Forrest Gump
An unqualified commercial success, making $323m and winning six Oscars in 1995, this film features a man with learning difficulties. Forrest's story weaves in and out of key moments in American history, often apparently interacting with well-known events and people, providing a satirical look at America over the past four decades.
The characterisation of Forrest has little to do with the lives of people with learning difficulties in the USA and much more to do with the false perceptions of those who run the movie business.
Forrest (Tom Hanks) is presented in a way that encourages viewers to infer motives from his actions, or his qualities from his appearance. At the start of the film, Forrest is shown with a seriously short haircut, a shirt uncomfortably buttoned up at the neck, socks with coloured hoops and bedraggled training shoes. Forrest's appearance, together with his slow, Southern drawl, suggest an adolescent, nerdy type, even though Forrest is, in fact, a thirty-something adult.
The story, as narrated by Forrest to strangers at a bus stop, unfolds in a series of long flashbacks of Forrest's life. You learn that, as a boy, Forrest was diagnosed as having a 'sub-normal' IQ and that he had a twisted spine and wore leg braces. The intended image of Forrest is now complete: he is an adult trapped in a childlike (simple) stage of development. Clearly, he has a learning difficulty.
Throughout the film, Forrest wanders into situations he doesn't understand. He befriends Jenny, an abused girl of his age. When he is bullied by local youths, Jenny tells him to run and, miraculously, his leg braces fall off and he becomes a fantastic runner. Then follow a series of coincidences and unconscious interventions in famous events: Forrest teaches a young Elvis Presley how to do his sexy walk; he witnesses the protests when the first black students arrive at the Alabama State University; he meets President Kennedy; he's a model soldier in Vietnam and receives the Medal of Honour from President Johnson for rescuing some men, including Lieutenant Dan, his officer. Forrest inadvertently addresses a rally of the Peace Movement and gets involved with the Black Panthers. He becomes a fantastic ping-pong player and goes on the first official US visit to China, meeting President Nixon. He appears on national TV with John Lennon and reports the chicanery at the Watergate Hotel.
Forrest leaves the army and buys a shrimp boat and the embittered Lieutenant Dan, now a double amputee, becomes his first mate. By a fluke, they get really rich and own a whole fleet of boats.
Forrest's mother dies and he runs across America, finally getting back together with Jenny who has, unbeknown to Forrest, had his son (now three years old). Finally, Jenny contracts AIDS and dies, leaving Forrest to look after their son.
The film is funny and entertaining, but would it work without the plot device and unrealistic portrayal of a man with learning difficulties? You feel that a Forrest with a more realistic character would have got in the way of the story. Towards the end of the film, Forrest becomes more sympathetic, but the overriding impression of him is that he is 'simple' and a figure of fun.
Other films which use a similar stereotype are:
Make sure you prepare the ground by covering the material in the Introducing disability in class guidelines before looking at issues in any specific film.
Detailed lesson plans (PDF, 35k)
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