The 1994 film Forrest Gump, covers almost every major historical event or theme, which happened in the United States, between the years of the 1950s into the 1980s. Placing the movie into a historical context, the movie begins in a post-World War II era, beginning in the state of Alabama during the 1950s, and eventually includes the locations of Savannah, Georgia, Washington, D.C., Vietnam, and China. The movie places a heavy emphasis on the representation of the racial discourse that was apparent into the 1960s, with several references throughout scenes in the movie. The hippie and Free Love movement is also included, along with the involvement of the war in Vietnam, the escalation, and the anti-war protests that soon followed. Several scenes
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The movie is a total of two hours and twenty-two minutes, and in that relatively short amount of time, several major historical events are depicted. Several students who were interviewed for a research project, were asked questions about their source of knowledge over the Vietnam war. Several students cited the movie, Forrest Gump as their main source of information regarding their knowledge of the conflict. Researchers believe the consistency of the scenes in chronological order, the “good-feeling” theme, and the representation of hope for the common man in the movie, is heavily influential to the students’ memory of what was taking place in American during the time period between 1950 and 1980. This film is argued to serve as a source of “cultural memory,” in American society. However, since the film is not strictly meant to cover the Vietnam war, it does not seem to be a likely sole source of detailed information about the war itself, yet it does offer insight into what some of the American people were feeling at the time, with scenes that reference the anti-war movement, and what soldiers of Vietnam might have experienced while …show more content…
Surprisingly, this is the first time I have ever watched the movie, and it now ranks as one of my top favorites. The movie is not at all what I expected it to be, and even though it is not a movie solely focused on Vietnam, I still feel that it helped me visualize how feelings were changing on the home front closer to the end of the war, and how different movements of the time affected each other. I fell in love with Forrest’s character, and the innocence he portrays in the way he perceives events in America that are happening around him. I believe this is one reason that makes this film such a popular one to so many people, considering it is an approach of history that is not necessarily a popular one. Forrest’s character forces the viewer to look back in time through a different set of eyes, compared to what one would experience just by reading a book that covered the same historical events referenced in the movie. I do feel that the chronological order of events, and the subtle inclusions of other events happening at the same time in the background of scenes, makes it easier for viewers to memorize the order of events taking place. Therefore, I can see students benefitting from watching this movie, especially in today’s generation, where television is becoming more of a popular learning medium. Overall, I would recommend this movie to anyone studying the Vietnam War, since it offers a chance for
The movie is a total of two hours and twenty-two minutes, and in that relatively short amount of time, several major historical events are depicted. Several students who were interviewed for a research project, were asked questions about their source of knowledge over the Vietnam war. Several students cited the movie, Forrest Gump as their main source of information regarding their knowledge of the conflict. Researchers believe the consistency of the scenes in chronological order, the “good-feeling” theme, and the representation of hope for the common man in the movie, is heavily influential to the students’ memory of what was taking place in American during the time period between 1950 and 1980. This film is argued to serve as a source of “cultural memory,” in American society. However, since the film is not strictly meant to cover the Vietnam war, it does not seem to be a likely sole source of detailed information about the war itself, yet it does offer insight into what some of the American people were feeling at the time, with scenes that reference the anti-war movement, and what soldiers of Vietnam might have experienced while …show more content…
Surprisingly, this is the first time I have ever watched the movie, and it now ranks as one of my top favorites. The movie is not at all what I expected it to be, and even though it is not a movie solely focused on Vietnam, I still feel that it helped me visualize how feelings were changing on the home front closer to the end of the war, and how different movements of the time affected each other. I fell in love with Forrest’s character, and the innocence he portrays in the way he perceives events in America that are happening around him. I believe this is one reason that makes this film such a popular one to so many people, considering it is an approach of history that is not necessarily a popular one. Forrest’s character forces the viewer to look back in time through a different set of eyes, compared to what one would experience just by reading a book that covered the same historical events referenced in the movie. I do feel that the chronological order of events, and the subtle inclusions of other events happening at the same time in the background of scenes, makes it easier for viewers to memorize the order of events taking place. Therefore, I can see students benefitting from watching this movie, especially in today’s generation, where television is becoming more of a popular learning medium. Overall, I would recommend this movie to anyone studying the Vietnam War, since it offers a chance for