Through simple acts of respect and even kindness two men come together to achieve absolution in ‘The Shawshank Redemption.’ Andy Dufresne, depicted by Tim Robbins, is falsely found guilty of the murder of his wife and her lover. After they were both shot, Andy goes done in the Shawshank Penitentiary for a lengthy sentence of two life sentences back to back for his ‘icy’ and ‘remorseless’ crimes.
Robbins’ performance throughout is superb; he keeps his character with poise and clear understanding of Andy Dufresne and his struggles in prison with the sisters, the guards and Warden Norton (Bob Gunton). Robbins’ really had his hand full with Andy Dufresne, his complex and hard to read character, with subtle emotional outputs throughout the story, must have made it very challenging for him to really grab hold of his character. I feel Robbins’ best moments in the film came when Andy encounters the sisters and their twisted way of passing the time in prison. Robbins’ shows Andy’s determination to not be beat by them by not fighting back and accepting his fate at first. Andy knows that he has to keep quiet and pay his dues because otherwise he may pay for it with his life. Robbins’ plays this particular part of Andy’s complex character with extreme talent by not showing much emotion in the prison. I felt that this kept the film realistic because showing emotion in prison wouldn't have got you far in his circumstance.
Meanwhile; Red (Morgan Freeman), the man who can get you things, watches on at Andy from a far, intrigued by the way Andy holds himself in prison. The perceptive prisoner sees how Andy doesn't walk as if he is in prison but as if he was ‘without a care or worry in the world.’ Red expresses his liking for Andy from the start. As per usual, Freeman has an outstanding performance as Red, he shows his conflict about leaving the clink. Red fears for his mental stability if he left The Shawshank, after Brooks (James Whitmore) commits suicide shortly after being freed from a very long imprisonment. Freeman shows this conflict brilliantly by confiding in Andy in a rare moment of deep fear and sadness in a place that usually only ever sees anger and regret. Freeman shows Red’s struggle particularly well when he said ‘All I do anymore is think of ways to break my parole.’ This is powerful because it shows us that because Red has been in the joint for so long, he knows nothing else, he has nothing else.
Red and Andy’s relationship throughout this dramatic epic, is what gets the audience through the dark themes and events that are explored in this ground-breaking piece of cinema. This unlikely deep friendship gives the audience hope for our two main characters and their even more unlikely success in their dream to be freemen.
‘Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.’
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