Gump's simplicity brings some cheer

Gump's simplicity brings some cheer

JAKARTA (JP): This is the image of the 1990s hero: IQ 75, simple, slow-witted (stupid is too strong), slow-talking, but innocent, kind, optimistic, generous at heart and a true lover. If you'd like to meet such a person, make sure that you go and get "gumped" by the movie Forrest Gump.

From playing an AIDS' victim in Philadelphia, which won him the best actor in last year's Academy Awards, big-eyed Tom Hanks plays the boy you would never dream of dating or being seen with. Schoolmates and neighbors mock him, throw stones at him and keep asking him, "are you stupid or something?". He will answer easily with what his loving momma (played well by two-time Academy Award winner, Sally Field) told him, "stupid is as stupid does."

But destiny is kind to Forrest Gump, who lacks gumption. "My name is Forrest Gump, people call me Forrest Gump," Gump says after listening to fellow army enlistee, Bubba, who introduces himself, "My name is Benjamin Buford Blue, people call me Bubba".

On a school bus Gump meets little blonde girl Jenny Curan, who later becomes his life-long friend, "We are friends like peas and carrot," Gump says. It is also Jenny, interpreted by Robin Wright of The Princess Bride, who helps him discover his hidden-talent: he can run as fast as an arrow.

Armed with his talent, Gump is awarded a football scholarship to enter university. And, in 1967, he joins the army, where he meets Bubba, played by Mykelti Williamson, who lives with Gump's obsession of investing in a shrimp business, goes to Vietnam, saves wounded soldier Dan Taylor (Gary Sinise of Steinbeck's movie version Mice and Man). Finds that he has another hidden talent, for playing ping pong, and becomes the United States' first sports ambassador and plays ping pong in China.

Destiny (something Gump never cares for, despite his mother's suggestion to unveil it) also leads him into encounters with famous people, which include Presidents Richard Nixon, John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson.

Destiny, and director Robert Zemeckis, (Who Framed Roger Rabbit and Death Becomes Her), makes him an influence on everything from the Watergate scandal, to the composition of John Lennon's Imagine and Elvis' stage act.

Marvelous special effect techniques by four-time visual effects Academy Award winner Ken Ralston, who previously worked as visual effects supervisor of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Back to the Future and Death Becomes Her, make Gump's meetings with the rich and famous possible.

Innocent

But Forrest Gump, who first came to life as a character in Winston Groom's novel of the same name, is Forrest Gump. He remains the simple and innocent boy that people laugh about.

And yet this is the very Forrest Gump who gives credence to Gumpmania. Being Gumped, reports Time weekly magazine, makes, "Kids look thoughtful, the grownups wistful." People cheer for Gump's simplicity and slow-wit which make the film rich with comedy although there are no tricks, no slapstick, no over-used jokes, and people cry for Gump's tenderness.

"There's a little part of Forrest Gump in everyone," says producer Wendy Finerman, about this new image of American hero, "We can all learn from the fact that Gump's greatest happiness comes from his simplicity."

It may be the secret of Gump's success: the purity that Gump offers to this complex modern life (and the answer to parents who concern themselves too much with their children's IQ).

Released in America late last year, Forrest Gump became a box- office hit. As of this month, Gump has earned US$300 million. Last week, the jury for the Academy Awards gave it 13 nominations, including nominations for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor for Gary Sinise.

Forrest Gump's nominations also mark the first time a film has collected 13 nominations since the 1966 classic drama Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?.

Important is Hanks, who showed his class in his amazing role in Philadelphia. He deserves big applause and an Oscar for impeccably bringing Gump's character to life. (als)