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The Shawshank Redemption And Forrest Gump

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At a glance, the movies The Shawshank Redemption and Forrest Gump could not be any more different if they tried. But, once the audience is immersed in the hidden meanings and secret messages of the movies you find that they are quite similar. The movies revolve around the same character type: a man who is a victim of his surroundings, trying to fight against the odds to prove himself, while the cinematography takes full advantage of color and lighting. The people who are striving to prove others wrong are the two main characters from these iconic films; Forrest Gump and Andy Dufresne. They both struggle to fight against people’s conception of them. Forrest, throughout the movie, is trying to prove to people he is not stupid. He is not …show more content…

While lighting is an important factor in any movie so is the wardrobe choice and colors. The audience can sense the effect of these choices in The Shawshank Redemption more so than in Forrest Gump. In the Shawshank prison everyone is kept in the same uniform. Dull colors are found everywhere, except on the art some prisoners are allowed to keep on their walls, and even then they are dulled by the filming style they used. Even the books in the Shawshank library are worn and dull. The designer’s use of all neutral colors can make the audience feel one or two ways. The dull colors could cause them to feel sad, therefore making them feel empathy for the prisoners. On the other spectrum, the unemotional colors could make them feel unattached to these characters. While in Forrest Gump they use a lot of cool colors, such as blues and greens. These cool colors are an exceptional choice for this movie. The color blue is a color that symbolized trust and tranquility. On the other hand, using green makes movie goers feel calm and refreshed, green represents nature. Color choice and wardrobe go hand in hand. Everyone is dressed differently showing their individuality. The writers use some warm colors, like red or yellow, here and there to make the audience feel intense or happy. But Forrest Gump is always dressed in blues or greens, no matter what scene it is. Cool colors are designed to make a person feel

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