In 1947, Andy, the banker, was sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering his wife. That meant Andy would spend rest of his life in the Shawshank Prison.

In 1927, Red was sentenced to life imprisonment because of murdering. He tried several times to be released, but none of the tries succeeded. He was a big figure in the Shawshank Prison—He could get everything as long as you pay him.

At the first day Andy was sent to the prison, everyone including Red betted that Andy must be crying in his first night. However, Andy remained silent for the whole night. As a result, Red lost some cigarettes, but he remembered Andy’s name.

Andy had not been talking to anyone for a longtime. He just walked around the yard at leisure while everyone else was complaining. One month later, Andy asked Red to get a mattock for him. Andy told Red that he just needed something to cave for fun. After that, Andy put up a poster of Rita Hayworth on his wall.

Later, Andy went out to do labour work with other prisoners. During work, he overheard some conversations between guards. It was about taxes. Andy then went to the guards and said that he could let them walk away from the taxes legally. As an exchange, Andy and his friends got much cold beer to drink. Red said that he felt freedom.

Because of his mastery in finance, Andy could no longer do labour work. Meanwhile, he was protected from the harassment of other prisoners. At the same time, Andy began to be important to the warden in case of money laundering.

Andy consistently wrote letters to the head of state to ask for fund for the library. Eventually he succeeded. Also he bought a harmonica for Red.

Then a young prisoner came. He said that he had heard Andy’s case before and he knew who is the real murderer. However, the warden refuse to reopen the case for Andy, and Andy was given solitary confinement for 2 months. Afterwards, the warden killed that young prisoner to prevent Andy from getting out.

Andy became depressed since then. Later, he told Red that he must go to the place where Andy and his wife dated at the first time, dig out a box under the big oak, if he could be released after all.

At that night, Andy escaped the prison successfully, with the company of lightning and thunder.

It turned out that Andy had been digging holes by that mattock for 20 years. The poster was the cover of the hole. He hided the mattock in warden’s Bible. After getting out of the prison, Andy took the warden’s money and exposed his crimes. The police came to the prison, and the warden suicided.

Red was released from the prison eventually. He went to the place that Andy told him, and he found some cash and a letter from Andy. Then he went to Mexico, and met Andy on a beach.