# Shawshank Redemption: a question about timing **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [May 12, 2022, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344 "2022-05-12T22:12:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/41 "2022-05-13T20:58:35Z")
Personally, I don’t see any need to explain why Morgan Freeman played a character called “Red” or one who was Irish in the book but instead am willing to accept that it was color-blind casting. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/42 "2022-05-13T21:01:16Z")
If you are casting a movie that has a “narrator” part, and you don’t cast Morgan Freeman in the role, you should consider going back to film school. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/43 "2022-05-13T21:07:31Z")
Regarding the money & box hidden in the rock wall, I always assumed Andy hid that before he went into prison, intending it to be handy for himself when he got out, no matter how that happened. When he did get out, he had much more money from the warden’s bank stash, and didn’t need the box money anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/44 "2022-05-13T21:09:17Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > If you are casting a movie that has a “narrator” part, and you don’t cast Morgan Freeman in the role, you should consider going back to film school. Alternatively, you can hire Michal Caine or James Earl Jones (or Sam Elliott if you want to be ironic). But Morgan Freeman certainly brings a gravitas to the film despite the likely anachronism of a prominent black prisoner in a lily-white Maine prison. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/45 "2022-05-13T21:14:40Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > Regarding the money & box hidden in the rock wall, I always assumed Andy hid that before he went into prison, intending it to be handy for himself when he got out, no matter how that happened. When he did get out, he had much more money from the warden’s bank stash, and didn’t need the box money anyway. The money in the box is crisp and new in a brand new tiny manilla envelope, and there’s a letter that Andy personally wrote to Red in it that’s also brand new and references the conversation they have the day before the escape. The story he tells to Red is just a breadcrumb to help Red escape and find him. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/46 "2022-05-13T21:48:26Z")
That’s a detail I didn’t remember. However, it occurs to me that the box in the rock wall (minus some of the contents) was set up before Andy went to prison, then he visited it after escaping, on his way to Mexico. Would that be consistent with the story line? I also don’t remember when Andy told Red about the box, which would make a difference. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/47 "2022-05-13T21:55:56Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > However, it occurs to me that the box in the rock wall (minus some of the contents) was set up before Andy went to prison, then he visited it after escaping, on his way to Mexico. In the novella, he had a buddy on the outside where indeed it was set up this way in case Andy ever got out (some money, maybe gold and stock certificates?, some identity documents, etc). Andy had time to get that stuff and leave a cache for Red to find later. It’s not mentioned in the movie in this context but it makes a lot of sense that Andy would take time to set up the box for Red if he was going to dig it up himself anyway. In the movie, Andy and Red have the short conversation after Tommy is killed and Red is worried about Andy’s mental state. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 9:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/48 "2022-05-13T21:59:51Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Andy knew the spot (it was where he proposed to his unfaithful wife) and only had to get there and place the package under the meteoritic rock. I think the rock in question is obsidian. Or at least that’s what the prop was in the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/49 "2022-05-13T22:01:46Z")
Yeah, I think he mentions volcanic glass. Of course, in the movie, it looks more like a chunk of basalt or maybe a dark granite than obsidian. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/50 "2022-05-13T22:04:06Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > However, it occurs to me that the box in the rock wall (minus some of the contents) was set up before Andy went to prison, then he visited it after escaping, on his way to Mexico. Would that be consistent with the story line? It’s never really clear. When Andy talks to Red he acts like there’s already something buried there. Now obviously, his letter to Red is from after he escaped. I always figured there was something there, and he went back and replaced it after he left. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/51 "2022-05-13T23:26:42Z")
I didn’t remember exactly either. I pulled the movie up and watched those scenes to check. Having the box set up before he went to prison is consistent with what’s shown in the movie, but not particularly supported. We only ever see the location or the box on screen with Red in that one scene. I have always assumed that Andy tells Red the story about a place he knows where nothing is hidden, escapes, then goes and hides the box for Red to find, but it could have been there before with something else in it. The rock looks like obsidian to me, but dusty and not-polished obsidian, which doesn’t look as shiny black and glassy as obsidian we’re used to seeing. ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/52 "2022-05-13T23:46:45Z")
Ok so you realize this is a work of fiction, right? By one of the worst writers drawing breath? So your question is invalid ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2022, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/53 "2022-05-13T23:51:05Z")
Thanks for your highly valued input. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/54 "2022-05-14T00:05:02Z")
**Modnote** : This is indeed a threadshit. Sharing your opinion on the author is one thing, the rest of it is pure threadshit. Refrain from such in the future. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/55 "2022-05-14T00:14:00Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Having the box set up before he went to prison is consistent with what’s shown in the movie In the book, the box is hidden there by Andy’s friend Jim the same year that Andy goes to prison. The box contains a key to a safety-deposit box that has all the paperwork for Andy’s new identity, Peter Stevens. So after he escapes, he has to go to the box to get the key, and that’s assumedly when he leaves the note and cash for Red. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/56 "2022-05-14T01:32:22Z")
One of the reasons Andy told Red about the box was to give him a reason to get out. He gave Red hope. That’s why he told Red, “You’ll just have to dig it up and look.” when Red asked what was in the box. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/57 "2022-05-14T01:49:11Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > The money in the box is crisp and new in a brand new tiny manilla envelope, and there’s a letter that Andy personally wrote to Red in it that’s also brand new and references the conversation they have the day before the escape. The story he tells to Red is just a breadcrumb to help Red escape and find him. Zihuatanejo. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/58 "2022-05-14T02:09:55Z")
Bless you. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/59 "2022-05-14T22:39:05Z")
SWAG: because the tunnel was finished not too long before, and he waited just long enough to overhear a weather report predicting heavy T-Storms on one of the guard’s radios (the little battery powered transistor AM sets), and pick his night. ---
**Author:** ![ExTank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@ExTank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ExTank)\ **Post date:** [May 14, 2022, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344/60 "2022-05-14T22:46:00Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > (I think King is actually a better writer outside of the horror genre than he is within it) Agreed. But Shawshank still works as a sub-genre: [Realism-Induced Horror](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RealismInducedHorror). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/shawshank-redemption-a-question-about-timing/964344.md?page=4)