Forrest Gump
dpgSingularity
A simple-minded, kindhearted man enjoys a life of accidental success and fame when all he wants is to love the beautiful woman he has known since they were kids.
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This is a tough one to fit into the formula of a standard logline. ?
Forrest Gump has no specific objective goal in terms of anything he wants to accomplish or acquire. ? He just wants to love his childhood friend. ?And therein seems to be the ironical hook: ?he achieves quite a lot, but it’s all, unintentional, accidental. ?Meanwhile, the one thing he intentionally wants more than anything else, the love of Jenny, he can’t have, can’t win — until the 3rd Act.
Which may have been one reason the project languished in turnaround for years after the movie rights for the book were bought. ?The Hollywood suits who greenlight production didn’t seem to know what to make of the story, how it could be make into a marketable movie.
“Stupid is as stupid does” is one of his mother’s sayings — and the movie’s conceit: ?In a world where people do one stupid thing after another, ?Forrest thrives and redeems the lives of others (like Lieutenant Dan) by playing the wise fool.
This is definitely a hard film to logline.
His objectives change throughout the story and adjust to fit each stage in his hero’s journey, the change of objectives throughout a story is not unheard of yet not common.
His outer journey goal was to get the girl, while the inner journey goal was to mature into an adult. The steps he took on his way to maturity were illustrated in his actions and provided a series of trials for him to pass before becoming the man he wanted to be.?The likeness to the maturity that his country undergoes throughout the story provides an additional layer of interest as a metaphor, and in my mind what made the film so successful.
As you pointed out though, the story is different to the traditional hollywood paradigm. I believe this is the case on account of it prioritising the inner journey as the A plot and the outer journey as the B plot.
Therefore the logline would best describe the A plot – his ambition to become an adult:
After being bullied as a child a simple minded man must learn how to become an adult by being?an athlete, soldier, business man and spiritual leader?until finally becoming a single father.
Not the greatest logline, but as we said this is a tough one.
But I don’t think he has a particular ambition to become an adult. ?He ages physically, of course , but not mentally, nor emotionally. ? ?The world changes around him — but he doesn’t. ?His character is constant; he is always a naive, kindhearted person who is always in love with Jenny.
It seems to me the story works anyway because Forrest’s lack of an objective goal is not accidental, not a failure of imagination or a failure to understand dramatic essentials. ?His lack of an objective goal is intentional and it takes a skilled writer to make that dramatic choice work. ?And Eric Roth, who scripted the story for the screen, is one of the best; he won the Oscar for his adaptation.
Good point about the brave dramatic choice.
I do believe that Forrest underwent a significant change throughout the story, and in his change inspired other characters around him to change as well.
He changed?from being the son of his parent?to the protector of his country and eventually to be the parent of his own child. He assumed the responsibility of parenthood as the last phase of his process of growth. Sure he staid naive and kindhearted, but he grew to become a responsible adult.
His inner journey wasn’t conscious or intentional, rather a product of him and his environment. I believe that in the best of stories the inner journey of change occurs unbeknown to the main character.
A special needs underdog with a heart of gold?affects the world with his goodness?while fighting?for the love of his childhood sweetheart