Forrest Gump is the tale of a good-natured and lovable halfwit who
stumbles his way through one of the most turbulent times in American
history. While he never fully comprehends the events going on around
him, his endeavors almost always lead to extremely good fortune, and
Forrest lives a cheerful and fulfilling life. While the movie is
generally light-hearted and positive, these characteristics only serve
to hide the movie’s very dark undercurrent. This undercurrent is best
represented by the story of Jenny, Forrest’s best friend and the
mother of his child. If Forrest Gump were told from Jenny’s point of
view, a cheerful and family-friendly story would turn into a tale of
physical/sexual abuse, alcoholism, prostitution, drug abuse, political
protest, and eventual death by AIDS. A tale celebrating the strength
and resilience of mankind would instead become a tale revealing, in
rather graphic detail, the truly dark side of humanity. An excellent
example would be the contrasting viewpoints of Jenny’s childhood. The
audience saw Jenny’s early years through the blissfully ignorant eyes
of Forrest, and were thus spared much of the background chaos which
dominated her life. It took keen observation to discern what was
really going on, in that her father was not just a terrible alcoholic,
he was also physically and sexually abusing his daughters, who were
too scared to do anything about it. Even though her story has a
comparatively happy ending, the gruesome details of her past would
leave the audience feeling sickened, rather than cheerful.