Forrest Gump: A Tribute to American Culture and Ordinary People

With a lavish production budget of 55 million dollars, Forrest Gump (1994) still managed to earn itself almost six times as much in the box office. The domestic total gross of the film came to a whopping 330 million dollars. Granted, director Robert Zemeckis is no slouch. He also directed big box office winners like Back to the Future, Castaway, The Polar Express and even the recently released film, The Walk. Forrest, however, is a special kind of movie by Zemeckis. While it received much praise from the Academy, the film has been also been highly criticized, and some find it to be overrated.

 

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The movie centers around the life of none other than the dim-witted Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks). Boy, this is a difficult story to briefly summarize because so much happens. I'll do my best anyway. Forrest narrates the different historical events he's gone through from his childhood in the fifties, to his current adulthood in the nineties. In between all of this, we watch the reappearing and disappearing romance between Forrest, and his longtime friend, Jenny (Robin Wright).

 

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As Forrest experiences new stages of his life, the people around him and the attitude of society also change, adding the historical aspect.  Forrest is a long movie with a running time of approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes. Zemeckis and the writers definitely take advantage of this time, packing in many elements I want to talk about. I think part of the reason this movie was so successful is because there is so much an audience member can discuss after watching it. Let's first explore the underlying message of Forrest.

I know people personally who can't stand this movie, including my mom. One of the first things people will tell me when I ask them why they disliked it is, "I just didn't get it. I didn't understand why I was supposed to like Forrest, or what was so special about him. I just didn't understand." Forrest is definitely not the typical superhero, or brave fighter. In fact, he's mostly unintelligent, and does not understand a lot of things most people quickly comprehend in terms of sex, history, and sarcasm.

 

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An article was written explaining how both the movie and book, Forrest Gump relates to postmodernism, even though I'm not going to get into that (because if I did, this blog entry would be a novel). Nevertheless, the article makes an interesting argument mentioning, "Forrest Gump is being widely read and appreciated-even celebrated-as a parable about the innate worth of the 'common man.'" Perhaps this is also why so many people have watched and re-watched the film. The movie celebrates the "common man", the "average Joe", the kind of person you probably are.

As the movie proceeds, we see Forrest transform into a very successful person. He plays for the All-American Football Team, meets two presidents, survives the Vietnam War, becomes a millionaire, and so on. What's funny, is Forrest just happens to stumble upon these successes.

 

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Forrest's unexpected achievements fit in perfectly with the movie's famous motto, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." While the story is obviously fictional, Forrest's life sends a message. His life is a key example that anything is possible. And I got to tell you, people can make fun of Forrest all day long, but that is message we all need to hear sometimes.

A common criticism that the flick receives is that the story does not take history seriously, and in fact, exploits it. It's definitely true that because Forrest is portrayed as empty-headed, he tends to recall important facts like they are nothing. He matter-of-factly mentions the fatal shooting of John F. Kennedy, and the very significant life of civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I understand how many people, especially those who have actually lived through these events, would find this kind of storytelling offensive. The controversy over how history was used for the movie probably also contributed to the stunning popularity of Forrest.

 

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Nonetheless, the way that history is presented in Forrest Gump is something that is praised by others, including myself to an extent. The article later reads, "Tom Hanks did not meet and receive a commendation from JFK; neither did he 'moon' Johnson; neither did he bring down Nixon by discovering the Watergate break-in. History becomes personal in this film." And so it does. If you can look at Forrest as something that's completely fictional, which it is, you may notice a very charming and clever way the film incorporated these historical events. The movie isn't trying to retell history, but is trying to show you how one ordinary guy recalled those events. This creates the sentimental element of the movie that so many, Americans in particular, enjoy about Forrest.

As a movie released in 1994, special effects were better than they had ever been in American cinema, and would only improve with time. After all, the much adored Jurassic Park had been released just a year prior to Forrest.

 

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The movie shows off the premium talent of special effects technicians, including a scene where Forrest runs through a Vietnam jungle, carrying his best friend Bubba (Mykelti Williamson) in his arms. A series of explosions fire directly behind them as they continue through the jungle. It is a marvelous and horrifying piece of visual effects. The famous feather scenes at the beginning and end of the movie also show how much blood, sweat, and tears went into the movie's appearance. Another bit of the article describes, "the opening sequence...in which a feather wafts out of the sky to land at Gump's feet, is a remarkable piece of work. It appears to be one long, unbroken pan shot." It wasn't until I read the article that I found out the feather scene had to be completed in several, tiny shots to create one smooth scene.

At the end of the day, Forrest is often misunderstood, but there is a lot to admire. With so many different aspects to look at, and so many events and characters Forrest comes to know, I would dare you to criticize the movie for rushing.

 

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You can tell Zemeckis, and everyone involved in the movie really wanted to invite you into someone's life. With the use of video and effects, we are able to experience someone else's experiences in a way that we just never could in real life. And for that, I don't think the movie is overrated. I think it's an intriguing look into the life of a guy that you'll either love or hate, and it's okay for you to feel either way about him.