Forrest Gump (1994)
Directed by Robert Zemeckis
A man with a low IQ has accomplished great things in his life and been present during significant historic events—in each case, far exceeding what anyone imagined he could do. But despite all he has achieved, his one true love eludes him.
17 connections found
View:
17 films that influenced Forrest Gump
What critics say influenced Forrest Gump
At the same time, it's kind of always obvious that the film doesn't really look on Forrest as the unambiguously noble fool that the film's reputation implies: the character's broad, molasses-slow accent and the improbable naïveté he brings to every one of his encounters with world history are certainly meant to absurd if not wholly ridiculous, and for every moment where his solemn pronouncements of folk wisdom are framed in Don Burgess's widescreen cinematography (he and Zemeckis can't figure out what do with with the 2.35:1 frame, though there are some potently beautiful landscapes here and there) and cradled by Silvestri's delicate score to be some kind of gravely significant Pronouncement of an Untarnished Soul, there's one where the film adopts a smirking, "this rube sure is a moron, and only in a country of morons could he impress so many people and have so much success" attitude that would be barely indistinguishable from Being There , if Being There was broken and atonal, and if Peter Sellers was mu…
Coming after "Being There," "Rain Man" and what seems like every film starring Johnny Depp, "Forrest Gump" is a further example of Hollywood's fascination with the mentally challenged.
Like the gardener in "Being There," Forrest benefits from a below-average IQ and an even temperament.
Imagine what a more thoughtful director could have done with Gump (think Being There ), and imagine how many terrific, pure entertainments we have missed because Zemeckis was so handsomely rewarded for making this movie.
That's the cinematic formula for "Forrest Gump," which combines the most interesting elements of "The World According to Garp," Woody Allen's "Zelig" and "Being There."
Gump has most often been compared to 1979's Being There, but there is a critical difference.
…has been played up in the television ads, which seem to be selling the movie as a combination of "Rain Man" and the Woody Allen comedy "Zelig," which also used archival newsreel footage and computer handiwork to give the impression that the lead actor was actually standing next to a famous person.
That's the cinematic formula for "Forrest Gump," which combines the most interesting elements of "The World According to Garp," Woody Allen's "Zelig" and "Being There."
Dustin Hoffman was an autistic savant in “Rain Man.” Woody Allen shared the limelight with famous faces in “Zelig.”
Related to the newsreels in Woody Allen's "Zelig," only much more elaborate and impressive, the effects--created by Industrial Light & Magic--are showstoppers, presenting Forrest convincingly interacting with several Presidents, including John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson.
Mixing elements of "Rain Man," "The World According to Garp" and Woody Allen's "Zelig," "Forrest Gump" covers 30 years in Gump's life, and reframes recent history by suggesting that one man can leave his stamp -- through blunders, serendipity and simple good will -- on several key historical moments.
Like Woody Allen's character in "Zelig," Forrest shows up in newsreel and TV footage thanks to technological sorcery, so well and hilariously employed by Zemeckis here.
Skillfully adapted by screenwriter Eric Roth, the story belongs in the company of such sweet classics as "Rain Man" and "Harvey," but for all its conviviality suggests that only a simpleton could miss the erosion in the American national character.
Our Flick of the Week is "Forrest Gump," which begins as yet another case of a Hollywood star doing an Oscar turn playing a mentally disturbed character ("Charly," "Rain Man") but surprisingly turns into a marvelous, whimsical epic of contemporary America.
I did appreciate the focus on Thomas Newman's exceptional score, however, a piece that is as integral to the success of American Beauty in Best Picture lore as Hans Zimmer's is for Rain Man.
Coming after "Being There," "Rain Man" and what seems like every film starring Johnny Depp, "Forrest Gump" is a further example of Hollywood's fascination with the mentally challenged.
Mixing elements of "Rain Man," "The World According to Garp" and Woody Allen's "Zelig," "Forrest Gump" covers 30 years in Gump's life, and reframes recent history by suggesting that one man can leave his stamp -- through blunders, serendipity and simple good will -- on several key historical moments.
Shades of "Rain Man," "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter" and hundreds of other noble-simpleton movies.
Although hard to pigeonhole, the picture unavoidably recalls the idiot-savant classic “Being There,” and significantly resembles “The World According to Garp” in tone.
Mixing elements of "Rain Man," "The World According to Garp" and Woody Allen's "Zelig," "Forrest Gump" covers 30 years in Gump's life, and reframes recent history by suggesting that one man can leave his stamp -- through blunders, serendipity and simple good will -- on several key historical moments.
That's the cinematic formula for "Forrest Gump," which combines the most interesting elements of "The World According to Garp," Woody Allen's "Zelig" and "Being There."
His direction is inspired, and he had the good idea of crafting the film into a series of mostly short scenes which really give you an overall view of T.S. Garp's unlikely life, somehow like in "Forrest Gump".
Advertisement
There's more: read for me a scene where Forrest and his crippled Vietnam captain Lt. Dan (Gary Sinise) walk through a late-sixties Manhattan to the strains of Harry Nilsson's "Everybody's Talkin'," the iconic theme song from fellow Best Picture-winner Midnight Cowboy (1969).
Many, many movies, going back to Charles Chaplin's great The Gold Rush , end with the hero gaining financial reward.
Shades of "Rain Man," "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter" and hundreds of other noble-simpleton movies.
Like Candide (or Forrest Gump), once he leaves his village, he sees the world.
Based on William Makepeace Thackeray's 1844 novel, Barry Lyndon strangely resembles Forrest Gump in that its protagonist is a not-too-bright opportunist (Ryan O'Neal) who rises in society when he lands in the right place at the right time.
Advertisement
Thus, it's something of a prequel to Forrest Gump.
And if anything, director Robert Zemeckis’ post-“Gump” projects have only reinforced this opinion; yeah, he helmed “Contact” and “Cast Away,” but he’s also the man responsible for the dead-eyed mo-cap trilogy of “The Polar Express,” “ Beowulf ,” and “ A Christmas Carol ” – with a “Yellow Submarine” remake on the way.