DVD Scene
Spirit of 'Forrest Gump' lives on in two-disc edition
By Jordan Riefe
Special to The Advertiser
"Forrest Gump" (Paramount Pictures) 1994
PG-13
141 minutes
Tom Hanks, Robin Wright Penn, Gary Sinise, Sally Field, Mykelti Williamson
A mentally handicapped man comes of age in the 1960s.
Associated Press
"It breaks every rule of movie-making that I know of," says Best Actor Oscar winner Tom Hanks. "There's no quest that anybody is on, there's no bad guy, there's just the spirit of Forrest Gump." Keeping with Gump's generous spirit, Paramount Pictures has gone all out, dedicating two discs to this winner of six Oscars, including Best Picture. Not to be missed are screen tests with Robin Wright Penn and Haley Joel Osment, who was up to play a young Forrest. Shot prior to his breakout in "The Sixth Sense," Osment seems nervous, muttering his lines into his shirt collar.
Tom Hanks, right, as Forrest Gump, Mykelti Williamson, center, as Bubba Blue, and Gary Sinise, as Lt. Dan Taylor, in a scene from the movie "Forrest Gump."
Among the plethora of "Gump"-related docs is "Through the Eyes of Forrest Gump," a 30-minute making-of that is mostly promotional in content but covers much about visual effects and other production obstacles. Also included are "Through the Ears of Forrest Gump," dedicated to the film's sound design, "Seeing Is Believing: Visual Effects," "Building the World of Forrest Gump," an eight-minute look at production design and "Magic Of Make-up."
Commentary provided by director Robert Zemeckis, producer Steve Starkey and production designer Rick Carter delivers a wealth of information focusing on pre-production, production and the many technical obstacles facing the film. A second commentary features producer Wendy Finerman, who offers a few juicy anecdotes, but if you're pressed for time, skip it.
• • •
"Carrie" (MGM) 1976
R
98 minutes
Sissy Spacek, John Travolta, Amy Irving, Piper Laurie, Nancy Allen
Thriller in which an abused teenage girl in a small town discovers psychic powers.
Who would have thought a teen thriller would garner best acting nominations? Sissy Spacek broke through in the title role, while Piper Laurie got the nod for Best Supporting Actress. A film that transcends its genre, "Carrie" has endured for more than two generations, and now MGM is paying due respect with a Special Edition release featuring three documentaries.
"Acting Carrie" is a terrific 43-minute doc featuring interviews with most cast members, including director Brian De Palma and actress Spacek. "Visualizing Carrie" is a 40-minute doc focusing on production issues, including a prologue that was eventually cut. Both docs are insightful and informative. A six-minute featurette on "Carrie: The Musical," one of Broadway's biggest flops in years, is one we can live without, as is text describing author Stephen King's process from concept to completed novel.
• • •
"Gandhi" (Columbia Tristar) 1982
PG
188 minutes
Ben Kingsley, Edward Fox, John Gielgud, Martin Sheen
An epic bio-pic chronicling Mohandas Gandhi's rise to prominence and the struggle for India's independence.
Winner of nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture, 19 years later "Gandhi" seems slightly overrated. While the acting, cinematography, art direction and costumes are exquisite, the film's treatment of Gandhi the man is obfuscated by Gandhi the saint.
Still, the film has much to offer and disc offers even more in the way of special features. "Most of the information that gets into the camera happens while that person's acting," says Oscar winner Ben Kingsley in an extended interview about the film. "That's the best kind of acting, that's the best kind of cinema. It's happening now and the camera has caught it."
A making-of photo montage is barely worth glancing at, as is the text of famous quotes from Gandhi (if you're interested, read "The Essential Gandhi"), but a collection of newsreel footage is invaluable.
• • •
Classic Monsters: The Definitive Collection (Universal Studios)
Not rated
• "Dracula" (104 minutes): Bela Lugosi plays the count in this unforgettable classic by director Tod Browning. "The Road to Dracula" gives a historical account of the character in the 19th century, stage productions, early film versions including the German classic "Nosferatu," and later incarnations. Commentary by film historian David J. Skal is informative without being too academic. Best of all is the new score composed by Phillip Glass and performed by Kronos Quartet.
• "Frankenstein" (71 minutes): Boris Karloff stomps his way to a fiery grave in this classic from director James Whale. "How Hollywood Made a Monster" is an informative doc on the makeup, design and genesis of the film, including much of the vintage footage used in "The Road to Dracula." Commentary by film historian Rudy Behlmer is loaded with production and historical details while "Boo!" is a "humorous" short film cobbled together from clips of various classic horror pictures.
• "The Wolf Man" (70 minutes): Lon Chaney Jr., Claude Rains and Stanislavski protege Maria Ouspenskaya anchor an excellent cast in this classic saga of the legendary hirsute hell-raiser. The documentary "Monster by Moonlight" is hosted by film director John Landis and incorporates much of the same footage and interviews seen in the "Dracula" and "Frankenstein" docs. Commentary by film historian Tom Weaver is rich in details with a sometimes ironic tone.
• • •
"Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" (Warner Bros.) 1971
G
100 minutes
Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Peter Ostrum, Roy Kinnear, Julie Dawn
Five lucky children win a behind-the-scenes glimpse of a legendary candy factory.
"What was going on in Willy Wonka's mind all this time," says actor Gene Wilder, "was trying to find an honest boy who could stand up to all the temptations." In the end, Willy finds Charlie, but real-life kids found this pic irresistible at the time of its release. Thirty years later, the DVD is also irresistible, with four sing-along songs including the old favorite, "Oompah-Loompah."
A 1971 featurette on art direction is positively archaic looking. On the other hand, "Pure Imagination: The Making of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" is a worthwhile glimpse into how the film came to be. Commentary is provided by the Wonka kids, only they're all grown up now. Informative at times, it's a little strange hearing them reminisce, like peeking over the fence at someone else's childhood.
• • •
Recommended
• "Dressed To Kill" (1980): Starring Angie Dickenson, Michael Caine, Nancy Allen.
• "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1979): Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Jane Alexander.
• "Ordinary People" (1980): Mary Tyler Moore, Donaly Sutherland, Timothy Hutton.
Jordan Riefe is a Los Angeles-based writer who is the West Coast radio correspondent for Variety magazine.
