One of Frank Darabont’s biggest inspirations at the time of shooting the movie was the film ‘Goodfellas’. He used to watch it once a week (every Sunday) and ended up using elements from it.
Two of the elements he used are his way of showing the passage of time and his use of voice-over narration.
Morgan Freeman's Favorite
With a decorated acting career such as Morgan Freeman's, it's hard to pick favorites. However, Freeman himself says that this is the favorite movie he's ever done.
Freeman has been nominated for five Academy Awards and five Golden Globes, winning one of each. Oddly enough, however, neither of these two awards were received for his work on 'The Shawshank Redemption'! Still, the film holds a special place in his heart.
Stephen King's Favorite
Many of Stephen King's books have been adapted into films (some more troubling than others). Cinema technology and special effects have been greatly developing, making films like 'It' eerily realistic, but King doesn't need all that stuff.
Apparently, when it comes to film adaptations of his own work, Stephen King rates 'The Shawshank Redemption' as one of his favorites.
Brooks' Crime
The film never blatantly states the crime Brooks is being accused of, though it's a severe one.
His alleged crime was the murder of his wife and daughter. His alleged reason for doing that was an extreme fit of anger after a continuous run of poker losses.
No Oscars for You
The film was nominated for an overall of 42 awards — pretty impressive when you learn how badly it flopped when it first came out. Still, the most coveted nominations never materialized into winnings.
We're talking about Golden Globes and Academy Awards. The film was nominated for seven Oscars and two Golden Globes but was never given any of those gilded figurines.