Write the ppt and the script

Elizabeth Nixon

March 30, 2015

Oral Presentation Outline – Forrest Gump

A. Introduction of topic

i. Forrest Gump is a popular American film released in 1994 that covers decades of American history in just over two hours

ii. The film follows the life of the main character, Forrest Gump, who lives with both mental and physical disabilities while still managing to live a happy life

iii. Throughout the film, Forrest is often physically inserted into history (i.e. Vietnam War, meeting famous presidents, influencing pop culture)

iv. Director incorporates famous historical and cultural events that the majority of the audience has been exposed to in basic history courses

v. These events are twisted in order to add an element of humor to the film

B. What is interesting/strange/revealing about Forrest Gump?

i. My question is “why?” Why would the producers choose to add a comedic twist to such traumatic events?

ii. Are they making a mockery out of American history and culture?

iii. Are they providing some sort of closure for those members of the audience who actually lived through these events?

iv. While the film initially seems to twist every event featured into some sort of comedic act, there are scenes that resist this satirical treatment

v. The film is suggesting that, while it is important to move past traumatic events (i.e. inserting humor into history), there is also an element of “never forgetting” constantly intertwined

C. Instances exhibiting satirical twists

i. Historical moments are made humorous in order to get the audience to laugh about what once seemed serious or traumatic when read in a history textbook

ii. Suggesting that it is important to look past the seriousness of the past

iii. Superimposing Forrest

i. Tom Hanks’ face is superimposed on the image of the founder of the KKK – who he was named after

ii. Black and white television newscasts featuring Forrest

iv. United States Presidents

i. JFK asks how Forrest feels about becoming an All-American football player at Alabama, Forrest tells the president that he “has to pee”

ii. Forrest moons President Johnson to show where he was “shot in the buttocks” during the Vietnam War

iii. Forrest complains about a bunch of flashlights in a hotel room (Watergate Scandal – Nixon) leading to Nixon’s resignation

v. Vietnam War

i. Forrest maintains a happy-go-lucky perspective and does not seem to fully understand the purpose of the war; he just does exactly what he is told

ii. Forrest is focused more on describing things like the weather they experienced during the war than the war itself

iii. Forrest speaks at a hippie anti-war rally in uniform but His microphone is unplugged, his opinion about the war is never voiced

D. Instances resisting satirical twists

i. Main characters resist comedic influence by exhibiting an everlasting effect that cannot be reversed as a result of traumatic events

ii. Because theses characters are portrayed in the entire film and not just a handful of scenes, this suggests that while it is possible to look past the seriousness of the past, there are always-evident irreversible remnants

i. Lieutenant Dan Taylor

1. Living without legs as a result of Vietnam War

ii. Bubba

1. Forrest’s African American best friend who lives though the Civil Rights Movement

2. Dies in the Vietnam War

iii. Jenny

1. Suffers from sexual abuse as a child as well as drug addiction and suicidal tendencies as an adult

2. Dies of AIDS

3. Leaves behind son

iv. Forrest’s Mother

1. Dies of cancer

E. What do the critics say?

i. Benton

i. Forrest intervenes in major events not as an attempt to come to term with traumatic events, but as an attempt to physically rewrite history to change viewers perspectives

ii. Byers

i. The film is trying to get viewers to forget history while also re-writing it

iii. Benton and Byers

i. Comedic twists on history in the film are too drastic to just allow the audience to have a more positive memory regarding history

F. What do I say?

i. Agree with critics

i. Yes, Forrest Gump incorporates a lot of historical twists to make the audience feel better about history

ii. Disagree with critics

i. The main point of the film is NOT for the audience to look past trauma

ii. Instead, it is similar to a “forgive but not forget” standpoint – yes, it is important to move along with life, but it is even more important to recognize how the past has influenced the present day

iii. What about the past leaves an eternal blanket on the country?

G. Final Questions for the Class

i. What is your opinion of Forrest Gump? Do you agree or disagree with my “seems to be about X, but is also about Y” statement? Why?