Greetings again from the darkness. It's possible I'm in the minority on this one, but it's inconceivable to think I'm all alone with my impression of a movie being hyped as a reunion of the FORREST GUMP director, writer, stars, and crew. I found this to be one of the most irritating and tiresome movies to watch that I've seen in a while. A long while. Of course, I'm sure it's possible to create a decent movie with no plot and little story, and no character of interest ... but this ain't it.
With no intention of poisoning the water for prospective viewers, this will simply recap the process. The premise is planting a camera in one spot and then progressing through history. Beginning with dinosaurs running amok, the devastating flood, Mother Nature reclaiming the land, Native Americans living their lives, Benjamin Franklin's illegitimate son building a huge home, and finally our specific home being constructed in a newly established neighborhood. We then see the families who occupy the house over the years. When I say the camera stays in one spot, that's exactly what I mean. It's as if it never moves as dinosaurs romp and Franklin's house is built and finally the bay window in this home provides a static view of the living room.
Very little excitement occurs in this living room. Mostly it's just the same family stuff you probably experience: love, marriage, birth, death, illness, arguments, heartbreak. Though there are other inhabitants, the house is lived in through most of the years by the Young family, beginning with just-back-from-war Army vet Al Young (Paul Bettany) and his wife Rose (Kelly Riley). One of their kids is aspiring artist Richard (played as a teen, an adult, and a senior by Oscar winner Tom Hanks). He marries his high school sweetheart Margaret (Robin Wright), who hopes to be an attorney. Anyway, life stuff happens ... and continues to happen, as superimposed frames are used as we bound from time period to other time period, both forwards and backwards.
2024 is the 40th anniversary of the Oscar winning film, FORREST GUMP. The 'Gump' reunion for this film includes writer-director Robert Zemekis, co-writer Eric Roth, lead actors Tom Hanks and Robin Wright, Cinematographer Don Burgess, Composer Alan Silvestri, Sound Designer Randy Thom, and Costume Designer Joanna Johnston. Adapted from Richard McGuire's 2014 graphic novel, the film shows little resemblance to the classic film this team all previously worked on (netting 6 Oscars and 13 nominations).
For all the grief Martin Scorsese took for utilizing the de-aging process in THE IRISHMAN (2019), this one takes it to a whole new level, with Hanks and Wright as both teenagers and elderly folks. Most of this reminds me of Mr. Potter's line in IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, "sentimental hogwash". Only we should add generic dialogue and bland characters. The exception to the latter is the intimate relationship between David Flynn and Ophelia Lovibond, as his character's inspired engineering leads to romantic moments for the couple. To put it bluntly, there is simply no story here. Are we to care about this plot of land? The house? The inhabitants? Or is this just a slow reminder that life moves on ... so get busy livin' or get busy dyin' (yes, a SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION quote helps me recover from a disappointing movie experience).
Opens in theaters on November 1, 2024.
