FORREST GUMP: Hanks Banks a Second Straight Statue

  First of all, best wishes from GameTV for a Prosperous and Healthy 2010 to all of you readers and viewers! 

  One little known piece of trivia about Forrest Gump is that Bill Murray, Chevy Chase and John Travolta all turned down the lead role before Tom Hanks made it one that got  him the Oscar for Best Actor for the second year in a row, only the third actor to ever accomplish that, and first since Spencer Tracy did it in 1937-38.  All three are talented actors, but it’s hard to believe any would measure even closely to the performance of Hanks. 
  There are moments in Forrest Gump where you’ll be gasping for breath from laughing so hard.  And there are moments in the movie that will tear your heart out.  But if you ask yourself ‘what makes a great movie?’, many of the answers to that question will be found in Forrest Gump. 
  Tom Hanks plays the role of a very simple man who has an IQ of 75.  There are times in the film where this is brought up derisively, as in “Are you stupid?”  Forrest’s standard answer is “Stupid is as stupid does.”  His simple life is measured against three things and three things only:  His Momma, God and Jenny.  Nothing else….not money nor  possessions… measure up against these three things.  Forrest is blissfully and innocently unaware of most things, unless they involve the aforementioned Three.  His happiness or his sadness all depend on these three things. 
  There are a couple of poignant parts to the movie that really make it for me.  The first is, when Jenny was sick in bed, Forrest is describing what it was like in Vietnam, on the bayou and running.  Jenny takes his hand and says “I wish I was there with you.”  Forrest answers, simply, “You were.”  The second is when Lieutenant Dan shows up for the wedding.  The interaction between him and Forrest is powerful---you can almost feel the respect between the two.  Gump was that kind of person in life.  At the beginning of the movie when he’s introduced, it’s a bit uncomfortable.  He’s like a fly that you want to swat away.  Then he starts to grow on you.  By the end of the movie, there’s a huge amount of respect for this giant of a man.  And his draw is only the simplicity with which he lives his life. 
  Forrest Gump is a movie that lives by, and examines, the KISS Rule (Keep It Simple, Stupid).  And that’s not such a bad thing. 

10 out of 10