My Grandmother took joy in gardening. I mean she really took joy in gardening/puttering. There she stood in my backyard with a rake in hand 5' tall and 85 lbs in a sundress and apron ready to work. As a youngster, I asked my Granny why she would work all day in the hot sun when she was in the leisure years of life? Forrest Gump is one of those films that is a fairy tale of a mentally challenged man who we follow from childhood to adulthood. What makes this movie appealing is the events in his life, whether it be historical or circumstantial. The scene starts with Forrest Gump sitting at a bus stop in Savannah, Georgia waiting for the #9 bus to arrive. Gump is accompanied by strangers on the bus stop bench. He begins his life's story and his early years growing up in a huge boarding house. His mother, played by Sally Field Is a single woman who runs the estate. She is a take-charge type who emphasizes to young Forest that he can do anything if he puts his mind to it. She takes no gruff from the locals which reminds me a little of the Norma Rae character that Sally perfected in winning an Oscar a few years earlier. Gump had health problems being born with a curved spine and limited intelligence. Despite his afflictions, Gump attends regular school as he meets his first friend Jenny on the school bus. I must say I was taken by the performances of the child actors. Michael Conner Humphreys and Hanna Hall look so adorable sitting together on the bus (like Peas and Carrots.) We follow Gump's life meeting famous people from the boarding house and then fast-forwarding into his teen years with a penchant of running at record speed or as Gump puts it, "Runs like the wind blows." We follow Forrest, who ends up in College as an All-American Kick returner. While in college Gump has front-row seat to the end of segregated schooling and a trip to the White House. Next Forrest enlists in the Army and ends up in Vietnam. There he meets on the bus Bubba Blue who seems a little off, but constantly promotes his idea for his post-service plans of being a shrimping boat captain. The scenes from the jungle are captivating and rival some of the greatest war movies on the screen to date plus the musical soundtrack with songs from Jimmie Hendricks and Buffalo Springfield. There Gump meets his commander, Lieutenant Dan Taylor (Gary Sinise) who he becomes entangled in a heroic way. Gump gets wounded and while recovering, he takes up Ping pong and becomes an expert player. Gump represents the U. S. in the sport and visits mainland China. With his tournament money he earned plus a sneaker endorsement, Gump takes the money and buys a run-down Shrimping boat. While all this is going on, Gump would always keep up with Jenny (Robin Wright). The love of his life, Jenny strayed off to the hippie culture scene as the camera follows her experience experimenting in magazine modeling, showbusiness, anti-war protesting, and drugs. Gump and Jenny's paths cross a couple of times but only for a moment. More historical moments and famous people are edited throughout the movie. Multiple landscapes and urban dwellings fill the story as Gump's journey continues as Hanks's narration using a southern drawl underlines each scene. A potpourri of historical events well-edited putting Gump in the center. The visual and special effects are barely noticeable. When viewing I personally want to just run out of my home in the open country, but that only happens in the movies. As for my title, with all of Gump's accomplishments, the only time you see him truly at ease, besides keeping Jenny company, was when he rode his lawnmower over his personal acreage. Gary Sinise does quite a job physically and Sally Field a Mother Gump mentoring her deficient child should be a benchmark for parenting. Also, the undertones and subliminal messages of historical events past fill the story. Just another improbable journey that seems probable under the direction of Robert Zemeckis. As for my dear Grandmother, she always got the yard in order. Just one thing less to worry about!
Review of Forrest Gump
