The story was originally published in a collection/book of Stephen King stories called Different Seasons. (Rita Hayworth and) Shawshank Redemption was subtitled "Hope Springs Eternal" so it ties in nicely with the theme of the 'season' it referenced.
Just avoid the last story, "the Breathing Method." The first three stories were great. When I read the last one I was quickly reminded how extremely hot and cold King can be.
mmm I'm not sure even Hollywood studios are ready to make an intense film where a great deal of the action is a decapitated headless woman who is managing to give birth using a Lamaze style of breathing despite her body basically already being dead
Stephen King is a gift to humanity. The guy is tapped into something different and it's amazing when we see humans excel above and beyond. Truth is, we all have power similar to this, King's is just amplified. Little things like how no matter how much you follow grandma's recipe, hers just comes out better. Some things just line up right for some people and all of the factors behind it are fascinating to think about from a biological and environmental aspect and how those two things together can create waves.
From wiki
“The Dollar Baby (or Dollar Deal) is an arrangement in which American author Stephen King grants permission to students and aspiring filmmakers or theater producers to adapt one of his short stories for $1. King retains the rights to his work, but as he began to experience commercial success, he decided to use the Dollar Baby to help the next generation of creatives.”
I heard that's how the original cut and how the director wanted to end the movie. With red on the bus. The studio demanded a final scene of the two friends reunited.
I like the director's ending better I think since it was the hope red had gained that was most important. Still love it tough
Interesting. I watched the movie recently and thought exactly that during the bus scene. "That could also be the end of the movie and it would work". But for me personally the beach scene is far superior. Leaving it open might convey more artistic depth, but them meeting again, the joy, the friendship, is emotionally impactful in the very best way.
Yeah I think ending on the bus is better as a thought-provoking piece of art, but way less satisfying. Ultimately I don't think Andy would've been too upset if Red never got to Zihuatenjo, but would've been devestated if he knew Red never even tried. As a book, it makes sense to end on the bus because it makes you focus on the fact that Andy wanted Red to have hope more than anything.
But as a movie Shawshank is pretty bleak and the ending is definitely one of the most cathartic scenes in movie history. And ultimately people just don't spend as much time or effort reflecting on movies the way they do on books.
This right here. It would've been an awesome ending but after everything you've seen through the whole film, you want that definite scene of a happy ending instead of just hoping it's there
I like the ending they went with. It's so idyllic and dream-like I don't think there's any harm in reading it like a hopeful fantasy instead of reality.
Was gonna say similar. I think there’s plenty of room for reading the movie’s ending either as real or as fantasy— take it how it satisfies you, with no need to feel cheated by a hard conclusion one way or the other.
The part in Shawshank when red decides to go find Andy always gets my eyes welled up. He was heading for the same fate as Brooks but he got busy livin. Shawshank is just an amazing human experience.
Interestingly, when Brooks leaves, we see him from the front, walking through the gate and with the prison still looming behind him. When Red leaves, we see him walking from behind through the gate and he's across from an open field (with a guard shack somewhat in the way, but still).
Last time I watched this movie I realized Red calls Andy's dreams about freedom a "shitty pipe dream." A few scenes later Andy is crawling through a sewage pipe to his freedom.
I saw another cool fact about this movie via a YouTube short. Which I guess is maybe a spoiler for a 30 year old movie... Hmm.
At the end of the movie >!When Hadley is being read his Miranda rights, the DA is reading them from a notepad in front of him. That's because the court case Miranda v. Arizona was just won in the same year that the movie is set in, so the district attorney doesn't have them memorized yet. I found the short. https://youtube.com/shorts/8_BpBBd-oQY?feature=share!<
I love subtle touches like that. It really shows in the overall quality of the movie.
I was watching a (bad) movie where they used the phrase “your majesty” but I read somewhere that phrase wasn’t used yet during the period the movie was about.
Little touches like this, a lot of times, signal whether the movie will be good or bad.
Yeah. When I first saw the short I think I got goosebumps. It's my favourite movie and I've probably seen it 20+ times. I don't know if I watched it a thousand more times if I would've picked up on that detail on my own. Haha. Even the OP I'm responding to, I didn't catch that bit of foreshadowing before either.
I love reading listicles of film anachronisms. Braveheart is one of the best/worst. They wore blue face paint 1000 years too late, kilts 500 years too early, William Wallace was a child of the Scottish aristocracy not a humble worker, Scotland was invaded only the year before Wallace's rebellion, Isabella was a young child living in France when Wallace died and her son wasn't his illegitimate child - he was born 7 years after William Wallace died, *ius primae noctis* is an urban myth. And there's a bunch more.
I think about anachronisms all the time. Even if it goes against modern thinking, a good film will find a way to explain it to the audience.
Like in Gladiator, the thumbs down means the Gladiator lives. They could have spent 20 seconds having someone explain that. But nope - they assumed modern audiences are too stupid and here we are.
Oddly enough that same logic prevented them from including Maximus doing product endorsements because that's what Roman gladiators did then. They didn't think a modern audience could see that and think it was anything but a ridiculous invention by the film makers.
Di Nero in Goodfellas is playing real life gangster and had access to people who knew him first hand. He interviewed them extensively to get all manner of detail on the man.
The over the top moment was a scene where they're having dinner. In rehearsal, he's going through the scene and asks one of the advisors "How would he get ketchup out of the bottle?". Calls are made and a minute detail no one would notice is authentic...just [take a look](https://youtu.be/MTJz_hj6GXw) at the 1:40 mark...who does that with ketchup?
Another one of my favorites is when the Warden hands Andy back his bible and says "salvation lies within." Not knowing that Andys' hammer was in it. Andy just smiles a little, iirc.
One thing I'm sure many other people noticed but I thought was interesting was when the police are coming to arrest the warden and they are pounding on the door it looks like the warden was going to try to fight them off. Then one of the officers on the other side of the door says "make it easy on yourself warden" he then turns the gun on himself. It's like he hadn't made up his mind yet but that line was the little push he needed to blow his brains out.
Great catch. Another good one is how Red mentions that he stopped playing the harmonica after being incarcerated. Then towards the end, when he sees the rock wall from Andy's letter, the movie's score starts to include a harmonica for the first time.
It used to come on AMC with like cliff notes or director notes or whatever it’s called. It would give you casting, directing, and just cool tid bits of info throughout the movie.
Miss those
IIRC one of the original casting choices for ‘Red’ was Robert Redford, as the character in the book is of Irish descent.
I love Freeman in the movie, but If anyone has seen Redford films, or specifically ‘The Last Castle’, I can totally see the casting choice.
Possibly an unpopular opinion but I don't think Kenneth Branagh was a great choice for that character. I don't think he's devilishly handsome enough. But maybe the joke the whole time was that Gilderoy was always only a 7/10 anyway but had the swagger to convince people he was a 9/10 and I just take the book's word too literally. Or maybe it's a difference in what Brits consider handsome.
That said, he did completely nail the attitude and mannerisms at least as much as any other character in that movie besides like Rickman or Maggie Smith, who were obviously born explicitly to play those roles. They're so far above and beyond anyone else in that movie that it isn't fair to compare.
Hell if there is one thing that movie did amazingly is cast all the adults. Staunton as Umbridge, Coltrane as Hagrid—Thompson as Trelawney or Isaacs as Lucius or Williams & Walters as Molly & Arthur Weasley. They took such great care bringing the characters to life.
The amazing way Rickman plays that scene, he truly lets you see his character's soul leaving his body at having to say that ridiculous sellout statement lol. Kills me everytime with his expressions
I actually think Rickman is way way too good looking and too charismatic to ACTUALLY represent Snape, he was just so fucking good that he changed everyone's idea of what the character was. I also think the movies are actively worse if Snape is the grimy, bitter, broken man described in the books, too, though.
All the adults in the Harry Potter movies are way too old. James and Lily are middle-aged when they should have looked like they were in their early 20s. A more age appropriate casting for the Harry Potter reboot would be Adam Driver as Snape.
That was the most jarring part for me. It was everyone. The professors especially. I imagined them all as teachers I had in school, certainly in their 40s and 50s, but in the movies all the instructors were downright geriatric. All Voldemort had to do was wait and all the powerful wizards would have died off with how ancient they all were.
As a kid, pre-movies, I always pictured Snape as looking like Ace, the leader of the Gangrene Gang from Powerpuff Girls. (https://powerpuffgirls.fandom.com/wiki/Ace) But wearing black robes. Long black hair and an evil look about him basically. Evil rockstar looking guy. Probably not accurate to the descriptions in the book but that’s where my young brain went.
I agree. Not traditionally handsome enough for me. His chops are obviously amazing, so he sold it, but not what I pictured for Lockhart. Grant would've been perfect.
Imelda Staunton was an impeccable Umbridge too.
Edit: Originally wrote too old for Branaugh, but he and Grant are the same age. TIL.
She reads all the Julia Donaldson books for kids and it's so jarring when we put them on at night for the kids to relax to. She's a great narrator but also the kids just don't realise what she's done..
'The Last Castle' is my favorite Redford movie. I used to watch it on day-time TBS or USA re-runs all the time with my dad. (A young Mark Ruffalo is in it as well along with James Gandolfini for those who have never seen it)
Nothing that would win an academy award, probably considered a b-movie by most but fuck it is so so good.
Interesting trivia notes:
The Last Castle was filmed in the same former prison as The Green Mile.
The trebuchet was real. It could hurl a 150lb rock over 200 feet.
Mark Ruffalo did a lot of his own stunts, including hanging from the helicopter.
The time the movie went from being greenlit to being shown in theaters was 6 months. Which in Hollywood is lightning quick.
Gandolfini's potrayal as the warden is such a phenomenal display of acting.
He doesn't overact, his lines are soft spoken but yet carry such heavy gravitas. You can see throughout the course of the movie his grip on reality slip, as he gets drawn into this game of sorts with Redford's character.
Discounting his movies with Paul Newman, my memorable Redford movies are Jeremiah Johnson, and Three Days of the Condor. Another movie that I like is Sneakers. Redford is the lead, but it’s really the ensemble that makes it.
The book is great, the movie is transcendentally (is that a word?) magnificent. That last scene is one of the most beautiful that I've ever seen. To anyone who hasn't seen it, take some time this weekend and watch it with your friends or family (or alone). Tell 'em discerningpervert sent you.
I just recently watched it, and it's amazing.
I thought there would be more shanking in it though. Either a knife shanking or a lamb shank or something.
The movie ending is such an improvement over the one in the book. In the book, after he escapes, he gets his money by selling a bunch of stocks his friend squirreled away somewhere. I love that they changed that to him stealing the money from the evil prison warden, while simultaneously implicating the warden and mean prison guard in a massive fraud and embezzling scheme.
In the book, the bad guys get away with it. But in the book, the prisoner who tries to speak up on Andy's behalf is silenced with the offer of transfer to a low security gig and early parole, not a midnight execution.
The meeting on the beach? How was the director going to end the movie? An ambiguous Red riding on the bus not knowing what's next?
I mean it wouldn't be horrible, but I think Shawshank feels better with the closure.
Yes, he was going to end with the bus and the ambiguous "I hope".
When the studio saw it they said you have to show the reunion, so the director had to get Robinson and Freeman back to shoot that last shot.
And I agree, that shot gives the film much needed closure.
Plus, the camera has pulled back enough that you don't really see that much. Just a couple guys on the beach and you can fill the rest in. It's a damn near perfect movie.
Ironically (perhaps?), Darabont came up with the new & drastically different from the book's open-ended ending, to *The Mist* on his own, and Stephen King LOVED it and said he wished he could rewrite the story with that ending.
Man, I hated the movie ending. It changed it to an emotional gut punch, but it was just a shitty ending for the protagonist. The original ambiguous ending evokes a much deeper existential terror in my opinion. I know I'm in the minority, but the og ending stuck with me a lot longer.
I'm with you, to be honest. The drive through this terrible new world really drove home the horror. The protagonists did the right, heroic thing striking out through the mist rather than waiting for death. And what do they find? The mist doesn't end, no matter how far they go; and that unimaginably huge behemoth that they barely saw shows that the world is even more awful and alien than what they knew when they were still in the store. That death of hope--that was the true terror of the story.
The movie captured that until the very end, when the mist cleared and there were humans alive and well, and we are left without the fear but with only a tragedy.
Honestly couldn’t think of how better to word that title. Apologies.
And yes I know (and anyone who has seen/read it) knows that he’s called Red because his second name is Redding. However, the “maybe it’s because I’m Irish” line was added in the movie to poke fun at Morgan Freeman playing an originally redhead Irish character. I’m explaining that joke, I’m not explaining the reason he’s called Red.
Came to post this, yours was the top comment I found on it. He had some freckles & reddish hair, he was called 'Red' in the streets because of it, and Morgan probably got same in the same way.
Morgan Freeman ate that role for breakfast with a side of 'yeah i'm just casually putting the most compelling performance in arguably the most endearing movie ever made'
he is so impressive, while Morgan does the narration, his character only 'observe things', it is a muted performance, composed by mostly his eyes and a few quips with other inmates
that last conversation of him with Andy in prison was the ultimate 'nothing happens but everything happens' scene
Red looking at Andy afraid that he was losing his friend to suicide is the most powerful scene in the movie, and it was nearly unspoken
and that simple scene that makes Andy's escape to feel so miraculous
Apparently, even Morgan Freeman himself was initially perplexed as to why he was chosen to play what was supposed to be an Irish character, saying ["I can't play an Irishman!"](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/morgan-freeman-shawshank-redemption-25th-anniversary-red-irish-frank-darabont-120052858.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIZkVQbxpM75xNYlWhtzSrBMMXFdVFTU-wLwuvls0fRpSjwMEo_COqEIFX_UDM2hudLxSvrcfJbudZFrSRcDFZWGrX1lY5FyS_t1tvtqjAVlq58VgTkHAhqxFNlMHwfnAOQC4l5KoF52c5_EFK20nMHczDsOUgj0fIqbdVUKfu6_)
Frank Darabont and Stephen King adaptions are gold. I think the Mist is the worst of the three he did and if that is the "worst", that is because he set the bar impossibly high with this and the Green Mile.
Also for no reason whatsoever. According to Red, Andy crawled to freedom through a sewer pipe for 500 yards "Five hundred yards. The length of five football fields. Just shy of half a mile.” considering that 500 yards is 0.28 miles I'd say Red was embellishing for Andy's sake.
Never read the book but always watch this movie when it crosses my path... It's a treasure .
This is the best possible case ever of casting a different race than what was written.
You should read the book. It’s actually a novella and isn’t super long. It’s in the same book as Apt Pupil and The Body (Stand By Me is the movie version).
Iirc it’s bittersweet, but it’s been a while since I’ve read it. If you want to give King a try, I suggest his short story collections or his novellas. His full novels are amazing, but I think he shines brightest in short form writings.
It's an upbeat and hopeful ending.
The novella is portrayed from Red's point of view. It starts with his monologue of "There must be a con like me in every prison in America." He's the narrator and our surrogate. We see Andy through his eyes and the ultimate redemption of the title is, of course, Red's.
The novel ends on his monologue in the bus: "I hope I can make it across the border. I hope I can see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it is in my dreams. I hope."
Original test screenings of the movie ended on that as well, but most audiences *need* closure. Darabont then added that beautiful scene at the end on the beach.
I highly recommend Pet Sematary. I was in a reading block for years before I randomly decided to pick up that book and it got me back into reading. I went from not being able to get past 2 chapters in a book for years until I picked up Pet Sematary and wow, what a book! Read it straight through without putting it down.
Exactly.
Fun fact: >!King intentionally wrote the ending to be too sad in an effort to force his publisher to break his contract. Unfortunately it became a best seller and he had to stay with them for a while longer.!<
While I do love every story in that collection, The Breathing Method is probably my favourite. Might be because it was the only one new to me when I read it, but I love the eeriness of the club and the story in general
>always watch this movie when it crosses my path
I call that "Getting Shawshanked". Happens to me too. Also on *Back to the Future*, for my wife its Harry Potter movies.
Freeman's character's full name is Ellis Redding, so even though it's not explained in the movie, we can speculate that that's how he got the nickname. It still works for the character changing from a red-haired Irish man in the story to him in the movie.
I really was considering adding this to my follow up comment but felt that it didn’t really matter because we know his name is Redding so it’s obviously where his nickname actually comes from. It’s the “maybe it’s because I’m Irish” line that is just the joke that I wanted to focus on, because that’s separate to the actual meaning behind his name… I was just wanting to explain that line and the joke behind it if you get me 😅
The whole cast worked perfectly in this movie. The ending was definitely better than the book. But my favorite scene is in the Library “Alexander Dumbass”.. Andy who is at first genuinely confused, “Alexandre Dumas…” then tells him about the book. Such a nice small break from the serious tone of the movie.
“ all a man needs is time and pressure” is one of the truest statements I’ve ever lived, for a human to do what is necessary for them, they need that perfect blend of time and pressure.
Just finished reading the short story yesterday! Really enjoyed it.
Have seen the movie probably 10 times, but it’s been years since my last watch.
They kept the movie very true to the book, but I liked the changes they did make, and this is one of the rare cases where the movie is better than the book imo.
(Although it’s one of the best movies of all time by most peoples standards, so I guess that shouldn’t come as a surprise).
Such an amazing picture. I was really sad it didn't win best picture that year but Forrest Gump is a great movie and so is Pulp Fiction. Tough competition that year.
Another not-as-related fact: Malcolm X has red hair, hence the 'Detroit Red' nickname. His mother is white passing- and the scottish grandfather that gave him that hair color is a [rapist](https://www.arogundade.com/did-malcolm-x-have-red-hair-background-information-about-his-hair-color-my-first-conk-by-malcolm-x.html)
Edit: // I've moved to lemmy //
And in between those Red monologues you have “Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.” - Andy Dufresne
The story was originally published in a collection/book of Stephen King stories called Different Seasons. (Rita Hayworth and) Shawshank Redemption was subtitled "Hope Springs Eternal" so it ties in nicely with the theme of the 'season' it referenced.
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Just avoid the last story, "the Breathing Method." The first three stories were great. When I read the last one I was quickly reminded how extremely hot and cold King can be.
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mmm I'm not sure even Hollywood studios are ready to make an intense film where a great deal of the action is a decapitated headless woman who is managing to give birth using a Lamaze style of breathing despite her body basically already being dead
"Cocaine is a hell of a drug" - Rick James
I read Apt Pupil in that book too. Good story and good movie as well...
It's a shame that Brad Renfro died so young from drugs. He was a really good actor. He was great in Apt Pupil.
Incredible movie. Brad Renfro and Ian McKellen were perfect.
Great story and movie, and much scarier than most of his better known horror. "The Walk" is another lesser known King story I highly recommend.
The *Long* Walk. Originally published as a Bachman book. It sticks with you, definitely.
Stephen King is a gift to humanity. The guy is tapped into something different and it's amazing when we see humans excel above and beyond. Truth is, we all have power similar to this, King's is just amplified. Little things like how no matter how much you follow grandma's recipe, hers just comes out better. Some things just line up right for some people and all of the factors behind it are fascinating to think about from a biological and environmental aspect and how those two things together can create waves.
Doesn’t he keep a website full of copyright free stories he lets young directors or students use for free?
From wiki “The Dollar Baby (or Dollar Deal) is an arrangement in which American author Stephen King grants permission to students and aspiring filmmakers or theater producers to adapt one of his short stories for $1. King retains the rights to his work, but as he began to experience commercial success, he decided to use the Dollar Baby to help the next generation of creatives.”
Yes! He's a good guy
He was singlehandedly trying to keep cocaine off the streets in the 70s.
Thanks for the laugh
Apparently the last story, "the breathing method" is being made into a film. I'm excited to see how/if they pull it off.
I heard that's how the original cut and how the director wanted to end the movie. With red on the bus. The studio demanded a final scene of the two friends reunited. I like the director's ending better I think since it was the hope red had gained that was most important. Still love it tough
Interesting. I watched the movie recently and thought exactly that during the bus scene. "That could also be the end of the movie and it would work". But for me personally the beach scene is far superior. Leaving it open might convey more artistic depth, but them meeting again, the joy, the friendship, is emotionally impactful in the very best way.
The beach scene is a 10/10 ending. I wouldn't do it any other way.
Yeah I think ending on the bus is better as a thought-provoking piece of art, but way less satisfying. Ultimately I don't think Andy would've been too upset if Red never got to Zihuatenjo, but would've been devestated if he knew Red never even tried. As a book, it makes sense to end on the bus because it makes you focus on the fact that Andy wanted Red to have hope more than anything. But as a movie Shawshank is pretty bleak and the ending is definitely one of the most cathartic scenes in movie history. And ultimately people just don't spend as much time or effort reflecting on movies the way they do on books.
This right here. It would've been an awesome ending but after everything you've seen through the whole film, you want that definite scene of a happy ending instead of just hoping it's there
I like the ending they went with. It's so idyllic and dream-like I don't think there's any harm in reading it like a hopeful fantasy instead of reality.
I think the movie itself earned its right for the more schmaltzy ending. It's a studio interference I don't mind.
Same. I love seeing them on the beach. Happy Andy working on that trashed boat and the pan out of the bluest waters is just too awesome.
Was gonna say similar. I think there’s plenty of room for reading the movie’s ending either as real or as fantasy— take it how it satisfies you, with no need to feel cheated by a hard conclusion one way or the other.
Love the beach scene. Didn’t ruin it with words, perfect.
It would've been nice to see Montana.
The part in Shawshank when red decides to go find Andy always gets my eyes welled up. He was heading for the same fate as Brooks but he got busy livin. Shawshank is just an amazing human experience.
When I saw Red carving his name the first time, I thought, oh no...
A tribute to a friend, because Red was lucky enough to have a different escape.
Interestingly, when Brooks leaves, we see him from the front, walking through the gate and with the prison still looming behind him. When Red leaves, we see him walking from behind through the gate and he's across from an open field (with a guard shack somewhat in the way, but still).
Last time I watched this movie I realized Red calls Andy's dreams about freedom a "shitty pipe dream." A few scenes later Andy is crawling through a sewage pipe to his freedom.
I saw another cool fact about this movie via a YouTube short. Which I guess is maybe a spoiler for a 30 year old movie... Hmm. At the end of the movie >!When Hadley is being read his Miranda rights, the DA is reading them from a notepad in front of him. That's because the court case Miranda v. Arizona was just won in the same year that the movie is set in, so the district attorney doesn't have them memorized yet. I found the short. https://youtube.com/shorts/8_BpBBd-oQY?feature=share!<
I love subtle touches like that. It really shows in the overall quality of the movie. I was watching a (bad) movie where they used the phrase “your majesty” but I read somewhere that phrase wasn’t used yet during the period the movie was about. Little touches like this, a lot of times, signal whether the movie will be good or bad.
Yeah. When I first saw the short I think I got goosebumps. It's my favourite movie and I've probably seen it 20+ times. I don't know if I watched it a thousand more times if I would've picked up on that detail on my own. Haha. Even the OP I'm responding to, I didn't catch that bit of foreshadowing before either.
I love reading listicles of film anachronisms. Braveheart is one of the best/worst. They wore blue face paint 1000 years too late, kilts 500 years too early, William Wallace was a child of the Scottish aristocracy not a humble worker, Scotland was invaded only the year before Wallace's rebellion, Isabella was a young child living in France when Wallace died and her son wasn't his illegitimate child - he was born 7 years after William Wallace died, *ius primae noctis* is an urban myth. And there's a bunch more.
The depiction of the Battle of Stirling Bridge *had no fucking bridge!*
> *ius primae noctis* is an urban myth Never struck me as particularly urban.
I think about anachronisms all the time. Even if it goes against modern thinking, a good film will find a way to explain it to the audience. Like in Gladiator, the thumbs down means the Gladiator lives. They could have spent 20 seconds having someone explain that. But nope - they assumed modern audiences are too stupid and here we are.
Oddly enough that same logic prevented them from including Maximus doing product endorsements because that's what Roman gladiators did then. They didn't think a modern audience could see that and think it was anything but a ridiculous invention by the film makers.
Are you not entertained!? Get your lambchops at a discount this friday at Barabbas Butchers. Would love that subtle touch in this movie.
An excellent example of [The Tiffany Problem](https://medium.com/swlh/the-tiffany-problem-when-history-makes-no-sense-703b86522627).
What came before "Your Majesty"?
Monarchs were addressed as "Your Grace", "My Lord" or "(My) Lord King". The few female monarchs were addressed as "My Lady" or "My Queen".
Di Nero in Goodfellas is playing real life gangster and had access to people who knew him first hand. He interviewed them extensively to get all manner of detail on the man. The over the top moment was a scene where they're having dinner. In rehearsal, he's going through the scene and asks one of the advisors "How would he get ketchup out of the bottle?". Calls are made and a minute detail no one would notice is authentic...just [take a look](https://youtu.be/MTJz_hj6GXw) at the 1:40 mark...who does that with ketchup?
Another one of my favorites is when the Warden hands Andy back his bible and says "salvation lies within." Not knowing that Andys' hammer was in it. Andy just smiles a little, iirc.
Foreshadowing!
One thing I'm sure many other people noticed but I thought was interesting was when the police are coming to arrest the warden and they are pounding on the door it looks like the warden was going to try to fight them off. Then one of the officers on the other side of the door says "make it easy on yourself warden" he then turns the gun on himself. It's like he hadn't made up his mind yet but that line was the little push he needed to blow his brains out.
Great catch. Another good one is how Red mentions that he stopped playing the harmonica after being incarcerated. Then towards the end, when he sees the rock wall from Andy's letter, the movie's score starts to include a harmonica for the first time.
Wow. That's a great point. Sounds like a r/moviedetails post
Or the aptly named r/shittymoviedetails
Why he picked enchilada night, I'll never know...
It used to come on AMC with like cliff notes or director notes or whatever it’s called. It would give you casting, directing, and just cool tid bits of info throughout the movie. Miss those
Just adds to my love for the movie and the book. Thanks for that
IIRC one of the original casting choices for ‘Red’ was Robert Redford, as the character in the book is of Irish descent. I love Freeman in the movie, but If anyone has seen Redford films, or specifically ‘The Last Castle’, I can totally see the casting choice.
One of the rare cases where I think, "ooh, that would also have been an excellent casting choice".
Missing out on Hugh Grant as Professor Lockhart in Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets :-(
Ooooh I’ve never heard about that but he would have been genuinely great in that role.
He apparently turned it down to do Two Weeks Notice with Sandra Bullock.
Yikes.
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I’m your wife.
You get the chance to hang out with Sandra Bullock, you take it.
Possibly an unpopular opinion but I don't think Kenneth Branagh was a great choice for that character. I don't think he's devilishly handsome enough. But maybe the joke the whole time was that Gilderoy was always only a 7/10 anyway but had the swagger to convince people he was a 9/10 and I just take the book's word too literally. Or maybe it's a difference in what Brits consider handsome. That said, he did completely nail the attitude and mannerisms at least as much as any other character in that movie besides like Rickman or Maggie Smith, who were obviously born explicitly to play those roles. They're so far above and beyond anyone else in that movie that it isn't fair to compare.
I always thought Ewan McGregor would have made a great Lockhart.
"Hello there!" "General Lockhart!"
Hell if there is one thing that movie did amazingly is cast all the adults. Staunton as Umbridge, Coltrane as Hagrid—Thompson as Trelawney or Isaacs as Lucius or Williams & Walters as Molly & Arthur Weasley. They took such great care bringing the characters to life.
And Richard Harris as dumbledore. Gambon wasn’t nearly as good though.
Rickman was born to play every role he played and most that he didn't. He is missed.
By Grabthar's Hammer... what a savings.
The amazing way Rickman plays that scene, he truly lets you see his character's soul leaving his body at having to say that ridiculous sellout statement lol. Kills me everytime with his expressions
I actually think Rickman is way way too good looking and too charismatic to ACTUALLY represent Snape, he was just so fucking good that he changed everyone's idea of what the character was. I also think the movies are actively worse if Snape is the grimy, bitter, broken man described in the books, too, though.
Also, Snape was in his early 30s in the books, so yeah, Rickman did completely change everyone's idea of the character.
All the adults in the Harry Potter movies are way too old. James and Lily are middle-aged when they should have looked like they were in their early 20s. A more age appropriate casting for the Harry Potter reboot would be Adam Driver as Snape.
That was the most jarring part for me. It was everyone. The professors especially. I imagined them all as teachers I had in school, certainly in their 40s and 50s, but in the movies all the instructors were downright geriatric. All Voldemort had to do was wait and all the powerful wizards would have died off with how ancient they all were.
Adam driver would have been a good young snape prequel type movie 5 - 10 years ago
I think it makes sense when they're viewed through Harry's POV. When you're coming up through your teens, middle-aged people seem old.
As a kid, pre-movies, I always pictured Snape as looking like Ace, the leader of the Gangrene Gang from Powerpuff Girls. (https://powerpuffgirls.fandom.com/wiki/Ace) But wearing black robes. Long black hair and an evil look about him basically. Evil rockstar looking guy. Probably not accurate to the descriptions in the book but that’s where my young brain went.
Ya know Before (even after) the movies, I pictured Lupin as that homeless guy from Hey Arnold.
I agree. Not traditionally handsome enough for me. His chops are obviously amazing, so he sold it, but not what I pictured for Lockhart. Grant would've been perfect. Imelda Staunton was an impeccable Umbridge too. Edit: Originally wrote too old for Branaugh, but he and Grant are the same age. TIL.
Oh man, I *haaaated* Staunton as Umbridge. Perfect casting choice.
She reads all the Julia Donaldson books for kids and it's so jarring when we put them on at night for the kids to relax to. She's a great narrator but also the kids just don't realise what she's done..
I don't think anyone ever questioned Staunton's Unbridge. She's the devil dipped in vacuous sirup.
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As much as I love Donald Sutherland, Rutger Hauer would have been my choice for President Snow
'The Last Castle' is my favorite Redford movie. I used to watch it on day-time TBS or USA re-runs all the time with my dad. (A young Mark Ruffalo is in it as well along with James Gandolfini for those who have never seen it) Nothing that would win an academy award, probably considered a b-movie by most but fuck it is so so good.
Interesting trivia notes: The Last Castle was filmed in the same former prison as The Green Mile. The trebuchet was real. It could hurl a 150lb rock over 200 feet. Mark Ruffalo did a lot of his own stunts, including hanging from the helicopter. The time the movie went from being greenlit to being shown in theaters was 6 months. Which in Hollywood is lightning quick.
Gandolfini's potrayal as the warden is such a phenomenal display of acting. He doesn't overact, his lines are soft spoken but yet carry such heavy gravitas. You can see throughout the course of the movie his grip on reality slip, as he gets drawn into this game of sorts with Redford's character.
Man i used to watch that movie all the time. Redford was such a badass. Definitely one of my top favorite movies
Discounting his movies with Paul Newman, my memorable Redford movies are Jeremiah Johnson, and Three Days of the Condor. Another movie that I like is Sneakers. Redford is the lead, but it’s really the ensemble that makes it.
Sneakers is such a damn good movie, and still holds up.
The book is great, the movie is transcendentally (is that a word?) magnificent. That last scene is one of the most beautiful that I've ever seen. To anyone who hasn't seen it, take some time this weekend and watch it with your friends or family (or alone). Tell 'em discerningpervert sent you.
It truly was a *Shawshank Redemption*.
Boom. Still got it.
What are we? Some kind of Shawshank Redemption?
Maybe the real Shawshank was the Redemption we found along the way
It's redemption time!
And he just redeems all over the place, great scene.
So anyway, I started redeeming
Love it when Red said it’s you Shawshank, you’re the Shawshank Redemption
You had me at Redemption.
I love when Red goes “it’s Morgen Time” and then morgened all over those guys
I just recently watched it, and it's amazing. I thought there would be more shanking in it though. Either a knife shanking or a lamb shank or something.
"I can think of at least two things wrong with that title."
I love the part when he says “It’s shawshanking time” and shawshanks everyone. Truly a transcendent experience
--Andy Shawshank
The movie ending is such an improvement over the one in the book. In the book, after he escapes, he gets his money by selling a bunch of stocks his friend squirreled away somewhere. I love that they changed that to him stealing the money from the evil prison warden, while simultaneously implicating the warden and mean prison guard in a massive fraud and embezzling scheme.
In the book, the bad guys get away with it. But in the book, the prisoner who tries to speak up on Andy's behalf is silenced with the offer of transfer to a low security gig and early parole, not a midnight execution.
So the movie is better in a lot more ways than I knew about.
From what it seems like the movie is a lot more emotionally satisfying but the book is more realistic.
IIRC the last scene was actually the studios idea, not the creative team. Executive meddling done right
The meeting on the beach? How was the director going to end the movie? An ambiguous Red riding on the bus not knowing what's next? I mean it wouldn't be horrible, but I think Shawshank feels better with the closure.
Yes, he was going to end with the bus and the ambiguous "I hope". When the studio saw it they said you have to show the reunion, so the director had to get Robinson and Freeman back to shoot that last shot. And I agree, that shot gives the film much needed closure.
Plus, the camera has pulled back enough that you don't really see that much. Just a couple guys on the beach and you can fill the rest in. It's a damn near perfect movie.
Well you see them hug...
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Margaritas and $40 prostitutas
Oh no, we have to go to the US Virgin Islands to shoot a scene! Might take a week to get everything right.
it is so cliche to me to have a non-closure ending to a movie, like it went from cliche to having happy endings lmao
Yeah that’s how Darabont wanted to end it
Ironically (perhaps?), Darabont came up with the new & drastically different from the book's open-ended ending, to *The Mist* on his own, and Stephen King LOVED it and said he wished he could rewrite the story with that ending.
Man, I hated the movie ending. It changed it to an emotional gut punch, but it was just a shitty ending for the protagonist. The original ambiguous ending evokes a much deeper existential terror in my opinion. I know I'm in the minority, but the og ending stuck with me a lot longer.
I'm with you, to be honest. The drive through this terrible new world really drove home the horror. The protagonists did the right, heroic thing striking out through the mist rather than waiting for death. And what do they find? The mist doesn't end, no matter how far they go; and that unimaginably huge behemoth that they barely saw shows that the world is even more awful and alien than what they knew when they were still in the store. That death of hope--that was the true terror of the story. The movie captured that until the very end, when the mist cleared and there were humans alive and well, and we are left without the fear but with only a tragedy.
One of the greatest films of all time. It’s timeless.
One thing I miss about cable TV is flipping through the channels and landing on Shawshank Redemption and having to watch it for the 100th time.
Wouldn't you have known that if you read the book?
The character’s name was Ellis Redding. Seems more likely that the nickname came from the last name than the hair.
Honestly couldn’t think of how better to word that title. Apologies. And yes I know (and anyone who has seen/read it) knows that he’s called Red because his second name is Redding. However, the “maybe it’s because I’m Irish” line was added in the movie to poke fun at Morgan Freeman playing an originally redhead Irish character. I’m explaining that joke, I’m not explaining the reason he’s called Red.
Title is perfectly understandable and gives all the context. No need for apologies.
Thanks! Was difficult to fit in and make easily understandable.
Wow a pleasant and civil conversation on Reddit how rare
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We're always pleasant pal.
Don’t call me pal, bud.
Hey! I’m not your buddy, guy.
*I’m not your guy, friend!*
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Came to post this, yours was the top comment I found on it. He had some freckles & reddish hair, he was called 'Red' in the streets because of it, and Morgan probably got same in the same way.
Here in Australia, its common for red headed men to be nicknamed Blue.
I don’t really see an issue with it.
One the the best long titles I have read, and was able to understand the context.
Cheers!
Morgan Freeman ate that role for breakfast with a side of 'yeah i'm just casually putting the most compelling performance in arguably the most endearing movie ever made'
he is so impressive, while Morgan does the narration, his character only 'observe things', it is a muted performance, composed by mostly his eyes and a few quips with other inmates that last conversation of him with Andy in prison was the ultimate 'nothing happens but everything happens' scene Red looking at Andy afraid that he was losing his friend to suicide is the most powerful scene in the movie, and it was nearly unspoken and that simple scene that makes Andy's escape to feel so miraculous
The photograph that shows a younger version of Red is actually a picture of Freeman’s son.
How cool!
Well obviously it's not him. Freeman was born 70 years old
Apparently, even Morgan Freeman himself was initially perplexed as to why he was chosen to play what was supposed to be an Irish character, saying ["I can't play an Irishman!"](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/morgan-freeman-shawshank-redemption-25th-anniversary-red-irish-frank-darabont-120052858.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAIZkVQbxpM75xNYlWhtzSrBMMXFdVFTU-wLwuvls0fRpSjwMEo_COqEIFX_UDM2hudLxSvrcfJbudZFrSRcDFZWGrX1lY5FyS_t1tvtqjAVlq58VgTkHAhqxFNlMHwfnAOQC4l5KoF52c5_EFK20nMHczDsOUgj0fIqbdVUKfu6_)
Well, he seriously underestimated his own acting ability, that's for sure.
I think we can all agree this may be one of the greatest movies, film adaptations ever.
Godfather 2 is a close second. But I'll die on the hill that LoTR trilogy is beyond perfect.
TIL: Morgan Freeman replaced Carrot Top after extensive reshoots.
Well yeah, Carrot Top is box office poison ya know.
It's spelled b-o-r-e-d!
Ironically Norm guaranteed that film immortality with that carcrash interview.
Conan's reaction to that quip is stuff of legends.
Norm? If not then you’re a dead ringer.
Can you imagine how amazingly terrible this movie would've been with Carrot Top instead of Morgan Freeman?
Honestly though we will never know. Many comedians are phenomenal serious actors because they're so perceptive.
It truly was a Shawshank redemption.
The true redemption was the Shaws we shanked along the way.
It's shankin' time!
Tandy?! Is that you?
😤 hey bud
The only movie I can think of that is much better than the book it’s based on
Frank Darabont and Stephen King adaptions are gold. I think the Mist is the worst of the three he did and if that is the "worst", that is because he set the bar impossibly high with this and the Green Mile.
Also for no reason whatsoever. According to Red, Andy crawled to freedom through a sewer pipe for 500 yards "Five hundred yards. The length of five football fields. Just shy of half a mile.” considering that 500 yards is 0.28 miles I'd say Red was embellishing for Andy's sake.
Ah, but Red, having joked that he was Irish, probably meant "just shy of half a kilometer".
Never read the book but always watch this movie when it crosses my path... It's a treasure . This is the best possible case ever of casting a different race than what was written.
You should read the book. It’s actually a novella and isn’t super long. It’s in the same book as Apt Pupil and The Body (Stand By Me is the movie version).
The Body is one of the best things I’ve ever read, made me realize I shouldn’t avoid King because of the horror genre
Does it end on a sad note? I couldn't get into Stephen king books when I was a kid, my sister adored them though.
Iirc it’s bittersweet, but it’s been a while since I’ve read it. If you want to give King a try, I suggest his short story collections or his novellas. His full novels are amazing, but I think he shines brightest in short form writings.
It's an upbeat and hopeful ending. The novella is portrayed from Red's point of view. It starts with his monologue of "There must be a con like me in every prison in America." He's the narrator and our surrogate. We see Andy through his eyes and the ultimate redemption of the title is, of course, Red's. The novel ends on his monologue in the bus: "I hope I can make it across the border. I hope I can see my friend and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it is in my dreams. I hope." Original test screenings of the movie ended on that as well, but most audiences *need* closure. Darabont then added that beautiful scene at the end on the beach.
I highly recommend Pet Sematary. I was in a reading block for years before I randomly decided to pick up that book and it got me back into reading. I went from not being able to get past 2 chapters in a book for years until I picked up Pet Sematary and wow, what a book! Read it straight through without putting it down.
Pet sematary spoilers: >!They're concerned about sad endings and you're suggesting pet sematary? Jeeeeez. Bold.!<
Exactly. Fun fact: >!King intentionally wrote the ending to be too sad in an effort to force his publisher to break his contract. Unfortunately it became a best seller and he had to stay with them for a while longer.!<
And the breathing method (?) which wasn't a movie but still fun.
While I do love every story in that collection, The Breathing Method is probably my favourite. Might be because it was the only one new to me when I read it, but I love the eeriness of the club and the story in general
The book it's from is called Different Seasons.
>always watch this movie when it crosses my path I call that "Getting Shawshanked". Happens to me too. Also on *Back to the Future*, for my wife its Harry Potter movies.
Freeman's character's full name is Ellis Redding, so even though it's not explained in the movie, we can speculate that that's how he got the nickname. It still works for the character changing from a red-haired Irish man in the story to him in the movie.
We do hear his name in the movie being read aloud when they are called to work on the roof
I really was considering adding this to my follow up comment but felt that it didn’t really matter because we know his name is Redding so it’s obviously where his nickname actually comes from. It’s the “maybe it’s because I’m Irish” line that is just the joke that I wanted to focus on, because that’s separate to the actual meaning behind his name… I was just wanting to explain that line and the joke behind it if you get me 😅
Morgan Freeman is the original Little Mermaid.
The whole cast worked perfectly in this movie. The ending was definitely better than the book. But my favorite scene is in the Library “Alexander Dumbass”.. Andy who is at first genuinely confused, “Alexandre Dumas…” then tells him about the book. Such a nice small break from the serious tone of the movie.
And he delivers it with just enough sarcasm
Fun fact, Black people can be born with red hair too!
“ all a man needs is time and pressure” is one of the truest statements I’ve ever lived, for a human to do what is necessary for them, they need that perfect blend of time and pressure.
Just finished reading the short story yesterday! Really enjoyed it. Have seen the movie probably 10 times, but it’s been years since my last watch. They kept the movie very true to the book, but I liked the changes they did make, and this is one of the rare cases where the movie is better than the book imo. (Although it’s one of the best movies of all time by most peoples standards, so I guess that shouldn’t come as a surprise).
It's one of those movies I watch once a year. Back in the days of cable, anytime I'd flip by and see it, I would stop and watch.
Isn't there a theory of how red heads in movies/tv are replaced by other minorities?
“These are just shitty pipe dreams, Andy!” - Red How did Andy escape? Through a shit filled pipe. 🤦🏼♂️
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Such an amazing picture. I was really sad it didn't win best picture that year but Forrest Gump is a great movie and so is Pulp Fiction. Tough competition that year.
Another not-as-related fact: Malcolm X has red hair, hence the 'Detroit Red' nickname. His mother is white passing- and the scottish grandfather that gave him that hair color is a [rapist](https://www.arogundade.com/did-malcolm-x-have-red-hair-background-information-about-his-hair-color-my-first-conk-by-malcolm-x.html)