Forrest Gump was an interesting movie, to say the least. Tom Hanks as Forrest was almost an impossible character to dislike. There was an endearing quality to him, that any all-American would find hard to hate. However, film critics didn’t like Forrest Gump at all, which was understandable.
He floated through life, never the smartest or the best at anything, yet he ended up owning a multimillion corporation. Forrest went through many crucial points of American history without ever really understanding the gravity or importance of the situation he was in.
For example, he helped Elvis Presley with his dance movies, picked up his University’s first African American student’s notebook, and his injury in Vietnam was a harmless shot in his buttocks, while his friend was killed and commanding officer paralyzed.
Forrest is either a character that you love immediately, or hate for his simpleness. American audiences found it easy to relate to Forrest because he was just a simple small town American boy who was just living his life. Though he had many more successes than the usual person, he also has had tragedy that many families have also experienced. He loses his mother from old age/sickness, and his best friend in the war. His loved one Jenny dies from AIDS, a very misunderstood sickness at the time.
In these ways, Forrest one back the audience by living a life that had both sadness and happiness.
Some parts of the movie were simply ridiculous though. Forrest is part of the country’s ping pong team, and met two separate presidents. His boat is the only one that survives a horrible storm, and he invests in the “fruit company” that would give him even more money. Though they could annoy an audience, the other qualities of the film outweighed these few annoyances.
For example, the way Forrest’s story was told was very interesting. He narrates most of his life while waiting at an unnecessary bus stop. This is a great view into Forrest as a person, because he is just a friendly, albeit simple man, who is telling his life to random people, many of whom don’t seem to care much about what he said, or thought he was simply crazy. It was just near the end, when Forrest met bck up with Jenny, where the film went back to the present.
It was an interesting way to tell the story, because Forrest’s narrative of his flashbacks is cut off when he starts living what the film is showing, which I found worked well.
As for other aspects of film, the acting was very good, with Hanks as Gump putting on a great performance with the accent and the way he acted. Robin Wright as Jenny did a fantastic job of showing her reluctance to love Forrest, and always knowing that he was too good for her. Gary Sinise, playing “Lieutenant Dan” was also a notable one to mention in the film. His interactions with Forrest are a great way to see Forrest’s character, and to see the changes that Dan goes through after Vietnam as he copes with his paralysis. His characterization is phenomenal as he changes from the harsh man who wishes he died to a hardworking man who helps Forrest out, and eventually finds love.
So, is Forrest Gump a nice movie to watch? Sure. Is it one that you could watch a lot? Not for me. 7.5/10
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