An Overview of Forrest Gump

by Harvey Mitchell


Forrest Gump, released in 1994, ended up becoming one of the most successful movies of the 20th century and was based on a 1986 book of the same name written by Winston Groom. The movie starred Tom Hanks, Robyn Wright Penn, Gary Sinise and Sally Field.



Although the movie had some pre-production troubles with casting and finding a director who was prepared to make the movie, it ended up winning seven Oscars and grossing $677 million. It became an instant hit and gave birth to a number of movie quotes that have entered popular language even to this day.

The storyline of the movie is centered upon Forrest Gump who recounts the extraordinary events of his life during the sixties, seventies and early eighties. Although Forrest is considered to have a below par IQ and be very simple, he manages to be present at some of the most important historical events of this era and meet influential people from the political and pop cultural spheres.

The movie starts with Gump sitting at a bus stop and he begins recounting his life to a woman who disbelievingly listens to this gentleman tell of his life and its amazing twists and turns. Gump is offered a football scholarship to the University of Alabama and following this enlists in the US Army.

After university he enrols in the U. S Army and is sent to Vietnam where he befriends Bubba who will influence his life in a number of ways. Gump becomes a war hero after rescuing many of his platoon, but is off on medical leave for some time. During his convalescence he takes up ping pong and is sent as a national champion to Maoist China. He is decorated by the U. S President with the medal of honor and then becomes a successful businessman.

All throughout his life Gump is enamoured with his friend Jenny who he met on his first day of school. Jenny was an abused child and ends up being a damaged adult who follows a number of self-destructive paths. Gump, however, is blind to her weaknesses and they end up together. Gump also manages to become involved in setting up Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. And this becomes a multi million dollar company. He becomes very wealthy when his business partner ends up investing in a little known company called Apple.

The book and the film are both ironic, funny and poignant all at the same time. When you finish watching the movie, you are really left wondering if we are as smart as we all really think we are and if someone like Forrest Gump doesn't have it right after all.

Despite a rocky start in pre-production the movie Forrest Gump ended up being one of the most successful movies of all time both in terms of gross at the box office and reception by the public and critics. For many people it became a much loved movie that they have seen many times.

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