Analysis of The Shawshank Redemption

1. The Shawshank Redemption
Drama/crime movie
Textual analysis
Ada Dzamic and Nikoleta Wu
AS Media Studies

2. Synopsis
Andy Dufresne is sentenced to two, consecutive life terms in
prison, for the murders of his wife and her lover. However, only
Andy knows he didn’t commit the crimes. Whilst over there, he
forms a friendship with Red, experiences the brutality of prison
life, adapts, and helps the warden, all in 19 years.

3. Light
Light is one of the key aspects of this extract,
which categorizes it into a crime movie. In this
extract, the lighting mainly used is low-key
lighting, which is used to create deep shadows
and helps to produce the darkness and
shadowy effect in many of the scenes, to
contribute to the theme of the film. The mood
and feeling that this type of light creates is
enigmatic, dark and mysterious. There is a
feeling of tension and that something negative
is happening.
In contrast to the low-key
lighting, there is also use of
flat lighting in this court
scene, to convey the
stillness of the emotions and
the feeling of everything
being robotic.

4. Sound
 There are two types of sound used in this opening sequence. The first one is
diegetic sound, which is the dialogue and the second is non-diegetic sound,
the eerie, piano music, composed by Thomas Newman, as well as a gunshot at
the end, in order to create a feeling of tension, in the scene where Andy is
trying to convince everyone that he is innocent.

5. Editing
 This opening sequence uses several editing techniques in order
to get the target audience to engage with it. Some of the
editing techniques used in this opening sequence are the L-cut,
eye line match, 180-degree rule, as well as a shot reverse shot
between Andy and the lawyer. It uses these to establish a mise-
en-scene and a complex narrative. The effects have been used
well-they enhance the viewer’s enjoyment of the film and
display the narrative in the best possible way.

6. Camera shots, angles and movement
Throughout the extract, the camera is mainly static, there is not much
movement. The extract is filled with several close-up shots to reveal what the
character is doing, as well as to convey the character’s face expressions. There is
also one two-shot in which Andy and his wife are shown kissing.

7. Mise-en-scene
 In this opening sequence, the costumes that everyone is wearing are very
smart. Everyone is wearing formal suites and dresses, since the extract is
taking place in a court, which is quite a formal venue, and where people need
to dress appropriately for the occasion. There are not many props used
throughout the sequence. There is only a gun for when Andy is explaining
what he remembers to the lawyer, which again portrays the main feeling of
tension throughout.