Forrest Gump Review

Rating: 10/10 (6 October 2014)

Forrest Gump is a very inspirational film about a man, named Forrest Gump, who has a lower IQ than average, but has a very exciting and adventurous life because of all of the major historical events that he just so happens to run into. Forrest Gump stars Tom Hanks, as Forrest Gump, Robin Wright, as Jenny Curran, and Gary Sinise, as Lieutenant Dan Taylor. The acting in this film was of very high quality because the actors made it seem like the story actually happened. They also did a great job at making the characters seem more relatable to the viewer. Tom Hanks actually won an Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role and Gary Sinise was nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for their performances in Forrest Gump. The director is Robert Zemeckis and the writers are Winston Groom, who wrote the novel, and Eric Roth, who wrote the screenplay. Forrest Gump is very well directed and written because of many aspects, including the visual effects and how most of the film is a narrated flashback. The visual effects in this film were outstanding. When Forrest was meeting all of the Presidents and when he was getting involved in the integration crisis at Alabama, it seemed like Forrest was actually there. This added on to the believability of the film. I also thought that it was very entertaining to be able to see the story from the view of Forrest Gump himself and wouldn't be nearly as fun if it weren't told like it was. One of my favorite characteristics of Forrest Gump is how entertaining and fun it is. The film never ceases to surprise the viewer. Forrest Gump is a fictional character that is getting involved with events that actually occurred in real life. Also, Forrest never really seems to realize the importance of all the events that he has accidentally influenced or walked into, which makes the film even more entertaining. There are also many serious attributes of Forrest Gump that make it a great film. Forrest seems to have a happy and successful life just from being innately good. This teaches a moral lesson to the viewer to show that good things happen to good people. A moral lesson is key to a film being considered good because it really gets the viewer invested in the story and makes the situations more relatable to their life. Forrest Gump is great because the film is encompassing the themes of entertainment and teaching a moral lesson. Also, Forrest Gump is a very memorable film, especially the quotes. Lines, such as "run, Forrest, run!", "life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get", and "stupid is as stupid does", are among the quotes that many people, including me, had heard before ever seeing Forrest Gump. Many people also know Forrest Gump because of its groundbreaking plot, which just so happens to be my favorite part of the film. In my opinion, the plot of Forrest Gump is the key reason why it is such a fantastic film. The plot is a mixture of multiple genres, such as drama, action, comedy, and even romance. When a film can cover all of these genres, it is bound to connect with many people in the audience. Forrest Gump can also be included in the Vietnam War movie category because Forrest is sent off to fight the war in Vietnam after he enlists in the U.S. Army. The setting of the film was an influential part of why the plot was so good because the story took place during a very interesting and exciting part of American history. Another one of my favorite aspects of Forrest Gump is the soundtrack because it contains many songs that were produced during the setting of the story. It includes some of my favorites, such as "Fortunate Son", by Creedence Clearwater Revival, "California Dreamin'", by The Mama & The Papas, and "Mrs. Robinson", by Simon & Garfunkel. The songs that were featured were very popular when they were released and continue to be popular in today's culture. The soundtrack simply adds on to the list of reasons why Forrest Gump is such a fantastic film. In my opinion, it is one of the greatest films of all-time and will continue to be for a very long time. I believe that it will definitely stand the test of time very easily and will be a classic in the future.