never has a film had such an effect on me as when i saw the shawshank redemption movie on home video around seven years ago, i was so uplifted by this trememdous story of a man overcoming all the odds to find his dream...
...if anyone has not seen this movie yet, it really is a must see film.
...
...amazing to think it struggled to find an audience when first released but word of mouth has made it a modern classic.

Great movie

One of my favorites, top 10 actually. Check out the Deer Hunter too!

I find The Muppets Take Manhattan to be more spiritually uplifting than The Shawshank Redemption.

I just don't get why people rave on about it so much.

Just what is it that everybody loves about it, so much? I found it predictable, unthrilling and mawkish.

It was on a few day ago in Holland, I've seen it several times, but still I have to watch it. It's great!

Whateva said:

Same here...when it's on...I watch it. Doesn't matter how many times. It's such a great film!!!!

I LOVE this movie. It is definately in my top 5.

I think it's a beautifully crafted film. Shawshank is that unlikely thing, a feel-good prison movie. I think it's great how a movie that did rather dissapointigly on release grew into one of the most fiercely-loved and uplifting male weepies by word of mouth.

Stephen King really is a great writer.

I too love the movie and t is in y top 5 list proberly!


Remember the Sylvester Stallone prison flim "lock up".....that was quite depressing really!

it's a great film and a very good masterpiece but i can't believe that the director converted a shot stoy by stephen king into this work of art.

shawshank, the green mile and stand by me are three of the greatest king movies out there imo, although shawshank and the grene mile are longer.

and for those that want to visit mid-ohio, you can visit the prison that was used in the making of the movie. it's closed now but you can tour the place and the special sewage pipeline they created for the movie.

i hear the prison that they used in the film is actually haunted and over halloween you can go on haunted tours of the place.

a2grafix said:

yes you can I think they call it the haunted prison and laboratory near halloween

BinaryJustin said:

I think it somehow managed to tap into the core of the American culture, history, values and sensibilities. You will rarely find a non-American that raves about it as much as Americans do. In the US, people are not as sensitive to sentimentality, straight simplified messages and sugar-coated endings as others are. They instead appreciate the hope, the anti-racism, the well-crafted fusion of images and music, the warmth and other things that also characterize The Shawshank Redemption.

Personally, I thought it was average. As you say, it was predictable and mawkish, but at times I also found it sweet and engaging (in great part thanks to the likeable characters).