Forrest Gump

3 Pages 738 Words

Being one of the most important events of American history, Vietnam War couldn’t have been left out in ‘Forrest Gump’. Usually all Hollywood films adopt two main approaches in depicting the Vietnam War. It is either a patriotic approach, or it is rather a blaming approach, seeing war as a pure tragedy wasting thousands of people’s lives. However, none of these approaches was used in ‘Forrest Gump’.
Its filmmakers give the viewer an opportunity to make his own decisions and judge whether the war was a necessity or it was morally wrong. Four main characters in the film: Forrest himself, Jenny, Bubba and Lieutenant Dan, all together represent four very different opinions towards the war.
Lieutenant Dan views Vietnam as a glorious national and personal event. He believes the war to be right, but most of all he believes that it is his duty to be a part of this war.
“…Someone from his family had fought and died in every American war. I guess you could say he had a lot to live up to…” Compared to many other soldiers, Lieutenant Dan doesn’t seek glory and fame for himself, he seeks a different destiny: dying a war hero like his forefathers. “…I was supposed to die in the field with honor. That was my destiny. And you cheated me out of it…” – Lt. Dan says to Gump after being saved from the battle field against his own wish. From cheerful commander Dan soon turns into a man embittered by his war experiences that left him without legs. In his after-Vietnam life Lieutenant Dan feels cheated and betrayed. He is no longer a patriot of his own country. As many other Vietnam veterans he lives in conflict with society and with God. In later part of the film Lt. Dan makes us think how the war affected mentally and physically those who stayed alive. Were the sufferings of those people worth this war?
Another perspective on Vietnam War is given by Bubba. The vast majority of soldiers in Vietnam were black. All of them,...