business with a better title. I passed on seeing The Shawshank Redemption in the theatres. The title just turned me off." He went on to say that he saw it on Pay-For-View and liked it while adding that a good title can make a difference in box office sales. I concur with this observation. The title of this movie is nothing to write home about. This may have explained its average showing at the box office. Despite this, don't hold back from seeing this fine film. It's a true gem! A. Nathaniel Wallace, Jr.

Top 5 best movie of all time. So good. Great story with a happy ending.

Everybody knows the plot....Tim Robbins plays Andy Dufresne, a vice president of a bank who is convicted of the double murder of his wife and her lover and sentenced to a double life term and sent to Shawshank Prison. Morgan Freeman plays Red, a black inmate and marketeer who eventually befriends Andy once Andy starts to get used to his life as the 'new fish' in prison. As the years pass by a deep bond forms between them. Andy also befriends the other members of Red's gang but it's Red that he forms the most important connection with. Andy also seeks to try and improve conditions in the prison. He proves himself to be a most valuable asset to the hypocritical, bible-thumping Warden Norton (Bob Gunton) and the brutal head guard Captain Hadley (Clancy Brown). This proves to be both a blessing and a curse for Andy, a blessing because he's saved from any more rapes and beatings at the hands of the local prison rapist Bogs Diamond (Mark Rolston), but it becomes a curse when Norton refuses to allow Andy to get out under his thumb when new information about the murders of Andy's wife and the new man in her life come to Andy's attention. The warden and Hadley take despicable action to ensure that their golden goose never leaves Shawshank. Ultimately, though, Andy outsmarts them in the end and does escape from prison (though he'll remain a fugitive until the end of his days) and heads for Mexico to his ideal Heavenly like place, Zihuatanejo. Shawshank is THE number one prison story put on film in my opinion (it was based on a short story by Stephen King). Brilliantly acted by Robbins and Freeman, Gunton and Brown make great villains, and the supporting cast is also excellent. William Sadler, Gil Burrows and especially James Whitmore as the defeated lifer Brooks, unprepared for a parole life out of prison that he never wanted, give excellent support. Red is eventually paroled a bit later after Andy's escape, but has the same feelings of hopelessness that Brooks had of a life after prison.....will he go down Brooks' road or take Andy up on his offer to go down to Zihuatanejo? It's a beautiful movie about hope, friendship and endurance, and triumphing over injustice . A definite classic. It's unfortunate it came out the same year that FORREST GUMP did (I never liked that movie), but the fact that the movie has won the hearts of so many fans seems to have proved who the real winning movie of 1994 was.

GREAT MOVIE

A fantastic movie with a very satisfying ending. The acting is superb!

Ya era hora de conseguir esta película con una edición a la altura de la misma. Después de 3 ediciones en Blu-Ray de la película, por fin podemos tener (con esta ultima edición) la película en unas muy condiciones. La calidad de imagen es excelente con una definición correcta y sin defectos. Se ha usado un Blu-ray prensado de 50Gb y el master se encuentra en un estado impecable. Para la versión doblada en castellano tenemos 2 pistas: la ya conocida en Dolby Digital 5.1 con defectos y de baja calidad en la que las voces se distorsionan cuando suenan al mismo tiempo que la música y con efecto "enlatado". Y una nueva en Dolby Digital 2.0 proveniente del DVD sin defectos. La versión original viene presentada en Dolby Digital 5.1. Los extras son varios documentales, entrevistas y trailers que duran en total 3 horas y subtitulados perfectamente en castellano. Los extras son muy muy interesantes.

Très belle histoire, des moments un peu difficile mais encore une belle prestation de l'acteur Morgan Freeman.

Excellent film en version audio francaise

If like me you have favourite films. You often find yourself double even quadruple dipping as your constantly tempted by ultra special editions, directors cuts, steelbooks and the like. Well if you have got to say this is truly a real collectors edition. You get usual art cards, repro film posters etc. But the little little things like the film prop reproduction of the letter for Red, make it different. The box art is stunning. Film is in my top ten all time, this is the best ever version, if you only buy one, this is the one to get. Hopefully yours isn’t damaged in the terrible thin cardboard Amazon envelope the send it in.