Can someone explain why Forrest Gump is a good movie?
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And had you seen the film back when it first came out, those pop culture references would have been a lot more relevant and that much more entertaining (remember those smiley faces that were everywhere?)
#1 - The effects were mindblowing at the time. Remember, this is 1994 before CGI was used in every single scene. The integration of archival footage & Tom Hanks was insane. This is only 3 years after Terminator 2 mind you. In the theaters it was even better. MOST walked out of the theater with the "How the heck did they do that" mindset that they had from star wars.
#2 - The casting , directing & story are great. They're not the best ever, but they're well above the standard as far as movies go. It had a good budget, and Tom Hanks is a great actor.
#3 - The pop references are great, the idea behind one guy with no clue could change history in those ways is quite neat.
#2 - The casting , directing & story are great. They're not the best ever, but they're well above the standard as far as movies go. It had a good budget, and Tom Hanks is a great actor.
#3 - The pop references are great, the idea behind one guy with no clue could change history in those ways is quite neat.
Didn't read the responses in thread but I thought Forest Gump was about enlightenment. Life is like a box of chocolates never know what you gonna get next. Here was a guy just enjoying the journey and experience of life without caring about the end goals. He effortlessly moved with life and things came to him.
It's a film, it's fiction, did you get pissed off when watching Jurassic Park because dinosaurs aren't real?
Who the fuck cares if it sells the american dream, suckers gonna suck and if you're not one of them then enjoy the fucking film because you don't have to take on it's morals as your morals.
You're looking to deep into the movie. It isn't supposed to be deep or particularly philosophical, it's a comedy for god's sake. But it's a well made, funny, and uplifting film. Why the hell would you hate on it lol?
First off, it's a great movie if people can have various perspectives of the movie and debate the meaning of it.
For me, Forrest Gump represents following your passions blindly. Forrest Gump in epitome of simplicity. Leading life by simplicity and not over complicating things around you. Having faith that if you do "good" without expectations the entire world will open up to you. And as selfishly as you may think that this isn't possible, the film never claims that to be the reality. Forrest's true love of life, the one thing he believes in and he is certain about. The only thing he hopes to "acquire", is the only thing that runs away from him. Jenny ends up hurting him the most. In the end, the only thing he hopes to have, ends up being the thing furtherest away from him.
I know there is a lot of American references in the movie but for me a lot of it has to do with the philosophy of life. Life has a lot of unexpected turns that can never be anticipated. Follow your passion and do what makes you happy. Ignore what people say. Don't judge and always be opening for new opportunities.
Truth is, like Andy Warhol, and his ability to capture crowds of people to decipher his art works when they had no meaning most of the time, perhaps this movie does the same. So who knows but that's what makes it great.
For me, Forrest Gump represents following your passions blindly. Forrest Gump in epitome of simplicity. Leading life by simplicity and not over complicating things around you. Having faith that if you do "good" without expectations the entire world will open up to you. And as selfishly as you may think that this isn't possible, the film never claims that to be the reality. Forrest's true love of life, the one thing he believes in and he is certain about. The only thing he hopes to "acquire", is the only thing that runs away from him. Jenny ends up hurting him the most. In the end, the only thing he hopes to have, ends up being the thing furtherest away from him.
I know there is a lot of American references in the movie but for me a lot of it has to do with the philosophy of life. Life has a lot of unexpected turns that can never be anticipated. Follow your passion and do what makes you happy. Ignore what people say. Don't judge and always be opening for new opportunities.
Truth is, like Andy Warhol, and his ability to capture crowds of people to decipher his art works when they had no meaning most of the time, perhaps this movie does the same. So who knows but that's what makes it great.
The movie to me seems less about Forrest and more about a journey through American culture. Forrest finds himself observing history in the making over and over, yet his simplicity and lack of judgment give him a kind of neutrality about the events. The movie invites the audience to watch how big events unfolded through Forrest's simple eyes. He doesn't understand what happened there, but we do.
Jenny loved Forrest, but they had no future as a couple because he was too simple for her. He did not judge her, and helped when she really needed him.
So much of the commentary in the film is subtle and wry, like Forrest's experiences in the armed forces.
Jenny loved Forrest, but they had no future as a couple because he was too simple for her. He did not judge her, and helped when she really needed him.
So much of the commentary in the film is subtle and wry, like Forrest's experiences in the armed forces.
This. It's a great movie because it's about a mentally slow man who seemingly had his hand in some of the biggest changes America saw in the 1960's.
If you just listened to the soundtrack without the dialogue this film is better than most movies produced today!
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWoUcB7y4hw]Forrest Gump Soundtrack - YouTube[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VWoUcB7y4hw]Forrest Gump Soundtrack - YouTube[/ame]
Fair enough. As a comedy, it was.. meh, for me, I think it had the potential to be really good if they stopped trying to cram in these laughs and just made it pure emotion. Making it into a good comedy would require a 100% rewrite of the script, imo. I think it could've been made into a really good emotional film, though. I agree, I found the Vietnam war section funny, as well as the watergate bit and the John Lennon bit, but neither of those bits were 'belly-laugh' bits, more "heh", for me.
I know where you're coming from.
Yeah, I found the fruit company bit funny. I think it could've been very moving if they'd gone with that, but from the very start, I was pretty confused as to whether it was a comedy or a drama - they'd do this moving bit, then half a second later would throw in a joke.
P.S. Dual monitors
Agreed, there were two things I really liked about the film, and that was the choice of music, and the effects. I was really impressed by that, and I got stuck as to how they did all the historical (dead) people.
Definitely agree with you on the first, not so much on the second - I think I got the majority of pop culture references, but it's very very possible I'm wrong.
Ok, I see where you're coming from on the first bit, although I think they could have made more of it. I also think (as I said above) that they shouldn't have used so much comedy in the film. A little here and there in a serious film is ok, but I felt like it was being rammed down my throat a little.
I definitely know where you're coming from. However, if the plan is to look from a purely cold angle (not saying that there can be no smiles, but I'm not sure about full-on comedy), then perhaps that could be a good film. If the plan was to look with a humorous angle, that could be good too. However, I find the mishmash of comedy & pathos a tad bizarre.
I'm not sure I'd agree with you saying Jenny loved Forrest. To use a tired cliché, "love conquers all". Personally, I think if she truly loved him, she would've got into a relationship with him from the start. She didn't, she just slept around, and that's okay, but I wouldn't call it a success for him. However, on further reflection, I take back my previous comment of it not ending with any kind of moral - since while we (I use the word in the Queen's sense here, I know we differ on opinions about this) may not see it as a success, Forrest does, which is what truly matters.
Yeah, I did like the armed forces bit, and preferred the humour in there. However, the more obtrusive humour (combined with the drama, but that's not a bad thing, that should stay) distracted me a little from it.
Out of the things I liked about this film, the soundtrack was definitely in there.
The book went into a lot more depth about his relationship with Jenny. And a lot more about how fucked up her father was. Forrest was also more like Rain Man; the closest the movie came to showing that was with his ping pong skills. But he also worked briefly for NASA.
The original author wrote a sequel after the film was made:
9780671521707: Gump & Co. - AbeBooks - Groom, Winston: 0671521705
The screenplay has also been written, but I don't think anyone will be making a second film.
The original author wrote a sequel after the film was made:
9780671521707: Gump & Co. - AbeBooks - Groom, Winston: 0671521705
The screenplay has also been written, but I don't think anyone will be making a second film.