The Shawshank Redemption (Single-Disc Edition)

This 4K Blu-ray of this incredible movie looks phenomenal! Once you've seen it you'll never settle for the regular Blu-ray again! "The Shawshank Redemption" stands as perhaps the very best adaptation of a written work ever translated into a motion picture--and an amazingly good movie as well. Many years ago, having just finished reading King's "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption", I turned on my TV and saw a commercial for the movie version opening the very next day, so I made plans to go and see it. Avid readers always hope that a film adaptation of a book they love will do justice to that book, even though 99 times out of 100 we're sorely disappointed to see it utterly ruined by a screenwriter who apparently either doesn't get the book or doesn't like it and decides to change everything. Still, we keep hoping every time around for an adaptation by someone who actually loves the book and tries to do right by it--even if we really expect in our hearts for that hope to be utterly dashed. To my surprise and joy, I was treated to the truest, most accurate adaptation of a written work I had ever seen brought to the screen--and, being such a voracious reader and an avid movie fan, over the years I've seen more of them than most people can imagine! The writer and director of The Shawshank Redemption, Frank Darabont, had achieved an absolute miracle by somehow managing to get over 95% of the book onto the screen, something I'd not only never seen happen before, but had never imagined was even possible! I thought the movie was truly magnificent, one of the finest movies I'd ever seen in my life, but I wondered if anyone else in the theater was as impressed by it as I was. When the film ended and the theater audience actually stood up and gave the movie a standing ovation, many whistling and cheering (something I'd never seen happen in a movie theater before), I knew I wasn't the only one blown away by how incredibly good this movie was. Over the next couple of weeks, though, I was saddened to see how poorly it performed at the box office, and soon enough it had disappeared from theaters altogether. If you are a film lover, to see a movie so incredibly good vanish into oblivion breaks one's heart. But then, it was released on home video, and without any push from the studio, it unexpectedly and miraculously began to grow in popularity through word of mouth alone. People who watched it loved it so much that they told all their friends about what a great movie it was--and those friends rented it and told all of their friends about it too. As a result "The Shawshank Redemption", initially a compete box office disaster, continued to grow and grow in popularity over the following months to eventually become the very successful number one home video title of the year--and it continued to grow in popularity beyond that point, eventually becoming one of the most beloved films of all time. When a national survey was performed and people were asked to name their one single all time favorite film, it amazed the film community by unexpectedly coming in second place out of all of the motion pictures ever made, bested only by the number one selection "The Godfather". This is a movie that has cast it's spell over millions--with one of the most satisfying and downright best endings ever to grace the silver screen. There were only two changes made from the novel, the character of Red was changed from a red haired Irishman to Morgan Freeman. Since Red's being Irish was only just basic character background information and really had no impact on the story whatsoever, changing this so that the perfect actor for the part could play him was of no consequence to the story and strengthened the film enormously. The other change involved the disposition of one character and the change only made the impact of one of the best endings in movie history that much stronger. Everything about the movie, from the excellent cinematography to the superlative casting, the pitch perfect pacing, and even the emotionally evocative musical score by Thomas Newman created the identical feel and atmosphere of reading the book itself. This movie was clearly a labor of love by a filmmaker who worked his tail off to translate a book he adored as faithfully as possible into a movie--and he did a truly magnificent job, succeeding at it more beautifully than I could have imagined in my wildest dreams. "The Shawshank Redemption" is so beloved by fans that it has also become the one movie most often shown on television. But, please see the 4K version. The 4K Blu-ray puts the HD version to utter shame. Every aspect of the 4K version, from the image sharpness and the fine detail level, to the color palette and the shadow details are all dramatically improved. This is a truly excellent looking disc of one of the most phenomenal motion pictures ever made. If you haven't seen The Shawshank Redemption, please do. I promise you that afterward, you'll be sorry that you waited so long to experience this superlative masterpiece. And if you have already seen it and already know what an incredible movie it is, the 4K version honestly makes it an even better viewing experience--almost like getting to see it for the very first time all over again! The "Shawshank Redemption" is a one of a kind film experience--and seeing it in 4K makes that experience even more memorable. This 4K Blu-ray disc comes with the highest recommendation I can possibly offer. Every movie collector who loves great films should have a copy of this excellent disc in their collection!

Top 5 best movie of all time. So good. Great story with a happy ending.

Amazing movie. Instant classic. The cast is perfection. They don’t make movies like this anymore.

Such a great movie. I have watched it several times, but needed to watch it again for a school assignment.

I already had this on DVD as part of a double feature but I wanted the Blu-ray because of the director's commentary. I knew this Blu-ray had a commentary only because a few people here were kind enough to post pictures of the back cover where it mentions the commentary and other extras. The Amazon description doesn't mention anything about extras. Great movie and the disc works perfectly.

Great Movie! It is definitely not a show for kids as it has language, violence and adult content. The story is a good one and a favorite old movie of ours.

By far, my favorite movie of all time. This movie had a deliverance that you wish were found in more films. Great story, great characters, great twists, great cast .. Everything can be found in this film. And I don't say that lightly. The story unfolds in 1947 when banker Andy Dufresne(Tim Robbins) is convicted of murdering his wife and her lover, based on circumstantial evidence, and is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences at Shawshank State Penitentiary. Andy quickly befriends contraband smuggler Ellis "Red" Redding (Morgan Freeman), an inmate serving a life sentence. Red procures a rock hammer for Andy, allowing him to create small stone chess pieces. Red later gets him a large poster of Rita Hayworth, followed in later years by images of Marilyn Monroe and Raquel Welch. Andy works in the prison laundry, but is regularly assaulted by the "bull queer" gang "the Sisters" and their leader Bogs (Mark Rolston). In 1949, Andy overhears the brutal chief guard Byron Hadley (Clancy Brown) complaining about taxes on a forthcoming inheritance and informs him about a financial loophole. After another vicious assault by the Sisters nearly kills Andy, Hadley severely beats Bogs resulting in Bogs being sent to another prison. Andy is not attacked again. Warden Samuel Norton (Bob Gunton) meets with Andy and reassigns him to the prison library to assist elderly inmate Brooks Hatlen (James Whitmore), a pretext for Andy to manage financial duties for the prison. His advice and expertise are soon sought by other guards at Shawshank and from nearby prisons. Andy begins writing weekly letters to the state government for funds to improve the decrepit library. In 1954, Brooks is freed on parole, but unable to adjust to the outside world after 50 years in prison, he hangs himself. Andy receives a library donation that includes a recording of The Marriage of Figaro. He plays an excerpt over the public address system, resulting in his receiving solitary confinement. After his release, Andy explains that he holds onto hope as something that the prison cannot take from him, but Red dismisses the idea. In 1963, Norton begins exploiting prison labor for public works, profiting by undercutting skilled labor costs and receiving kickbacks. He has Andy launder the money using the alias "Randall Stephens". In 1965, Tommy Williams (Gil Bellows) is incarcerated for burglary. He joins Andy's and Red's circle of friends, and Andy helps him pass his General Educational Development (G.E.D.) examinations. In 1966, after hearing the details of Andy's case, Tommy reveals that an inmate at another prison claimed responsibility for an identical murder, suggesting Andy's innocence. Andy approaches Norton with this information, but the warden refuses to listen. Norton places Andy in solitary confinement and has Hadley murder Tommy, under the guise of an escape attempt. Andy refuses to continue with the scam, but Norton threatens to destroy the library and take away his protection and preferential treatment. After Andy is released from solitary confinement, he tells Red of his dream of living in Zihuatanejo, a Mexican Pacific coastal town. While Red shrugs it off as being unrealistic, Andy instructs him, should he ever be freed, to visit a specific hayfield near Buxton to retrieve a package. What happens next , you will just have to watch ! It's definitely WORTH THE WATCH if you haven't seen it. In fact, I am most confident that you will enjoy this one. More movies like this, please. I am a very satisfied customer.

Well cast. Well written. Well acted. Definitely not a family movie. Put this one on after the kids go to bed.