It often goes unnoticed that Tom Hanks actually plays two characters in Forest Gump. In fact, the second character – Nathan Bedford Forrest – is the opposite of the title role that Hanks plays in the film. The film is based on the work published in 1986 by Winston Groom, where the Forest Gump the novel was very different from the film. The film takes viewers on a journey through the 1960s and 1970s, where Forrest finds himself in the middle of some major historical events in Forest Gump.
Although Zemeckis’ project was met with skepticism before production, the film is now considered one of the greatest of all time, with Forest Gump winning the award for Best Film pulp Fiction at the 1995 Oscars. Much of its success can be attributed to Hanks’ phenomenal performance.which only serves as a reminder of the actor’s skill set and allowed him to easily transform into Nathan Bedford Forrest. With the inclusion of several real-life characters in Forest Gumphighlights the great story to be told around Hanks’ secondary character, who served as a real general in the Civil War.
Tom Hanks plays General Nathan Bedford Forrest in Forrest Gump
Hanks plays dual roles for Bedford as Forrest claims they are related
It has been reported that Tom Hanks personally paid for a number of Forest Gump scenes, which led to a lasting partnership between him and infamous director Robert Zemeckis. Many of the scenes that have become synonymous with Forest Gump often overshadows some of the more uncomfortable interactions within the film, and Hanks’ brief supporting role is one of those moments. Nathan Bedford Forrest’s appearance occurs relatively early in the filmduring a flashback where the audience learns how Forrest got his name.
Forrest stating that there is an association between the two is exactly why it makes more sense for Hanks to have a dual role here.
The flashback that follows is narrated by Gump, who says: “she says [his mother] We were related to him in some way.” Forrest stating that there is an association between the two is exactly why it makes more sense for Hanks to have a dual role here. However, flashback reveals that Nathan Bedford Forrest was a white supremacistand generally the exact opposite of the lovable and endearing Forrest himself.
The scene lasts about 40 seconds and features Hanks as Nathan Bedford Forrest, wearing a white hoodie. The final line of the flashback, “Mom said the Forrest part is to remind me that sometimes we all do things so well, but they don’t make sense“, represents an uncomfortable simplification of the larger issue. It appears that Groom’s novel goes into more detail about the Civil War General, and It’s understandable that the film cuts a larger proportion of Bedford’s story.
Was General Nathan Bedford Forrest a real person?
Bedford was a Civil War general and had a long history with the KKK
In fact, Nathan Bedford Forrest did served as a general in the Civil War and was an early member of the Ku Klux Klan for a brief period in 1800. Nathan Bedford Forrest was General Wizard within the Klan for a year before becoming disillusioned with the group and many others who advocated white supremacy at the time. He later publicly distanced himself from the group and eventually made efforts to disband the Klan.
According to Nathan Bedford Forrest: In Search of the Enigma written by Eddy W. Davidson, Forrest”volunteered to help exterminate the men responsible for the ongoing violence…“in the hands of the Klan in 1874. It’s clear that General Nathan Bedford Forrest is an increasingly complicated figure in historyand this is probably the reason why Forest Gump does not go into further detail about his life, beyond a mere 40-second mention in the film.
Source: HuffPost