Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Tom Hanks | ... | ||
Rebecca Williams | ... | ||
Sally Field | ... | ||
Michael Conner Humphreys | ... | ||
Harold G. Herthum | ... |
Doctor
(as Harold Herthum)
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George Kelly | ... |
Barber
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Bob Penny | ... |
Crony
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John Randall | ... |
Crony
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Sam Anderson | ... | ||
Margo Moorer | ... |
Louise
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Ione M. Telech | ... |
Elderly Woman
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Christine Seabrook | ... | ||
John Worsham | ... |
Southern Gentleman /
Landowner
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Peter Dobson | ... | ||
Siobhan Fallon Hogan | ... |
School Bus Driver
(as Siobhan J. Fallon)
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Forrest Gump is a simple man with a low I.Q. but good intentions. He is running through childhood with his best and only friend Jenny. His 'mama' teaches him the ways of life and leaves him to choose his destiny. Forrest joins the army for service in Vietnam, finding new friends called Dan and Bubba, he wins medals, creates a famous shrimp fishing fleet, inspires people to jog, starts a ping-pong craze, creates the smiley, writes bumper stickers and songs, donates to people and meets the president several times. However, this is all irrelevant to Forrest who can only think of his childhood sweetheart Jenny Curran, who has messed up her life. Although in the end all he wants to prove is that anyone can love anyone. Written by aliw135
This is a powerful yet charming movie; fun for its special effects and profound in how it keeps you thinking long after it's over. Like others, I've seen this movie more than once. One comment I've never heard is that Forrest's simplicity is almost zen-like. I should read the novel to get the author's intention (I remember some people preferring the book and complaining that no one at the Academy Awards gave him any credit.) But rather than an implication that you should do what you're supposed to do and believe in God and you'll win in the end, I see it as zen-like, i.e., living in the moment and not having expectations or particular cravings (other than his loving Jenny.) So he ends up just stumbling into all the major historical events of the time. Granted, he achieves this only because he doesn't have the brains to think otherwise and actually have expectations, but so many of our problems are because we do have higher intellect and desires, which ironically makes us unhappy because we know what we are missing. We love our cats and dogs for the same simplicity and always being in the moment. There's a line in the movie wondering if everything is predestined or happens randomly or it's a combination of both. It is something to mull over for a long time.