# What were your feelings watching (or reading) The Shawshank Redemption? (possible SPOILERS) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 7, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106 "2013-04-07T22:05:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/1 "2013-04-07T22:05:20Z")
First time you ever read the book or saw the movie…what were your thoughts about the poll question? ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/2 "2013-04-07T22:16:52Z")
Started unsure. Ended unsure. Whether he was or not wasn’t important. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/3 "2013-04-07T22:29:17Z")
Interesting,…the votes are all over right now. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/4 "2013-04-07T22:32:34Z")
Innocent to innocent. (Read the novella first, if that matters.) What I don’t understand is why so many people think this is a great movie. Nothing wrong with it, TSR is a fine film, but it’s ranked #1 on the IMDB 250. WTF? ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/5 "2013-04-07T22:34:27Z")
Personally, I thought he was guilty at first, but slowly changed to innocent as the movie went on. ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/6 "2013-04-07T22:36:08Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Innocent to innocent. > > What I don’t understand is why so many people think this is a great movie. Nothing wrong with it, but it’s ranked #1 on the IMDB 250. WTF? Exposure? If you have basic cable, it’s on some channel or other at least twice a day, every day. Compared to some of the other films on that list, I’d guess that a whole lot more people have seen it. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/7 "2013-04-07T22:39:05Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > Exposure? If you have basic cable, it’s on some channel or other at least twice a day, every day. Compared to some of the other films on that list, I’d guess that a whole lot more people have seen it. Top 10 IMDB movies: 1. Shawshank 2. Godfather 1 3. Godfather 2 4. Pulp Fiction 5. Good, Bad, and Ugly 6. 12 Angry Men 7. The Dark Knight 8. Shindler’s List 9. LOTR: ROTK 10. Fight Club Possibly - many of these films are shown repeatedly on TV. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/8 "2013-04-07T23:18:13Z")
It was firmly established in the first few scenes that Andy was framed. If you paid the slightest bit of attention, the question would not have come up. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/9 "2013-04-07T23:23:09Z")
Andy aside, _Shawshank_ speaks powerfully to me of the absolute power authority used to have in this country (and still does in many places). Those who had the public’s trust could engage in all manner of cruelty and hypocrisy - and all the while the rules of good citizenship kept anyone from saying anything, let alone doing it. Perhaps symbolically, the '50s had to give way to the '60s before Warden Norton’s misdeeds could come back to haunt him. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2013, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/10 "2013-04-07T23:58:19Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It was firmly established in the first few scenes that Andy was framed. If you paid the slightest bit of attention, the question would not have come up. Ok, enlighten me then? Because I’ve seen the movie probably over 10 times and I’ve never seen anything that firmly establishes it one way or the other. ---
**Author:** ![Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/58956e/32.png) [@Speak\_to\_me\_Maddie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speak_to_me_Maddie)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/11 "2013-04-08T00:55:27Z")
The film setup the assumption that Andy was innocent from the beginning. I always felt the film would have been much more powerful if the box that Red digs up at the end contained the murder weapon and a confession from Andy that he really did murder his wife. This would have really challenged the audience to consider the nature of redemption. A missed opportunity by King and the filmmakers. It would have also created one of the best twist endings in all film. It is a great movie nonetheless. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/12 "2013-04-08T03:29:51Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Innocent to innocent. (Read the novella first, if that matters.) > > What I don’t understand is why so many people think this is a great movie. Nothing wrong with it, TSR is a fine film, but it’s ranked #1 on the IMDB 250. WTF? I agree. I’ve always thought it was a good movie but not the incredible masterpiece that many people think it is. ---
**Author:** ![HelenGawn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@HelenGawn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HelenGawn)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/13 "2013-04-08T04:17:10Z")
My reaction was, “Shut the fuck up, Freeman!” Seriously, I love the man and his voice, but the voiceover anvil just rang continuously and way too hard. A lot of beautifully acted scenes (Andy playing the opera over the loudspeaker, for one) would have been much more powerful without the golden voice stating the obvious. ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/14 "2013-04-08T05:01:35Z")
I guess I didn’t pay attention because I didn’t really care/wasn’t sure if he was innocent at the beginning, and by the end I felt he probably was innocent. Also I’m just fine with Shawshank being the #1 film on IMDB. I think it really is one of the best ever made. It’s not my personal #1 but it’s definitely worthy of top 10. ---
**Author:** ![gladtobeblazed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@gladtobeblazed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gladtobeblazed)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/15 "2013-04-08T06:38:56Z")
I’ve read the novella and seen the movie, but it was so long ago I honestly don’t remember. ---
**Author:** ![fjs1fs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9e8a1a/32.png) [@fjs1fs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fjs1fs)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/16 "2013-04-08T14:48:41Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Innocent to innocent. (Read the novella first, if that matters.) > > What I don’t understand is why so many people think this is a great movie. Nothing wrong with it, TSR is a fine film, but it’s ranked #1 on the IMDB 250. WTF? I strongly agree with you on this. I hear so many people tout the greatness of this movie. I think it’s a cool little movie, but it’s so laughably unrealistic–these hardened criminals are all the nicest, most friendly group of chaps. Sure a couple of the “bad guys” do bad stuff, but generally the inmate population is portrayed as a fun loving bunch. ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/17 "2013-04-08T15:22:01Z")
First time I saw the movie, about 1/4 of the way in, I kept thinking, “man, the scenery looks just like back home.” Then I see a couple wide angle shots of the prison and thought, “Wow, that looks _exactly_ like the prison in my hometown.” I waited for the credits. There it was, way down at the bottom: the movie was mostly filmed in my hometown. So every time I watch it, I feel nostalgic. “Oh, they’ve since torn that building down…” ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/18 "2013-04-08T17:27:15Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > It was firmly established in the first few scenes that Andy was framed. If you paid the slightest bit of attention, the question would not have come up. Are you talking about the book or the movie? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/19 "2013-04-08T17:30:35Z")
Books have scenes? ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106/20 "2013-04-08T17:35:53Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Innocent to innocent. (Read the novella first, if that matters.) > > What I don’t understand is why so many people think this is a great movie. Nothing wrong with it, TSR is a fine film, but it’s ranked #1 on the IMDB 250. WTF? I also read the story first and I also thought the film was okay-but-not-great. Maybe knowing the end in advance spoils some of the surprise (if there is one). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-were-your-feelings-watching-or-reading-the-shawshank-redemption-possible-spoilers/655106.md?page=2)