肖申克救赎的评论

I’ve seen this movie for twice. First time I was not impressed so much as to consider it a classical one. It didn’t win any Oscar awards apart from 7 nominations. But later, one of my teachers mentioned a word in the film—institutionalized. It is this very word that arouses my interest to see it again and my willingness to think deeply. These walls are funny. first you hate them, then you get used to them. Enough time passes, it gets so you depend on them. That’s ''institutionalized''. This narration appeared when brook, a man stayed in Shaw shank for 50 years, tried to stay by trying to injure one of his inmates after he was approved of parole. Brook was too used to live in the prison that he forget himself and live a routine life for sure. He couldn’t adjust himself to the days out of prison so he chose to finish his life, which could represent a lot others with similar experience. However, these walls don’t exist around the prisons but almost every corner in the whole society where people lose themselves and live a mundane life. They accept their present life mode and are willing to be institutionalized. But the film does not want to discuss this too much and to reveal how dark the society is. It shows us the way how to get rid of it i.e. to keep hope. In the film, Andy’s note said,” Remember, Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.” Hope is what supports Andy to spend the 19 years in Shaw shank. His strong hope to improve prison life urged him to write letter frequently to the state appropriations committee to rebuild their library and finally he succeeded. His never changed hope to come out of the hell and his beautiful dream to stay in a warm pacific island—Zihuatenejo though they seemed to be far from the reality just like the strange alienated island name and a dangerous thought to Red, Andy never gave up to realize them. He was treated unfairly but he didn’t blame others. keeping his hope, he tried his best to improve his prison life and his inmates as well. Hope is maybe the best thing. To keep it is very good indeed but also very hard. One needs great perseverance, of course. But something that can occupy him will be more practical. It can be his hobbies. In the film, Andy carved and studied stones, which was of great help for him to get out of Shaw shank. It also can be something abstract that deep in his soul. In the film, Any said ,”You need it so you don’t forget. Forget that there are places in the world that aren’t made out of stone. That there’s a …there’s something inside that they can’t touch.” This differs him from his inmates. Our hero became more and more shiny. ”Some birds don’t mean to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright.”(有些鸟儿是关不住的，它们的羽毛太鲜亮了。) This film is encouraging people to have their own hobbies and something deep in their soul which don’t have to be useful in their career but maybe critical to his life so that they can differ from others and become more charming. But at last, people should remember their hopes. Don’t be too absorbed in a seemingly good and steady condition. Our hero, Andy, though succeeded to rebuild the library and live a better prison life by helping the guards and officials escape taxation, he never hesitated to go out of shawshank, never give up his hope to be a free man. It takes a strong man to save himself, and a strong man to save another. No doubt , Andy’s a great man . He succeeded to go to his Zihuatenejo and helped Red from going Brook’s way. This is redemption. Andy, whom the director made another Jesus, has redemptive power to save Red. Like the prophetic sentence written on the needle-point in Norton’s office, ”His judgment cometh and that right soon. ” Norton, against Andy, took his life in the end. The film shows that only those who are free and strong in his soul can save himself from being institutionalized and save others rather than rely on the forces outside. Those who stick to Bible and Jesus , but rather ugly hearted will be abandoned at last. “Institutionalized”, “Hope”, ”Something deep in the soul” and Redemptive power build our hero . As to the award, though it didn’t get any, I consider it a perfect film!