Spellbinding Metamorphosis. The Evolution Of The Shawshank

Spellbinding Metamorphosis The evolution of the Shawshank Redemption, from the literary prose of Stephen King to the cinematography of director and screenplay writer Frank Darabont, is nothing short of a spellbinding metamorphosis. Stephen King, diverging from his prolific tales of horror, presented his audience, Different Seasons, a collection of novellas in which, â€Å"Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption†, is included. It is a story of the hope, courage and friendships that, main character Andy Dufrense (Tim Robbins), a man wrongly convicted of murder, and fellow inmate Red (Morgan Freeman), a confessed murderer, cultivated and nourished through decades, existing in one of the vilest and most treacherous places imaginable; an†¦show more content†¦Darabont successfully met all the requirements of Cahir’s rubric however, we will first look at first and last which are related points. First a â€Å"film must communicate definite ideas concerning the inte gral meaning and value of the literary text, as the filmmakers interpret it† and â€Å"the film cannot be so self-governing as to be completely independent of or antithetical to the source material† (Cahir). Three intrinsic values or meanings found in King’s original novella were hope, courage and friendship. Darabont showcased the fact that with each emotion, trait and value exhibited in King’s story, a contrary oppositional force was also at work. By doing this Darabont could maintain the integral meaning of the original text while simultaneously creating a self-sustaining yet related work of art. The best use of this was a character by the name Brooks Hatlen, who appeared in both works. However, in King’s story Brooks received very little focus. The audience knew he was in for murder, that he was the librarian for decades, that he paroled and died in a nursing home shortly thereafter. In Darabont’s film the character of Brooks Hatlen woul d be a pivotal example of both hope and despair. Brooks,