Prison, it’s where you go when a simple disagreement between you and a particularly ornery spider monkey at the zoo gets more than a little heated and can no longer be constrained by a chain link fence. After the monkey’s tearful (but totally exaggerated) testimony moves the judge to throw the book at you, you’ll find yourself in a high-security hotel where early checkouts are frowned upon, your room is the size of an envelope, and the cleaning staff execute their duties with a work ethic that can only be described as unenthusiastic. It’s a bit like the American education system in that you’ll do your time facing terrible food, substandard medical care, constant threat from the more aggressive amongst your fellow inmates, and most of society cares more about keeping you inside than ensuring you learn your lesson while you’re there. Stepping away from super fresh and original jokes about how school is a lot like prison amirite lolz, I think we can all agree that prison is a bit grim, and how much more so when you’re forced to do the time despite not actually having done the crime? Such is the fate of Andy Dufresne, protagonist of The Shawshank Redemption, a 1994 prison movie directed by Frank Darabont that is frequently present on all but the most contrarian of hipsters’ Best Movies of All Time lists. Shawshank is stark and bleak, and occasionally hard to watch, yet leavened by an indefatigable sense of hope and trust in the power of friendship against which no cynicism can stand. The Shawshank Redemption is a movie every film lover should see at least once, and today, for the first time, Magellans at the Movies will be bringing in a non-Magellan film lover to help talk about it. That’s right, this episode we’ll be joined by Ben Neessen, best known for being tall and having red hair, and whose credentials as a cinephile are as ironclad as they come. With Ben’s help we’ll banter, review, and recommend to a standard at least three or four percent higher than our usual fare, so we hope you enjoy. Ready, set, go!
