No other film can make you feel both imprisoned and liberated like The Shawshank Redemption. In my opinion, it’s the greatest film of all time, bar none. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched it, yet I could watch it over and over without ever getting bored. The story is first-class, the acting flawless,…
No other film can make you feel both imprisoned and liberated like The Shawshank Redemption. In my opinion, it’s the greatest film of all time, bar none.
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched it, yet I could watch it over and over without ever getting bored.
The story is first-class, the acting flawless, and the casting pitch-perfect — not just Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins, but every supporting character, too. It’s absolute cinematic perfection.
But even masterpieces aren’t immune to human error….
A friend recently suggested I rewatch The Shawshank Redemption, and at first, I wasn’t so sure. It had been nearly 15 years since I last saw it, and I wondered if it would still hold up.
But wow, let me tell you — it absolutely does. From the very first scene, I was completely hooked, and it hit me all over again: this really is one of the greatest movies ever made.
But despite its iconic status, The Shawshank Redemption isn’t without its quirks, , bloopers, and even a glaring plot hole that might leave you scratching your head.
Let’s dig into some little-known mistakes and behind-the-scenes flubs that somehow snuck past the final cut of this impeccable movie.
A pitch-perfect performance
We simply have to kick things off with a piece of trivia that never fails to amaze fans of The Shawshank Redemption. Unsurprisingly, it’s all about the legendary Morgan Freeman.
Swapping shirts
Morgan Freeman’s impressive commitment to tossing that baseball during Andy and Red’s first chat isn’t the only thing worth noticing.
Here’s a fun little blooper to keep an eye out for next time you watch: during their big introduction scene, there’s an extra hanging out in the background who apparently had a wardrobe crisis.
When Red’s lines were filmed, the extra wore one prison shirt, but by the time Andy’s lines were shot, they magically swapped into a different one! It’s a small continuity slip that’s now a fun little Easter egg for fans of Shawshank.
Chessboard mistake
Andy Dufresne, the prison’s resident genius and king of creative accounting, has an eye for detail that could rival a jeweler’s. From balancing the warden’s books to helping guards save on taxes, he’s got it all figured out. But when it comes to setting up his chessboard? Let’s just say even geniuses have their off days.
For the sharp-eyed viewer, it’s hard to miss: the chessboard in Andy Dufresne’s cell is set up backwards. The bottom-right square, which should always be white, is black.
As a result, the royal lineup is all wrong — both the black and white kings and queens have swapped places, lounging on the wrong-colored squares. It’s a classic chess mistake that no serious player would ever make, since proper placement is key to the game.
But hey, maybe Andy’s got bigger things on his mind than chess rules. After all, when you’re plotting your escape from Shawshank, who cares if your chessboard breaks tradition…
Tim Robbins explains famous plot hole
One of the most unforgettable moments in The Shawshank Redemption is when the guards and prisoners discover that And has pulled off the impossible: he’s escaped!
But for years, fans have been scratching their heads over one puzzling detail.
How did Andy manage to put the poster back over the tunnel after crawling through it? To some, the poster was clearly attached in ALL 4 corners when the warden threw a rock at it.
It’s a mystery that’s baffled viewers, sparked countless debates, and even made Morgan Freeman himself ask the question during a cast reunion at the TCM Film Festival.
Was it movie magic? A clever trick? Or is there an explanation that fans have missed all along?
“How did Andy get that poster back in place after he got into that tunnel?” Freeman asked his co-star, per Geek Vibes Nation.
“It’s easy. So easy,” Tim Robbins said, using hand motions to explain the mystery. He mimed pinning the poster at the top but not at the bottom. “Pinned up here [at the top of the poster]. Pull up here [lifting the bottom of the poster]. Go underneath. Go in.”
Could Andy’s escape really stay under the radar?
But do fans really buy that explanation? Not quite.
According to IMDb, Tim Robbins’ explanation behind the poster staying in place may have its flaws. If the poster was only secured at the top, as suggested, it would react to pressure changes in the tunnel once the wall was breached.
The poster would either flap, or if the bottom was still fastened, it would likely dimple. Either way, the movement would create noise, which could easily attract the attention of the guards. This raises a valid question: how did such a critical detail go unnoticed in Shawshank’s quiet, watchful environment?
How could Andy break the sewage pipe?
When we’re talking about Andy’s brilliant escape plan from Shawshank, there’s one detail that stands out. He used just a simple rock to break open the sewage pipes and crawl through them. But here’s the thing: sewage pipes are traditionally made of iron.
A rock as simple as the one Andy used would have to be incredibly strong to even make a dent, let alone break through the pipes. Plus, the force required to hit the pipes would likely have injured his hand.
In the scene where Andy crawls through the sewer tunnels to escape, Tim Robbins later joked, “It wasn’t actually human waste; it was cow dung. It was pretty toxic!”
A perfect ending… minus 30 seconds
By now, you know The Shawshank Redemption is a 10/10 film in my book, and it almost feels sacrilegious to suggest changing anything. But if someone really put me on the spot with a gun to my head and made me change one thing, I’d say the film could’ve ended about 30 seconds sooner.
We know Red made it to Mexico and Zihuatanejo — or at least eventually met up with Andy somewhere. He’s the one narrating the whole film, including all those precise details about Andy’s escape and life after he broke out, so there’s no way he could’ve known all that unless he found Andy and heard the whole story.
