Director Robert Zemeckis is known for innovating the technology of filmmaking but with Forrest Gump, he combined that with a classic American tale. With Tom Hanks at his absolute peak and Robin Wright (who reunited in Here) transitioning from eighties princess to dramatic actress, the trio were all at the perfect point in their careers to make an essentially strange movie and have it gross over $600 million at the global box office and sweep the Oscars.
Perhaps one of the strangest box office successes in modern movie history, Forrest Gump is, at the end of the day, one long montage. When some people say that Forrest Gump is boring, they are usually referring to the subject matter but the film’s pacing is actually relentless. Most scenes are under three minutes long, likely because the movie spans decades.
The Vietnam sequence is one of the few sequences that goes on longer and it is by far the most exciting part of the film. In contrast, Zemeckis gave the same treatment to Forrest’s three-year run, and it brought the film to a screeching halt. It is a testament to Hanks’ inherent likability and charm that he can sustain being in almost every scene.
In Any Other Filmmaker’s Hands, Forrest Gump Would’ve Been A Disaster
Tom Hanks Is A Different Kind Of Protagonist
In different hands, Forrest Gump is the exact opposite of an Oscar winner. When you think about its combined parts, it’s interesting, to say the least, that it became such a pop culture icon. “Life is like a box of chocolates” lives permanently in the American subconscious. But the film is a period piece with one action sequence and perhaps the most earnest, unreliable narrator of all time. Hanks is not portraying a typical protagonist and the tone of the film is truly unique. It’s a crowd-pleaser that’s almost universally loved — that means something.
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What makes the film truly wild is how so many monumental things just happen to Forrest and we’re able to just go along with it. Insinuating that Elvis Presley, John Lennon, and several presidents were heavily influenced by their time with Forrest, is hilariously fascinating. In any other film, that would be farce or science fiction. In Forrest Gump, these elements are inextricable from the plot but also an afterthought. That sort of straightforward comedy seems pedestrian now, but there is an inherent nostalgia that reminds us of a time when comedy didn’t have to be so self-referential.
That sort of straightforward comedy seems pedestrian now, but there is an inherent nostalgia that reminds us of a time when comedy didn’t have to be so self-referential.
Whenever I think the film starts to take itself too seriously, Zemeckis will throw a curveball and have a voice-over lead into a diegetic punchline. Forrest Gump has always made us cry but its ability to make us laugh has carried it through the decades. What stands out years later is how distant Robin Wright’s Jenny feels from Forrest. The beginning and end have them side by side but she spends most of the film in tragic vignettes away from her friend. Her performance is unassailable but the suspension of disbelief is raised when she finally shows signs of affection.
Too Much Of A Good Thing
Playing The Hits Is One Thing, But Zemeckis Pushes It Too Far
The music in Forrest Gump is without a doubt corny. Second only to Martin Scorsese’s overuse of The Rolling Stones, Zemeckis’ overuse of pop hits from the period is a frustrating fact about an American classic. An optimistic reading of this would be that it’s what would have been playing at the time. However, when “Running On Empty” is playing while Forrest is running for three years and getting tired, it becomes too much. No matter how much I like The Doors, hearing three of their songs in a row is overkill.
Regardless, generations of moviegoers have seen the film and that kind of staying power is extraordinary. Flaws and all, the movie unfolds like a book of short stories and that choice ushered in a confidence the script is able to pull off. Zemeckis refined the combination of dramatic real-life stories and CGI with Flight but the bones of that are in Forrest Gump. I’m not sure most people would say Forrest Gump is better than Back To The Future but it’s safe to say Zemeckis has certainly made his mark on Hollywood.
7/10
In this iconic piece of American film history, the presidencies of Kennedy and Johnson, the events of the Vietnam war, Watergate, and other history unfold through the perspective of an Alabama man with an IQ of 75.
- Hanks is undeniable in his best performance to date
- The pace keeps what could be a boring movie engaging
- Solid CGI but ultimately inconsistent
- The music lacks restraint