Forrest Gump
About the film:
Genre of this film is drama which also includes romance. The film is based on a novel by William Groom and produced by Paramount Communications Company. It is directed by Robert Zemeckis. Its executive music producer is Joel Sill. It was released in the US in 1994 and received many awards such as Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, and People's Choice Award. The major characters are: Tom Hanks( Forrest Gump) , Robin Wright( Jenny) , Sally Field( F's mother), Gary Sinise( Lieutenant Dan), and Mykelti William( Bubba).
The story is during the period of Presidency of Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford and Carter. Some part of film happens in Vietnam. The film shows that many people did not agree with Vietnam War. It also shows "Racism" in the US. For instance, black students were permitted to enroll in college of Alabama just during the summer. During the Vietnam War, the "Black Panthers" were shaped against the War and against racism and unequal opportunities for blacks.
The protagonist is a low IQ boy who does great works but not according to specific reasoning and goal. His mother named him "Forrest" after the Great Civil War's hero; General Nathan Bedford Forrest. She believed "Forrest" reminds him that all people sometimes do things that do make no sense. His actions are really in harmony with his name, for instance, he is a great runner, but as he says in the film, he runs without any reason. When he learns to play Ping-Pong, he plays without thinking. Once in the film, he repeats one of his mother's sentences; "miracles happen every day". We can see that his success in any area is somehow a miracle.
The feather which is shown at the beginning and end of the film is a means to show the passing of time to a destiny; a destiny in which F's mother believes. Lieutenant Dan loses his belief in God and in destiny especially after his losing his legs in the war. F.G doubts whether we are destined to do some things-as his mother told- or "are floating around accidental-like a breeze"- as lieutenant Dan believed- or both.
Plot
The story is about a man named Forrest Gump. It involves two phases; in first phase, F.G speaks about his past life and takes us to different places related to his past experiences. But the events happening for him in second phase are not narrated by him as past memories but are taking place at the same time of being shown. Most of the story takes place in first phase.
F.G is sitting on a bench and waiting for a bus in Savannah. He has a small suitcase in which he carries all the important things he has.
During the first phase, he talks about his life to strangers who sit on that bench for a short while and wait for buses.
Now, his life story:
F.G and his mother live in Alabama. He was a boy with low IQ, but his mother sent him to school. When he grew up, he got a football scholarship in college because he could run very fast. The college put him in the All-America Team. After five years of playing football, he got a college degree. After his graduation, he applied at Army. In the Army he made friendship with a person named Bubba who was crazy about shrimping and suggested him to buy a shrimping boat after coming back home.
The Army sent them to Vietnam. His officer was Lieutenant Dan. In the war, F.G and Lieutenant Dan were shot and Bubba was killed. In the field of war, he helped other soldiers very much. He ran very fast and rescued injured soldiers from the field. So, he was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Johnson. Because he was shot, he was sent to hospital. There, he learned Ping-Pong from another soldier. He could play it as well as running. So, the Army wanted him to play Ping-Pong as the Special Service instead of returning to Vietnam. After some years, the Army decided he should be on the All-American Ping-Pong team. The Army sent the team to China. He and the team were the first Americans who visited China after many long years. After coming back to America, he became a national celebrity and was given the Congressional Medal of Honor. With Ping-Pong team, he met President Nixon. After Nixon's resignation, the Army discharged him and his service was up. After his being discharged, he bought a shrimping boat and worked on it by Lieutenant Dan. They made a lot of money in a few years and became the leaders of Bubba-Gump shrimping corporation. Lieutenant Dan's belief in God strengthened after being by F.G and seeing miracle-like situations like hurricane Carmen which led to their progress in shrimping.
In second phase, we see the events at the same time as they happen. He marries his girlfriend "Jenny". Jenny dies because of illness. He takes care of his son whose name was "Forrest" too. His son was a smart boy.
At the end of the film, the scenes are repeated with a difference: the roles of F.G and his mother are replaced by F.G and his son.
