The best movie ever made...

is arguably The Shawshank Redemption.  IMDB currently has it at #1 as voted by their subscribers.  It is a classic movie - about hope, friendship and redemption.  Ironically, the movie is more about Red "Morgan Freeman", than it is about Andy "Tim Robbins".  AMC has recently been playing it and we proudly bring you a couple of clips.  "Get busy living or get busy dying".  If you have never seen it please do yourself a huge favor and rent it or buy it.  You will not be disappointed. 

Shawshank Redemption official trailer:

The Shawshank Redemption - "Hope"

Rank	Rating	Title	Votes
1.	9.2	The Shawshank Redemption (1994)	564,440
2.	9.2	The Godfather (1972)	439,983
3.	9.0	The Godfather: Part II (1974)	266,653
4.	8.9	The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)	177,268
5.	8.9	Pulp Fiction (1994)	450,081
6.	8.9	Schindler's List (1993)	298,787
7.	8.9	12 Angry Men (1957)	132,841
8.	8.8	Inception (2010)	304,134
9.	8.8	One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)	233,278
10.	8.8	The Dark Knight (2008)	503,714
11.	8.8	Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)	297,448
12.	8.8	The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)	392,377
13.	8.8	Seven Samurai (1954)	104,068
14.	8.7	Fight Club (1999)	415,575
15.	8.7	Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope (1977)	340,671
16.	8.7	Goodfellas (1990)	247,807
17.	8.7	Casablanca (1942)	178,276
18.	8.7	City of God (2002)	182,215
19.	8.7	The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)	415,303
20.	8.7	Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)	81,459

From The Internet Movie Database:

The film speaks to a lot of people with its message of hope, perseverance and purpose in the face of life's struggles. These themes appeal to (and inspire) a wide array of people. The movies' themes are universal to human experience, though they are expressed allegorically in a prison setting that only a minority can truly empathize with. Director Darabont's ability to help viewers see through the prison setting to the deeper life-truths is a major attraction.

 And I just love this reader's review from The Internet Movie Database:

In my honest opinion The Shawshank Redemption is the greatest film of all time. It is a movie conversion of Stephen King's novel of the same name. It is nearly perfect in every way you look at it. The acting, the editing, the soundtrack, the story, the directing, simply in every way it is perfect. I find it very hard to find badly acted scenes or tasteless storytelling. And let me tell you why is this movie so good.

Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), an honest and successful banker, is convicted and sentenced for life to Shawshank prison for the murder of his wife and her lover. Shawshank is not exactly a funfair, the prisons guard captain Hadley (Clancy Brown) is a violent, swearing hound dog, the warden Norton (Bob Gunton) is a corrupted, evil and criminal, and the prison knows no real laws. The only rules are: No blasphemy and you do whatever we ask you to do. If you break the rules you will feel the wrath of Hadley&co. There he meets a man that is called Red (Morgan Freeman), a man who knows how to get things. With Red at his side the prison's entrepreneur becomes almost a hero. He reminds the prisoners that there is something inside them that even the hardest beating or the loudest yell can't touch, hope, hope of better life, hope of freedom. He works his way through the prison's hierarchy, finally getting to work behind the prison's warden Norton, helping the warden on his scam.

The story may sound standard movie stuff. But it is much, much more complex. It is epic, gives goosebumps, makes grown men cry, makes you so angry you will want to just hop in there and give a nice long beating, gives you feelings you never thought you could feel in a movie and you dive in to it like in to a pool of coke. The scenes that make you happy are so happy you make smile so wide your mandible will crackle. The scenes that make you cry flood your face. The story in every way is everything I ever have wanted out of a film. It carries something very few stories do, it carries a meaning. It gives a little inspect on the true face of prisons and the American justice system.

The acting is superb. No actor was below average, hell, every actor was perfect in their roles. At some points you could honestly believe that this was a documentary filmed with hidden cameras or something. Tim Robbins was perfect in his acting. The way he made himself smile subtly so that you wonder why is he doing that, is just magnificent. If you can find one badly acted scene with Andy, call me, please. Clancy Brown was equally perfect. He was not only true to his role as the captain of guards, but he became him. When he was angry, you could swear that it was not acting, but true hatred. Morgan Freeman was nearly as good at his role as Red as Tim Robbins was. Only one thing was a little off. He seemed somewhat anxious in some scenes where he shouldn't have been anxious. I don't know why. But if you can ignore that, it was a perfectly acted role. Bob Gunton was very, very good at his role as the warden of Shawshank. He was especially good at one scene in the end.

The director, Frank Darabont, has a near-legend status. Due to his movie Green Mile, which is also a conversion of a Stephen King book and his new series that has already claimed a Golden Globe nomination for best series of the year. He directed the film perfectly. Choosing the right actors, the right scriptwriters, the graphic designers and etcetera is not an easy task. His version of the novel is awe-inspiring. The way he made the film is just magnificent.

I don't know who made the soundtrack, but it is over the top. It just enhances the feelings brought by the actors.

Shawshank is a movie about friendship, hope, strength, wisdom, salvation, greed, dreams and finding solace in chaos. It has themes that make Citizen Kane look like a sixth grader's weekend project. It has quotes that would make Winston Churchill wonder why he didn't think of them. It has a story that makes J.R.R look like a petty freelancer. It teaches something to everybody. It teaches us to never give up hope. To never let go of you dreams. To always look forward like an optimist without looking back. Shawshank Redemption is simply perfect in every way. (Please, for the love of all that is good and pure, see this movie.)