I didn’t plan it this way on purpose, but Forrest Gump (1994; Paramount) is about the most perfect Best Picture winner one could watch during the week of the Fourth of July. As the movie sweeps through a stretch of time from the 1950s to the 1980s, the film’s title character, a kind and gentle man with a low IQ, finds himself a participant in and witness to some of the most important/memorable happenings in twentieth century American history. Forrest meets several U.S. Presidents, Elvis, and John Lennon; plays football for National Champion Alabama Crimson Tide; fights in the Vietnam War; and experiences the unrest of the 1960s and 70s through the flower child/hippie indiscretions of Jenny, his best friend from childhood. In short, what we get with Forrest Gump is a tender story of the lives of two American kids, both underprivileged in certain ways, who grow up before our eyes while we feast on a picnic of American history worthy of the holiday we’ll celebrate tomorrow.

The year of Forrest Gump‘s release saw its own smorgasbord of events that helped to define the century. 1994 commenced with a crowbar attack on Nancy Kerrigan (and the denials of Tonya Harding) that gave us all a glimpse into the circus that is the world of figure skating. There was also the Los Angeles earthquake that killed 60 people. In May 1994, Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as the first black president of South Africa. The following month Nicole Brown Simpson was murdered, and O. J. Simpson took off on his now-famous “slow-speed” chase. Major League Baseball went on strike in August, which meant there was no World Series for the first time in 90 years. And by the end of the year, Russia had invaded Chechnya.

1994, then, was a busy year–and a good year for film as well. Forrest Gump defeated some major motion pictures to claim the year’s top prize–including a couple of films that seem to always find themselves on lists of movies that should have won BP. Some big-name competitors were: The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, The Lion King, Legends of the Fall, Little Women, Speed, Interview with the Vampire, and The Mask, to name a few. Despite the tough competition, Forrest Gump won 6 Oscars for its 13 nominations: Film Editing, Writing (Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published) for Eric Roth’s adaptation of Winston Groom’s 1986 novel of the same name, Visual Effects, Directing for Robert Zemeckis, Actor in a Leading Role for Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump (Hanks had also won Best Actor the previous year for Philadelphia), and Best Picture. The film failed to take home Academy Awards in the following categories for which it was nominated: Art Direction, Makeup, Cinematography, Sound, Sound Effects Editing, Music (Original Score), and Actor in a Supporting Role for Gary Sinise as the unforgettable Lieutenant Dan Taylor.

What made Forrest Gump stand out from the crowd of contenders? Good question. Personally, I think Forrest Gump encapsulates what people thought about the 1990s themselves–it was a lighthearted time threaded through with some really dark, sad, and ominous stuff. Forrest Gump is the same way. It’s much funnier than I remembered it being from my previous exposure to it, but it has undertones of some pretty raunchy stuff (such as child sexual abuse) and some not as subtle inclusions of drug use and meaningless violence. Plus, after Schindler’s List won BP in 1993, it is possible that Academy voters were looking for something that was a bit lighter but still meaningful.

Today, as we approach the twenty-fifth anniversary of the film’s release (this coming Saturday, as a matter of fact!), Forrest Gump still shows its relevance through its portrayal of ordinary people finding themselves part of larger-than-life events–and, ironically, that kind of sums up every Fourth of July for most of us. The United States as an idea, an ideal, a wild experiment in liberty, and a glorious celebration of the rights of humanity eclipses our ordinary holiday barbecues, parades, and fireworks shows by which we mark the country’s birthday. Still, like Forrest, we find ourselves participants in the greatness of America–and maybe tomorrow we should celebrate that fact as well.

For more thoughts on Forrest Gump and its significance, please check out this weekend’s post!