Is there a better example of role reversal and justice around? I don't think so. The warden and the guards, supposedly representing the "good" are really the "bad" -- manipulative, self-serving bastards. Andy is "bad" in the eyes of the law, but is really the opposite. So is Red, paying for his life for mistakenly taking another man's life back when he was eighteen, but doing his time like a man. So when justice is truly served, it is those on the "good" side of the law that get their due rewards. Still one of my all-time favorites - for the stories both simple/complex, the lines, "..five football fields of the worst, foul-smelling..." "... hope.." And that Darabont chooses to have the last image as a long shot of them embracing rather than a close-up adds just the right touch.

Good point, John, the inversion of 'good' and 'bad'. Warden Norton is such a great Nemesis figure, buttressed by his faux religiosity which adds to the irony of his 'goodness'. This 'role reversal' you note sets up for an ending in which justice is, indeed, served both for Red and Andy, and Norton and his henchman Hadley. A most satisfying resolution on all fronts.

Yes, there is much to admire and learn from this film. One aspect of the plot that I admire is how well the the moment of truth is set up and played out for both characters. Both moments come in their darkest hour when all hope seems lost that they'll ever get out of Shawshank alive. Andy's comes after the one man whose testimony might win him a new trial and freedom is killed and Andy is cast into the darkness of the hole for 2 months. He confesses to Red that although he is legally innocent, he is morally guilty of driving her into the arms of the man and the situation that led to her death. Andy's epiphany is a moving payoff for the running gag in the film, everyone claiming they didn't do the crime they were convicted for. Red's moment of truth comes at his 3rd parole hearing. He tells the board what he really thinks instead of what he thinks they want to hear because he's abandoned all hope of ever getting paroled. And then he's paroled.

Paul, great point: Both moments of clarity for each character, their respective 'confessions', comes at their darkest moments. The scene with Andy's confession, I swear I've done a breakdown of it on the blog or perhaps in one of my Screenwriting Master Class courses because it is masterful writing. You can quite literally see Andy's psychological process at work through his dialogue: * Depression at having freedom yanked away * Confession of how he feels responsible for having driven his wife away and therefore some indirect culpability for her death * Anger at the injustice of all the years of his life taken away and being "stuck in here" * A sudden switch to talking about Mexico which we can - in retrospect - take as the precise moment where he has made his final decision to escape * The mysterious information for Red and getting him to make a pledge about going to that field with the tree Normally I advise writer to think of one point per scene. This scene has MULTIPLE points, but it's handled so deftly, it flows in seamless fashion even at its length (4-5 pages). And to top it off, we're left with the impression that Andy is losing his mind, setting up tension that when he pulls out the rope that night, he may have taken his life, especially in light of what Brooks did to commit suicide. Re Red's 'confession': The rule of 3s! Two prior parole hearings, he feeds them a stream of bull shit. Here he admits to his own crime and how he's lived with that guilt his entire adult life. Perhaps in a way, he is emboldened to be honest here due to Andy's prior confession. In any event, the air of authenticity plus time spent behind bars leads to his being granted parole. Later he has his own version of choosing between 'get busy living or get busy dying'. Brooks represents dying. Andy represents living. Red chooses living. Thanks, Paul, for your insight. A good reminder that for some characters to grab onto the truth / self-honesty, they have to hit rock bottom, both emotionally and in terms of life-circumstances.