Forrest Gump (1994)

[Describing Vietnam] “We was always taking long walks, and we was always looking for a guy named “Charlie”. – Forrest Gump

Number of Times Seen – Too many to count (Theater, DVD, 8 Jun 2013)

Brief Synopsis – The life of Forrest Gump, a simple minded man who has an interesting way of perceiving the world and world events.

My Take on it – I remember that I had heard about this movie before it came out and even though it was supposedly a strange idea, I liked the historical aspects of the movie.

Tom Hanks was amazing in this role and definitely was deserving of getting a second consecutive Oscar for this movie {He also won one the previous year for his role in Philadelphia (1993)}

This movie has it all; it makes you laugh, cry and most of all feel good.  The idea of showing the world from the viewpoint of a simple man and his views of events that span from the mid-1950’s thru the early 80’s was such a great idea.  I understand that the novel this was based on is very different and even weirder than the movie itself and the focus of the book was not on his love for Jenny but rather his adventures which include an orangutang named Sue.

This movie won 6 Oscars in a very tough Oscar year since there were 5 great movies nominated for Best Picture {Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Pulp Fiction (1994), Quiz Show (1994) and The Shawshank Redemption (1994)}

It won Best Picture, Director, Actor (Hanks), Special Effects, Film Editing, Adapted Screenplay.

It lost Best Supporting Actor {Sinise. who I think shoulda won since his Lt. Dan was better than any of the other nominees including Samuel L. Jackson as Jules Winfield in Pulp Fiction (1994)}, Cinematography, Art Direction, Sound Effects Editing, Best Score, Best Makeup, and Best Sound.

Go see it!

Bottom Line – Excellent movie. Has a great mix of history and fiction. Heartwarming. Highly recommended!!

Rating – Oscar Worthy