Forrest Gump (1994)

User Rating:

8.6/10   

Director:

Robert Zemeckis

Writers (WGA):

Winston Groom (novel)
Eric Roth (screenplay)

Release Date:

6 July 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | War

Tagline:

The story of a lifetime.

Plot:

Forrest Gump, while not intelligent, has accidentally been present at many historic moments, but his true love, Jenny, eludes him.

Plot Keywords:

Love | Vietnam | Table Tennis | 1950s | 1970s

Awards:

Won 6 Oscars. Another 32 wins & 38 nominations

Cast

Tom Hanks	...	Forrest Gump
Robin Wright Penn	...	Jenny Curran (as Robin Wright)
Gary Sinise	...	Lt. Dan Taylor
Mykelti Williamson	...	Pvt. Benjamin Buford 'Bubba' Blue
Sally Field	...	Mrs. Gump
Rebecca Williams	...	Nurse at Park Bench
Michael Conner Humphreys	...	Young Forrest Gump
Harold G. Herthum	...	Doctor (as Harold Herthum)
George Kelly	...	Barber
Bob Penny	...	Crony
John Randall	...	Crony
Sam Anderson	...	Principal
Margo Moorer	...	Louise, Mrs. Gump's Housekeeper
Ione M. Telech	...	Elderly Woman
Christine Seabrook	...	Elderly Woman's Daughter

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for drug content, some sensuality and war violence.

Runtime:

142 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Black and White | Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:PG (TV rating) | Finland:K-12 (re-rating) | Finland:K-14 (original rating) | Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | South Korea:15 (DVD rating) | Portugal:M/12 | Brazil:14 | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Germany:12 | Ireland:15 | Israel:PG | Netherlands:12 | Norway:11 | Poland:15 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario)

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Robert Zemeckis decided to leave out several planned effects shots. One shot in particular involved Forrest running into Martin Luther King and his supporters. Forrest distracts several dogs trying to attack King and his supporters by playing fetch with them and rendering them harmless to King and himself as well as his supporters.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Forrest is originally running from the bullies he is in a plaid shirt, the shirt then changes, and he ends up in the same plaid shirt by the end of the shot.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Forrest Gump: Hello. My name's Forrest, Forrest Gump. You want a chocolate?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "My Name Is Earl: Harassed a Reporter (#2.19)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Mr. President (Have Pity On The Working Man)

Purity and innocence retained

I have seen this movie easily a half a dozen times, and I find that the beauty of the film is how Forrest Gump not only shares his innocence and purity with others, including the audience, he also manages to retain that innocence and purity through some very difficult times. As a Viet Nam veteran, and a college graduate of the late Sixties, I could of course personally relate to the various periods that Forrest Gump endures. I would only mention that the skillful and seamless blending of music, action, and period costume was enthralling. And yet it was so perfectly understated that Forrest Gump's travels through thirty five years of the stormiest and most meaningful years of American history only became clearly defined for the viewer. Even more so than the well known chocolates quote as a metaphor for life, I felt that the remark that stupid is what you do is probably more workable for most of us.