Shawshank Redemption: The Power Of Hope. (An Analysis)
This is an analysis of the film “Shawshank Redemption”.
“I have to remind myself that some birds aren’t meant to be caged” (02:05:12) these lines delivered by RED tell us about the most prevalent theme in the movie which is hope. In the year 1994 the Producer Frank Darabont primarily a screenwriter for horror movies created a masterpiece — “Shawshank Redemption”. This film still remains one of the best films ever created and talks about controversial topics like capital punishment and makes the audience look at prisoners from a different perspective.
Shawshank Redemption is the perfect example of crime friction and talks about never giving up hope. Almost thirty years ago Shawshank Redemption was hitting the big screens. A prison drama movie with old-fashioned rhythms starring Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne, a wrongfully convicted for murdering his wife to serve a life sentence. Morgan Freeman a fellow inmate called by the name RED who narrates the whole story. But the ’90s were the years for action-packed movies with car explosions and bullets flying everywhere it was the era of actors like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce wills. Critics were in favor of the film, but it flopped struggling to even make a million dollars in the first week. But after 26 years 5 months and 2 weeks later it is regarded as the best movie ever made and topped the IMDb’s top 100 list year after year. Darabont uses multiple film techniques in the form of cinematography, Mise-En-Scene, and motif in order to convey the idea of “hope” and “freedom” in The Shawshank Redemption.
Shawshank Redemption has top-tier cinematography from its camera angles to the lighting everything is there in right place at the right time which perfectly complements the storyline. The cinematographer of Shawshank Redemption is none other than Roger Deakins the man regarded as the “god” of cinematography. According to Bordwell and Thompson Cinematography is the process of capturing moving images on a film or a digital storage device. Shawshank Redemption follows a linear structure that is used to emphasize special events in the storyline this is commonly used by directors. The linear form of chronological order follows a set of rules that provide a progression from beginning to end. The film Shawshank Redemption starts off with the protagonist Andy Dufresne, drunk sitting in his car listening to a love song with a sad and angry look on the face steadily glaring at the distance (01:17) followed by unfolding an old, rugged cloth and revealing to the audience a gun (01:46) and then directly cutting to the scene in the court (2:07). This compelling start lays the groundwork for future occurrences and interpretation of the storyline.
The Jump cut to the interrogation between the lawyer and Andy (2:07) reveals what Andy is being accused of and the audience is led to believe that Andy is at fault. Jump Cut is an abrupt transition from one scene to the next. The close-up shot of the jury’s eyes fixated towards Andy as he defends himself reveals one of the most important themes in the film that of identity (04:13) these cold eyes have already declared Andy guilty of the crime he has been accused of and shows that identity is not in the hands of the person itself but is declared by the society. “You strike me as a particularly icy and remorseless man, Mr. Dufresne” these lines delivered by the judge followed by the sentence which Andy has to serve sets the stage for the film (06:18). The zooming from a High-angle medium shot to a close-up shot complementing the suspenseful non-diegetic sound (06:27) heightens suspense for the audience and makes them feel empathy towards Andy who has received two life sentences to serve. Non-diegetic sound is sound that is heard by the audience outside of the film’s fictional world. Another interesting technique used by Darabont in this chronological narrative is the use of non-diegetic narration by the other character “RED” (Played by Morgan Freeman) who is looking back at his time in Shawshank prison. The establishing shot shows where the majority of the film will take place (09:17), as well as all of the inmates surrounding the bus where the new inmates were being brought in. When Red explains what happened to him and how he is the person who can get you things in prison, there is a close-up of Andy’s face (09:46). Establishing a shot sets the scene for the audience and letting them know what they are going to watch. The plot is developed via the establishing shot, which demonstrates how big the Shawshank Prison is. The establishing shot complemented by the close-up on Andy increases the feeling of isolation and loneliness and he knows that he is being convicted of murder and his previous life is over. The plot is set through the narration of Red and providing the audience with a brief background about Andy, Prison, and Red himself. The camerawork in the opening through the birds-eye view shot (09:16) makes the prison feel more realistic with metal wired fencing and ample guards. Birds-eye view shot is an extremely long wide-angle shot. This creates a feeling of hopelessness for Andy the reason being the description by RED suggests that Andy is not cut out to be in a prison environment.
Lighting is an essential part of any film and Darabont phenomenally incorporated it in his film Shawshank Redemption. Lighting is an important element in Shawshank Redemption it is used to depict themes like hope and identity and shows the emotional state of the character. Shawshank Redemption uses a lot of natural light but during a serious scene, Darabont uses a more low-key and dark light. This dark lighting is usually done by a single source of light creating a feeling of duller and more depressing environment. Darabont uses a lot of grey in the film like the prisoner’s attire, concrete walls, and the sky. The low-key lighting helps to keep the gloomy mode of the prison consistent.
The opening scene (09:17) is filled with dull colors like black and grey this dull environment gives a feeling of helplessness and heightens the seriousness of the situation. When Andy, Red, and his friends got the task to work outdoors, Andy overheard captain Hadley about his financial pinch Andy in the most provocative way risking his life gave Hadley a solution in exchange for beer for his co-workers (36:53) this request was fulfilled by Hadley. The sunny sky where the group was drinking beer (37:28) signifies the theme of “hope”. The natural yellow light of the sun shines on the prisoners as they drink their drinks and feel like “free men” in the “Rooftop scene”. The use of lighting in this scene symbolizes the prisoners’ sense of liberation and their dream of one day leaving Shawshank. Andy was the embodiment of “hope” he has been writing letters to the government for six years requesting funds for the prison library. When he went through the package that the government sent him, he found an acetate disc (01:07:22) and played it on the gramophone and broadcasted it to the entire Shawshank prison (01:08:27) the music playing on the loudspeaker made the whole prison stop with the confusion they looked up to the sky and heard the song not understanding one word (01:08:52). Andy plays Mozart music to remind the inmates of aspects of life other than prison-like beauty, love, and hope. In this particular scene, a lot of natural and high-key lighting along with the diegetic music made the prisoners feel freedom not thinking about the task at hand and gave them something to look forward to.
Top lighting is used on multiple occasions throughout the film too shows something unfair and sinister. One such example is the gang of inmates called “Sisters” who used to beat and sexually assault Andy on regular basis, the green room behind the movie hall where the “sisters” brutally beat Andy which landed him in the infirmary for a month (42:45) the top-light in this signifies the helplessness Andy experienced while Boggs the leader of the group brutally beat Andy. This creates a fearful and unhappy mood in the audience's mind. Another occasion was when the warden calls Tommy Williams outside to confirm the story that he had told to Andy, RED, and the others, when Tommy answers affirmatively the warden signaled captain Hadley to shoot Tommy from the tower (01:38:02) this shows how helpless Tommy was as he had no right over his own life and the top lighting used in this particular scene shows the unfair killing of Tommy and how much power the warden holds (01:38:015). In addition to lighting, the director Frank Darabont utilized various motifs to portray various ideas like hope, Identity, corruption, and institutionalization.
Motifs are recurring element, idea or concept that has a symbolic value in the context that helps promote the central theme of the film. These reoccurring elements reinforce the film’s theme boosting the overall understanding of the message. In the letter, Andy says “Remember RED hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies” this quote shows that Shawshank is a place of hopelessness in the beginning and Darabont represents the idea like hope and redemption through motifs like rocks and hammer. Rocks are the most prominent motifs in the film. “Oh, Andy Loved geology. I imagined it appealed to his meticulous nature” (01:55:24) these lines by RED represent the spirit of hope that Andy eludes. In the prison where the identity of the inmates belongs to the higher authorities and the sense of normality is lost; Andy pursuing his hobbies by shaping rocks gives him a feeling of normality and control over his life. Displacing this collection of rocks on the windowsill (50:18) shows his determination. More importantly, when Andy gives the rock to RED (01:14:19) it is seen as his ability to transfer hope to the other inmates. “It would take a man 600 years to tunnel under the wall with one of these” RED here (29:59) refers to the rock hammer which Andy assures he uses to cave stones but in truth uses to dig out a hole. This hammer represents Andy’s endurance and hard work against extreme odds. This shows that one’s fate is in his own hands. Endurance is one of the key characteristics of Andy that Darabont uses to amply the idea of hope.
Another key motif in this film is “BIRDS”. In the beginning when Brooke’s Hatlen is shown we see a small, injured bird (Jake) tucked away in his shirt (21:47). The Bird here represents hope for Brooke’s, a bird typically flies and is used to symbolize freedom. Brookes has taken care of jake and nursed it back to health. Later when Brooke was granted parole he let go of Jake (01:00:44) in the sense that he let go of his hope of surviving in the outside world. When Brooke was feeding the birds in the park (01:03:04) he looked at Jake his hope but couldn’t find either, which lead him to take his own life (01:05:06). Another instance is when RED when he compares Andy to Birds in the lines “I have to remind myself that some birds aren’t meant to be caged” (02:05:12) Over here the bird is Andy, and the cage is the prison. Andy breaking free of the cage is symbolized as hope
Symbols, unlike motifs, appear less often in films but are often more important in explaining other, less prominent, concepts. The Bible and biblical references in the film Shawshank Redemption play a major part in understanding how the overall theme conveys the message. In the opening scene where the prisoners were stripped naked and immersed in water (14:22) followed by the distribution of the bible (14:48), this symbolizes Baptism as in Christianity. Ironically this act is done before moving into prison the hell itself. Darabont represents the ideas of freedom and redemption through the use of the rock hammer and the bible. When warden Norton met Andy for the first time his parting words were “Salvation lies within” (51:06). This is true in both ways, the first of which is the inner strength of Andy against the unjust that he has faced and secondly the literal salvation in the bible which is the rock hammer he uses to get his life back by tunneling this way out of the prison.
“Andy Dufresne, who crawled to a river of shit and came out clean on the other side” (01:59:18) when Andy escapes the prison on a rainy day, we can see the occurrence of another biblical reference, as he literally crawled out of the pipe to freedom and rips off his shirt with arms stretched out looking at the sky (02:00:08). This pose symbolizes Jesus’s crucifixion and his redemption. Darabont in this scene compares Andy to Jesus himself as he has achieved the impossible referring to his freedom and the hope which Andy never lost. Finally, the river and rain purify Andy not only physically, but emotionally and spiritually as well. The ocean at the end alludes to Andy’s infinite possibilities. “His judgment cometh and right soon” this bible quote hung in Norton’s office (51:30) portrays the idea of good and evil by foreshadowing the judgment that Norton will receive. The juxtapositional placement of the frame and the safe make something so pure like the bible quote so tainted and corrupted. The word “his” in the quote is referring to the god and the judgment is Norton paying for his sins by losing his life (02:03:47). Darabont makes Andy look like “god” himself by replacing the journal. This symbol “Bible” provides valuable lessons for the audience and the characters valuable lessons about hope and freedom.
Films throughout history have played a vital role in conveying an important social message. The film “Shawshank Redemption” is full of lessons and ideas, such as the value of “Hope” and “Freedom”. Lighting and the use of sophisticated camera angles make the overall effect of the film more convincing and giving an in-depth idea of each character. The use of symbols and motifs like birds, the bible, and rocks helps understand the significance of freedom and one’s identity. Most importantly the theme of “hope” is perfectly portrayed in this masterpiece. Darabont uses detailed mise-en-scene, cinematography, and motifs to make “Shawshank Redemption” an unforgettable film.
References
The Shawshank Redemption. Directed by Darabont, Frank. Performed by Morgan Freeman,
and Tim Robbins, Columbia Pictures, 1994.
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