On July 6, 1994, “Forrest Gump” was released nationally, and since that time, has been the subject of analysis, controversy and, for some, simple entertainment. Based on the 1986 novel by Winston Groom, “Forrest Gump” boasts a top-tier cast, an incredible soundtrack and, for the time, state-of-the-art visual effects, as well as quotable life lessons. While some think it’s a bunch of cliched phooey, others have been enchanted by Tom Hanks performance of a seemingly simple, but ultimately knowing, Southern gentleman, and it reigned at the box office and on the awards circuit. Let’s go back three decades to see what made this movie so special. Read on for more about the “Forrest Gump” 30th anniversary.
The simple premise begins in 1981 with a gentleman from Alabama narrating his life story to a series strangers who sit next to him while waiting on a bus. But Forrest Gump’s tale is anything but simple, and goes back over 30 years to a childhood friendship that blossoms into love, perseverance over a physical disability and bullying, surviving the losses of loved ones and a lifetime of encounters with several famous and influential people.
It took a special actor to portray the title character, making unbelievable circumstances believable and giving the seemingly slow-witted Forrest Gump more depth. Hanks was fresh off his most dramatic role up to that point, as a gay lawyer stricken with AIDS who sues his employer for discrimination in “Philadelphia” (1993). He was not the first choice to portray Forrest Gump, but once cast, the California native took on the task of perfecting Gump’s Southern accent and quirky mannerisms. Michael Conner Humphreys, an eight-year-old from a small town in Mississippi, won the role of young Forrest, and it was from him that Hanks modeled his drawl and characteristics. A little over three months before the release of this film, Hanks won the Academy Award for Best Actor for “Philadelphia;” a year later he became only the second actor to claim back-to-back victories in this category with his win for “Forrest Gump.”
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Hanks portrayed Forrest from a teen whose running abilities garners him a scholarship to play football under Bear Bryant at the University of Alabama to a young Army man sent to Vietnam to a surprising ping pong celebrity to the successful co-owner of a shrimp company and early investor in Apple. Besides all the historical events in which he is enmeshed, he also meets Presidents John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and Richard Nixon, as well as several other celebrities. These “encounters” were done through innovative visual effects that director Robert Zemeckis has become known for.
In 1994, CGI had been used in films, but not extensively. Through this technology, the filmmakers were able to make Forrest “appear” alongside numerous famous people, inserting Hanks into archive footage and using voice actors to lip sync appropriate dialogue. It was also used to “amputate” Lieutenant Dan’s (Gary Sinise) legs. The end effect was something new for audiences at the time, and it garnered the Academy Awards for Best Film Editing and Best Visual Effects.
As fun as the historical trips down memory lane are, the heart of the film is Forrest’s love of and concern for those around him, and his way of seeing complex situations in their rawest, simplest state. His sassy mother (Sally Field) teaches him to “do the best with what God gave you.” After he saves Lieutenant Dan’s life, he refuses to give up hope for the bitter lieutenant, who overcomes his handicap and resentment with Forrest’s help.
But Forrest’s truest love is his childhood friend Jenny (Robin Wright), who longs to get away from Alabama and her abusive father, whereas Forrest is secure in the loving home of his mother. The seemingly free-spirited Jenny does eventually escape that horror only to indulge in the hippie movement, especially drugs and sex, prevalent in the 1960s and 1970s. Despite the differences in their lifestyles and personalities, Forrest believes they go together like “peas and carrots,” and overlooks her bad choices, and is always there for her.
The contrast in the lives of these two has led to political analysis on the film. The many successes of Forrest, who leads a conservative lifestyle, are in sharp contrast to Jenny, whose involvement in the hippie movement leads to drug use and indiscriminate sex. Some claim that the film is praise for conservatism, and a warning about the dangers of a more “liberal” lifestyle.
But others simply enjoy a movie about a man who might not be “a smart man. But (he) knows what love is.” And that simplicity is what helped it to win the box office, taking over the number one spot from the mighty “The Lion King” upon its opening weekend, and finishing the overall year at number two.
Besides its Oscar triumphs for acting, film editing and visual effects, “Forrest Gump” ended with six wins from 13 nominations, also claiming victory for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. These wins have come under scrutiny in the ensuing years, with some feeling that “The Shawshank Redemption” is the more deserving film, but was at the time under appreciated and lost all seven of it Oscar bids, including Best Picture.
Hanks and Zemeckis have gone on to work together four more times, in “Cast Away” (2000), “The Polar Express” (2004) and “Pinocchio” (2022). They have reunited once again with Wright and screenwriter Eric Roth for the movie “Here,” set to be released later this year, which promises to be another unique moviegoing experience for which Zemeckis has become renowned.
In the end, some viewers are annoyed by Forrest – his simple mindedness, his accent, his corny sayings. Others find him charming. Either way, it just proves that going to the movies is a lot like a box of chocolates — you never know what you’re going to get.
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