A 25th anniversary history and celebration of The Shawshank Redemption,
one of the most cherished American films of the late twentieth century
and one of the finest movies made from a Stephen King story. The movie
not only boasts a great story, it has a great backstory, starting with
the dollar deal that eventually led King and co-stars Tim Robbins and
Morgan Freeman to put their trust in a largely untested director making
his first feature film. Although the film received mostly positive
reviews on its release in September 1994, the box office was
disappointing and it failed to win many awards. But as Andy tells Red in
the film, "no good thing ever dies." The movie found new life, reaching
an ever-growing audience on cable and home video (through word of mouth,
it became one of the top-rented movies of 1995). Each year, The
Shawshank Redemption rises in polls asking film fans to name their
favorite movies. It has become nothing less than this generation's The
Grapes of Wrath, an inspiring story about keeping hope alive in bleak
times and under the most horrendous conditions.