Faisal Ali (fslsarfaraz)

2012 is the expensive, large-scale version of the same spectacle presented by downmarket counterparts such as Knowing. An Oscar-caliber cast and dazzling visual effects can't rescue this formulaic disaster flick from a script flooded with generic dialogue, preposterous plot points and the same action scene recycled over and over again. But hey, it's a disaster movie. It's supposed to be ridiculous.

It's the usual case of great dancing, bad acting and even worse dialogue in this very guilty pleasure for fans of the genre. A cliche-ridden movie by people to whom formula is clearly mother's milk. An amazement that Step Up 2 actually got made (albeit the sequel was far better).

The reason this intricate piece of gamesmanship leaves such a long-lasting impression is because it takes advantage of the guillability of the viewer. This yarn scurries and scales its way meandering between being an entertaining crime drama; an intricately conceived puzzle play; a fragment of gangster mythology and a parody of a cops-and-robbers film. It just doesn't show-off but has something to show in each and every frame.

Shawshank is not a prison drama. It as a metaphor for overcoming our own private prisons. Without a single riot scene or horrific effect, it tells a slow, gentle story of camaraderie and growth, with an ending that abruptly finds poetic justice in what has come before. It celebrates the triumph of hope over despair, of decency over cruelty, of justice over injustice. Every frame reminds us that hope is a precious and buoyant emotion that can give our lives substance and meaning. a sunny, heart-tugging hymn to that old chestnut, the indomitability of the human spirit.