**The Shawshank Redemption**

[CaliforniaPeggy]

Just finished watching this masterpiece...It is the most amazing story!

It's taken from Stephen King's novella "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption."

Novellas are just about the right length for a movie, and this was perfect. The cast is stellar, and the story follows the novella's story line very closely.

Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman head the cast. It is a densely layered, long movie, with great scenery and a thoughtful approach to movie-making. There are many shots that are gently paced, that give you time to really absorb what's happening.

I give it my highest recommendation!

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. A brilliant, moving film.

:thumbsup:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I could not agree more, my dear Peake!

The novella is well worth reading too...

:hug:

[Lil Missy]

3. One of my favorite movies, ever!

And, I love Morgan Freeman too!

Ever seen "Seven"?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

Mine too!

Morgan Freeman, I swear, has NEVER made a bad movie! At least, none of the ones I've seen have been...

No, I haven't seen "Seven." I assume I should?

:hi:

[Lil Missy]

10. OMG yes, you should see "Seven". It's a Police Drama, Thriller.

It's about a serial killer and the seven deadly sins. Not for the feint of heart ....

:hi:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

11. I'll take your recommendation, and thanks!

I love a good thriller...

And have you seen "Glory"? Morgan Freeman's in that one too...

A Civil War drama, and absolutely riveting...a true story...

[Lil Missy]

12. I may have missed that one?? I'm not sure?

I'll put it on my list! (When I decide whether to join Blockbuster or Netflix.)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

13. I forget the year it came out, but it's definitely worth seeing...

And I'm sorry I can't help you decide which of those two to use...

We just buy our DVD's...

[LibraLiz1973]

37. Seven is also on my list of best movies ever

Soooooooooooo good.

I love Morgan Freeman.

[jobycom]

4. Still the highest rated on IMDB. (The Dark Knight has fallen to #4).nt

[CaliforniaPeggy]

6. My dear jobycom!

Ah, that's interesting! I hadn't seen its rating there.

Did you realize that it lost out on the Oscars to ...damn, I can't remember the name of the movie! Best Picture.

"Life is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get." That movie got Best Picture!

I've never gotten over it! Tom Hanks was the star. :cry: :grr:


On edit: "Forrest Gump" was the movie that beat out Shawshank for Best Picture!

[SeattleGirl]

5. It's a wonderful movie, I agree!

I can't count the number of times I've watched it.

Is this the first time you've seen it?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. My dear SeattleGirl!

Oh, no, I've seen it many times as well...

Just hadn't seen it in a very long time...

We have it on laserdisk, but our player is broken. Plus now we have the Blu-Ray disc player, so my husband surprised me with this movie for Christmas!

It's been years since I saw it last...

I'm with you on how wonderful it is!

[SeattleGirl]

14. Bet it's great on Blu-Ray!

I got The Dark Knight and already had V for Vendetta on Blu-Ray. Don't have a Blu-Ray player, but my new computer can play them.

Wow, such a difference, isn't it?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

15. The colors are very vivid and the textures are amazing!

Great sound too...

I want to see The Dark Knight...

[SeattleGirl]

18. Got the Blu-Ray for Christmas, and it rocks!

You will love it, Peggy.

It's a violent film, but I have to say, the violence isn't gratuitous.

It's very much a part of the story.

[LibraLiz1973]

38. The Dark Knight is great Peggy. Try it on BluRay!

[MrSlayer]

8. One of the greatest ever.

It's one of those movies that when you're flipping channels you never go past it.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

9. My dear MrSlayer!

Oh, exactly! It grabs you, pulls you in, and doesn't let you go till it's over...if then!

Heck, why do you think I started this thread?

It's a way to stay in touch with the magic!

:hi:

[Zorra]

16. A timeless, classic masterpiece. One of the best films ever made.

:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:
Four Thumbs Up!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

17. My dear Zorra!

It definitely is one of the best films ever made!

Um...four thumbs up? :scared:



:rofl:

:hi:

[YankeyMCC]

19. Couldn't agree more

[CaliforniaPeggy]

25. It's a classic, my dear YankeeMCC!

:D

[Bertha Venation]

20. my favorite vignette from that movie

is when James Whitmore takes a fat maggot or worm or whatever from his food and feeds it to the bird in his sweater.

:hi:

[Enthusiast]

21. I had forgotten that one, Bertha! nt

[CaliforniaPeggy]

26. My dear Bertha!

The first time I saw that scene, I was soooo horrified...

Until I saw the baby bird inside his sweater!

:hi:

[Enthusiast]

22. One of the best, ever!

Another of Stephen King's, also moving, is The Green Mile. Stephen King has some mind. Read Duma Key recently. I love Stephen King.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

27. My dear Enthusiast!

I haven't seen The Green Mile...I'll add it to my must-see list.

I don't really care for his horror stories...too intense for me!

:hi:

[FloridaJudy]

40. Can you fast forward

Through the execution of the Cajun? That's a really grisly scene - I'd read the book, so I chose that moment to go buy some popcorn. When I saw a bunch of people running out of the theater with their hands over their mouths, I knew it was over, and it was safe for me to return. Otherwise, it's a great movie.

[Enthusiast]

75. Happy to be of service.

:fistbump:

[SalmonChantedEvening]

23. If it comes on the teevee, I have to watch it.

One of my favorite films.

Hi Peggy!! :hug: :loveya:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

28. My dear SalmonChantedEvening!

Hi, sweetie!

I'm with you there! It just grabs you and won't let go!

:loveya: :hug:

[SalmonChantedEvening]

32. Shhh

Posting from work. Tell no one.

;)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

33. No worries, sweetie!

Your secret is my secret!

;-)

[arcadian]

24. I like the first night scene

Where Tim Robbins is in his cell for the first night and all the lights go dark. The shot is of several cells opposite of his on several floors which are darkened, all you can make out are the bars. Then as the prisoners emerge to stand at their cell entrances to harass the new fish all you can make out are these ghostly gray shapes. Great shot in my opinion. Gives the movie a supernatural feeling.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

30. My dear arcadian...

That is a wonderful and scary scene...

The movie is full of great atmospheric shots...

And I love a movie that is gently paced which allows such shots to happen. The jiggly, hand-held, rapid-paced films made today don't allow for such scenes to happen...

And it's a shame.

:hi:

[lunatica]

29. I think it's among the best movies ever made

It's flawless. Great story, great characters, great acting, great cinematography, great pacing, and great ending.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

31. My dear lunatica!

That's it in a nutshell!

:hi:

[driver8]

34. Definitely in my top 10!!

I love this movie!!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

45. Mine too, my dear driver8!

:hi:

[yvr girl]

35. It's one of my all time favourites

Great movie.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

46. GMTA, my dear yvr girl!

:hug:

[LibraLiz1973]

36. One of my favorite movies of all time!

You have great taste Peggy!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

47. Why thank you, my dear LibraLiz1973!

:hug:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

39. One of my favorites, and I've memorized the whole thing.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

48. My dear Starbucks Anarchist!

Omigod!

You mean I'm not the only one?

It is fantastic!

:hug:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

59. Actually, I've memorized lots of movies.

If I see them enough times, it happens. :rofl:

[Dinger]

41. I Talked To Someone

who was in prison for over 50 years and got out. He said Shawshank Redemption and Escape From Alcatraz (where he did spend some time) were the two best and most realistic prison movies out there.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

49. My dear Dinger!

Well, now how about that?

There's the voice of experience...

Thanks for telling me this!

:hug:

[graywarrior]

42. I think it's one of the best interpretations of King's books

[CaliforniaPeggy]

50. My dear graywarrior!

Oh, I agree...

The novella is just about the perfect length for adaptation to a movie...

Very little was changed to make the movie...

The great sweep of the story was preserved!

:hi:

[Pushed To The Left]

43. One of my all-time favorites! n/t

[CaliforniaPeggy]

51. Mine too, my dear Pushed To The Left! n/t

[bigwillq]

44. One of my all-time faves!

:cry: :bounce: :hi: :hug:

[CaliforniaPeggy]

52. You got it, my dear bigwillq!

:hi: :hug: :bounce: :bounce:

[cordelia]

53. A favorite of mine, too.

A favorite scene is when they played Marriage of Figaro, The (Sull' Aria) over the prison sound system.

I wore the soundtrack CD out. So very beautiful.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

55. The music is wonderful!

That was a transcendent scene...

[Pale Blue Dot]

54. OK, I'll be the killjoy. (SPOILER ALERT for the two people left who've never seen it)

I think it's slightly overrated. The movie is gripping, raw and unpredictable right up until Tim Robbins escapes. After that, it becomes tedious and predictable until it slowly winds down to the inevitable reunion.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

56. Do you mean to tell me you felt that way...

Even the first time you saw it?

I'd agree with predictable...

But tedious?

Never.

The ending gave me (and STILL gives me) goosebumps!

[Pale Blue Dot]

57. I've only seen it once.

I saw it in the theater, and I'll never forget the moment in the film when you realize that Andy's escaped - it's truly one of the great moments in cinema history. After that, however, I just felt that it took forever to wrap up; and unlike the rest of the film, the ending was predictable and slow.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

58. I wouldn't argue with your feelings...

But what is tedious and slow for you, is deliberately paced, and delicious for me...

For me, the ending just wraps it all up in a gorgeous and beautifully felt package!

You might try reading the story sometime; it's a novella in a paperback by name of "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption."

There are a number of very well-written short stories by Stephen King in it...

[DFW]

60. We rented this on a vacation to the USA quite a few years ago

It was one of the few films that my wife could follow completely, and hardly ever asked me
to translate anything. She thought it was one of the best American films she had ever seen,
and although as an American I have seen quite a few more American films than she has (DUH!),
I agreed with her, and still do. An absolutely brilliant film, perfectly cast, directed, and
filmed.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

63. I'm so glad she enjoyed it!

And you too, of course...

[mth44sc]

61. And that early Courtroom scene

was shot in Upper Sandusky, Ohio in athe Courtroom where I worked for a decade. The Judge I worked for was on the jury.

Love that movie.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

64. And what a great scene it was!

Such a beautiful courtroom...

Is it still there?

:hi:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

62. I didn't realize it was a King story...

The movie is intense...wonderfully done.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

65. My dear GoddessofGuinness!

It sure is!

It's the lead story in a book of his short stories/novellas entitled "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption."

Well worth reading, all of them...

And of course, I agree about the movie's intensity.

:hi:

[DarkTirade]

66. It's also one of those that you can see umpteen times

and it really doesn't get old, nor does it lose its appeal. And because it's layered enough, you can often catch little details that you didn't notice the first time around. :)

[CaliforniaPeggy]

67. My dear DarkTirade!

Exactly!

It never gets old...

And I did make a connection in the story last night, that I had missed all the other times I'd seen it...

:D

[aquaman]

68. I have seen this movie......

at least 100 times in full, literally. Everytime it comes on I always say that I will just watch a few minutes and then I watch the whole thing. As a huge Stephen King fan, I will say this is the best movie based on one of his stories.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

69. My dear aquaman!

That's what happens!

Resistance is futile!

Nice to see you tonight!

:hi:

How's your son?

[aquaman]

70. Ms. Peggy.

Your memory always blows me away as I rarely post and you always remember my son. He is great, almost three. Here is a recent pic of him before the hair cut.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

71. He is adorable!

What a beautiful child! I love the color of his hair and the intelligent, mischievous look on his face!

You must be very proud...

Congrats!

I guess I remember because we talked about him before his birth...Who knows?

Thank you for posting his pic!

:hug:

[aquaman]

74. Yes....

we did talk about him quite a bit before the birth. I had worries and you ALWAYS put me at ease about things.

He does have the reddish tint to his hair which is cool. It's my Irish blood in him!

[Bombero1956]

72. one of the best lines in the movie

was one that I used for my sig line. "hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies".

[CaliforniaPeggy]

73. My dear Gargoyle!

I remember when you had that sigline!

I loved it so much that I wrote it down in my little blank book that I use for such things...

And last night, as I watched the movie again, I heard Tim Robbins say it.

Wonderful!

:hug:

[HamdenRice]

76. Question: Was the Morgan Freeman character African American in the book?

I ask because Freeman has tended to play trans-racial characters -- characters that do not have to be cast as Black actors (at least after Driving Miss Daisy).

Just wondering. Thanks in advance.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

77. My dear HamdenRice!

If my memory serves, the book was ambiguous about this...

It never clearly said if the character was black.

Hope this ambiguous answer of mine helps!

:hi: