4. THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION (1994)
No one ever expected The Shawshank Redemption to get very far. First, there's that title . . . no one could remember it. Second, it's based on a Stephen King story, and while Carrie and Misery did reasonably well at the box office, most King movies are more about gore than people. Third, it's a prison drama about two inmates living their lives in a Maine penitentiary. No romance, no scenery, no hunky leading actors (unless you count Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins), no reason to see the film.
At first, the film did rather poorly. It chugged along, made a couple million dollars, got a bunch of Academy Award nominations, made a few more million, and disappeared. But it was on home video that The Shawshank Redemption found its audience. Through an incredible word-of-mouth campaign, some claim that The Shawshank Redemption was the most-rented video of the 90s.
The film stars Tim Robbins as a banker who is accused of murdering his wife. He claims he's innocent, but his cold demeanor on the witness stand convinces the jury otherwise, and Robbins is shipped to Shawshank. In prison, he meets Red (Morgan Freeman), who becomes Robbins' best friend and confidant. The film follows their fascinating friendship over 20 years, as new inmates are brought in and out of Shawshank's doors. An educated man, Robbins tries to bring some new life into the prison by starting a library and playing opera records. No, the metaphor of "cage a man, and he becomes an animal" is not too subtle, but this film is as close to "boy melodrama" as it can get.
Notes:
- Nominated for 7 Academy Awards (including Best Picture and Actor, for Freeman)
- In 1999, director Frank Darabont went on to direct another film set in jail based on a Stephen King story that was also nominated for Best Picture: The Green Mile
