Is It just me?... Or is The Shawshank Redemption good but not great?

In our regular polarising-opinion series, one Total Film writer argues that The Shawshank Redemption isn't all it's cracked up to be.

Read on, and let us know if you agree with the argument put forward by having your say in the comments section below.

Is it just me... Or is The Shawshank Redemption good but not great? asks Matt Looker

Let me get one thing straight and out the way: I am not saying that The Shawshank Redemption is a terrible movie by any long prison stretch of the imagination. It is obviously a hugely inspiring story, with iconic moments, wonderful cinematography, great performances and a brilliant score. It’s not the Norbit of penitentiary movies. I understand this.

But it has also long been regarded as one of the best films – if not the best film – ever made and it has spent the last seven years to date owning the number one spot on IMDb’s Top 250 list. That’s right, according to the biggest movie resource in history, The Shawshank Redemption is the finest specimen of cinematic perfection that has ever been created. When the prisoners of Shawshank stop dead in their tracks at the sound of music playing in the open courtyard, this is how I imagine the IMDb voters reacting to the silky bass tones of Morgan Freeman’s opening narration.

But isn’t Shawshank’s popularity mostly down to its own triumphant release story? Thanks to completely tanking at the box office and then becoming a smash hit on video and TV, Shawshank is something

of an underdog film, one that won none of its seven Oscar nominations and was deemed a bomb until audiences discovered it for themselves. The release of The Shawshank Redemption is itself an uplifting tale of survival. It’s the film that crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side.

Obviously that wouldn’t have happened if the film didn’t have such universal appeal. Which of course it does: triumph over adversity, freedom getting one over on oppression... and it all has just enough edge to stand it apart from hundreds of tonally similar Hallmark movies.

But isn’t it also a bit... maudlin? A bit overly sentimental? And isn’t Tim Robbins’ Andy Dufresne a bit too dull to be an upstanding icon of the free world? For all the film’s strengths, Robbins never really inspires in his performance, does he?

And then there’s Shawshank’s big pay- off moment, one of the cinema’s greatest punch-in-the-air turnaround endings: the moment when it is revealed that incredible patience and determination has paid off and ensured Andy’s escape. But isn’t even that moment ruined when you realise there’s no possible way that he could have re-stuck his poster to the wall once inside the tunnel? Surely The Greatest Film Of All Time shouldn’t allow for such blatant plot niggles.

So, I know what you’re thinking: “If not The Shawshank Redemption, what is the best film ever made?” That’s not for me to say, but shouldn’t the top slot go to a film that really changed the landscape of cinema? Frank Darabont’s drama doesn’t so much change the game as just play it really, really well. So can it really be called the best film ever? It’s not even the best Stephen King adaptation... or is it just me?

Agree or disagree with Matt's argument? Hit the comments section below to add your view!

Latest in Movies
Fantastic Four: 1234 #2 cover excerpt
Sue Storm and Namor are officially both in Avengers: Doomsday, and fans are wondering if Reed Richards has something to worry about
Chris Evans as Steve Rogers with the rest of the gang during the superhero movie, The Avengers.
The OG Fox X-Men are back, with Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and more joining the cast of Avengers: Doomsday alongside a whole new Avengers team to take on Robert Downey Jr's Doctor Doom
Robert Downey Jr. sitting in a chair at the end of a long line of chairs
Everything announced during Marvel's Avengers: Doomsday cast reveal live stream
Halloween director John Carpenter
15 years on from his last horror movie, Halloween's John Carpenter says he'd "love to direct again" – but he has one condition
The cast of Suicide Squad (2016)
David Ayer admits James Gunn has good reason not to release his cut of Suicide Squad, but he remains hopeful it'll happen
The Fantastic Four: First Steps cast assemble
Fantastic Four star says the Marvel movie "will go down in history" for rejuvenating the MCU, "in the same way the Guardians of the Galaxy and Black Panther hit"
Latest in Features
Naoe kills a target with a black and white filter over the camera highlighting the red of blood spray in Assassin's Creed Shadows, with an On The Radar orange frame
Assassin's Creed Shadows "has a little bit of Tarantino flavor", but its real secret ingredient is intrigue: "It's almost like you're watching an episode of Shogun"
Helldivers 2 Borderline Justice Warbond helldiver using hoverpack to shoot down with hunting rifle
Talking points from the Game Developers Conference 2025 and how they could impact the future of gaming
Flexispot E7 Plus with plant, monitor, soundbar, and controller on top next to white wall lighting.
Gaming desks vs regular desks: which surface should you buy?
Google Pixel 9a smartphones on a beige background
One Google Pixel 9a feature could make it a better gaming phone than most budget mainstream models
Yasuke and Naoe ready to fight on the Assassin's Creed Shadows On The Radar thumbnail
On The Radar: Assassin's Creed Shadows coverage hub
Alan Ritchson as Jack Reacher in Reacher season 3
Reacher season 3 ending explained: Who dies, does Reacher get his revenge, and how does it set up season 4?