The movie Forrest Gump, produced by Robert Zemeckis in 1994, is an adaptation of the original novel written by Winston Groom. Though the movie and the novel share the same name and the same plot, many differences exist between the two. These differences derive from the basic features of each media.
First of all, many scenes from the novel are omitted through the adaptation. In the novel, Forrest becomes a professional wrestler, a skilled chess player, and even a runner for the US Senate. He also spends some time in the mental hospital, and once saves Mao-Tse-Tung from drowning. However, the movie includes none of these events. This is basically because of the relatively short length of the movie. While people could read novels for several hours and even go over the previous contents if they want to, it is difficult for the movie directors to convey much plot in a couple of hours. The difference can also be attributed to the amount of information each medium conveys at a time. While the movie is a combination of visual and auditory information, the novel only contains letters, and leaves the readers to imagine and fill the gaps. Because not much information is conveyed through the novel, novel writers are relatively free to include complicated plots, as the readers wouldn’t be as confused as the moviegoers who have encountered the similarly complex story.
Moreover, there are differences in how each medium depicts the main characters as well. While in the novel, Forrest is not so innocent, uses profanity, and loses virginity to a person other than Jenny, the movie portrays Forrest as a more morally conscious and caring person, losing virginity to Jenny. There is a lack of closure in the novel, after Forrest finds out about his son; but in the movie, a stereotypical happy ending appears, as Forrest gets to be with his son. The novel and movie also differs in how they describe Jenny Curran. While in the novel, Jenny is not so present and is more of a free-spirited, mysterious being, the movie focuses more on her childhood, and emphasizes her affectionate relationship with Forrest. These differences also derive from the distinct characteristics of the novel and the movie. Compared to novels, movies generally tend to focus more on gathering more people and earning more profit. In order for the movie to be profitable, it has to satisfy people’s desires by including love story, the success of an ordinary person, and a happy ending. The movie director would probably have taken the risk of changing much of the original story, because he knew that such components of the movie could more effectively bring the moviegoers and drive him to success.
