Forrest Gump says at the Vietnam protest speech, "In Vietnam, your best good friend can get shot. Sometimes, when people go to Vietnam, they go home to their mommas without any legs. Sometimes, they don't go home at all. And that's all I have to say about that."

I think this movie is universally loved by everyone, one of those rare films that you just can’t help but love

When I was a kid I hated Jenny for breaking Forrest’s heart.  As the years went on and I learned about sexual abuse survivors and the toll that takes on their life I became way, way more understanding and sympathetic towards her.  She was lost.  Her abusive father affected so many lives because of his actions.  Poor girl.

The more Forrest chased after Jenny, the more she ran. Being  loved purely was such a foreign and unfamiliar thing to her. I came across this often in my life.

I love how you both understood where Jenny was coming from and empathized with her. Forrest Gump has got to be the most pure hearted character ever. Beautiful reaction!🥰🥰

When Forrest asks if his son is smart or…and indicates to himself. That’s a masterclass in acting. The way he knows that he’s been aware of his condition but doesn’t let it bother him. We all need to look at the world more like Forrest.

You're so right. Jenny was raised to believe she was only worthy of beatings and sexual abuse. When you're abused that young, it really puts some deep, deep scars in your psyche. It's why she kept finding guys that hurt her and making excuses for them, like the guy that pounced on her in the car in college (you can hear her yell "OW!", even if she claimed he wasn't hurting her), and the guy at the Black Panther party who slapped her. That was all she thought she deserved.

When Forrest goes to the White House for the 3rd time, President Nixon arranges for him to stay at a much nicer hotel, and Forrest reports some people using flashlights in the dark office building next door. This is a reference to the "Watergate" break-in, when people working to get Nixon re-elected broke into the headquarters of the Democratic party in the Watergate building. Nixon's role in trying to cover up the break-in led to his resignation a couple years later. You see him announcing the resignation on TV, but of course Forrest doesn't register any of that.

A lot of people hate Jenny’s character,but  I love her.   Because she’s so….. human.   Forrest is the only character that is all love, kindness, and innocence.  Well - and Bubba.  But the others were all flawed.  Ltn Dan and Jenny in particular were hurt by life, and hurt themselves and others (including Forrest) in their pain.  She is scarred and scared.  But amidst being sa’d and beaten at home at such a young age, she was still kind to Forrest when no one else was. She listened and talked to him and was his only friend.   She recognizes that he is good and kind.  But she is fighting her demons, and doesn’t want to bring him down.   Listen to some of the things she says …. They tell what she is thinking.  
“You don’t know what love is.”  Jenny has only known genuine love from Forrest but doesn’t realize it.  Like many childhood SA survivors she confuses love with sex, jealousy, and violence.  She wouldn’t recognize real love if it  slapped her face and said hello.
“If you’re ever in trouble, don’t try to be brave. Just run.  You just run away.”  That is her go-to. She runs - with drugs, alcohol, sex, men, adrenaline, distance. It was necessary for survival as a child, and she never stopped running.  She finally admits to Forrest that she loves him, sleeps with him, has a chance to be happy, and gets scared.  So she runs.  It’s made so clear when the taxi driver asks where she is running off to, and she defensively says “I’m not running”.   Oh, girl, please..
“You don’t want to marry me”. She isn’t sparing his feelings by saying that.   She believes if he knew how damaged she was, he wouldn’t want her.  She sees herself as completely unworthy of him.

She ran the morning after they had sex. Forrest starts his running soon after.   We see her working a real job, and looking healthier.  She sees Forrest running., and  keeps track of his running, evident by the scrapbook she made for him.  During that time she COULDN’T reach him to tell him about the baby. It was about 1979-1980.  We didn’t have cell phones or email back then.   She had no address for wherever he was going to get mail, no phone number to call him at.  She learns he has stopped running and writes him, asking him to come see her.  He got the letter not too long after returning home.  And the first thing she does? Acknowledge she was messed up, and her behavior may have hurt him.  She apologizes.  She tells him Forrest Jr is his.   Encourages and reassures him.   I think she wanted to marry Forrest for two reasons.  1- she realizes that he genuinely loved her all along, and she finally felt worthy enough to love him back.  And 2- she wanted Forrest and their son to be together.   She had faith in Forrest.  Knew he’d be a wonderful father.  And she was right.  

The tragedy of the story is that she died less than a year after they are able to finally be together.   She finally stopped running, just to be taken away anyway.  Jenny makes so many bad choices.   But I don’t see her as maliciously or purposefully hurting Forrest.   I think it’s the opposite- she is trying to avoid hurting him more by the mess that she is.  Her greatest ‘crime’ was not being able to let herself accept and return Forrest’s love.   That is so relatable for so many of us who have had to walk that  path from victimization to healing.

"Forrest Gump" is an extraordinary creation from beginning to end.  Credit to Hanks for bringing such a unique character to life on the screen.

This is the first reaction I've seen where there was no Jenny bashing.  It was a very non judgemental acessment of her character.

I don't think I've ever not cried watching this film, even when watching reactions.

We live in a world full of people who only think about themselves and just don’t “get it”. You two GET IT! You’re both very intelligent and have hearts of gold. Don’t let this world taint you, continue to be good human beings just like Forest ❤

He was running for 3 years and the letter was waiting for him when he got home. That's why he never heard about his son. Love your reactions!

It might seems like Forrest accomplished everything effortlessly, but I don't see it that way, he was persistent, focused and committed to everything he decided to do. Even if everyone around said that it was stupid, he was still pushing through. Was he lucky? Yeah, but every time the luck came he was ready. And that, I think, is one of the lessons this movie teaches us.

The scene The ppl in the hotel w flashlights was depicting Watergate. A major scandal involving President Nixon. It caused him to resign and thats where he said the famous line “I am not a crook”. Forest was the one that alerted police🤣😂. This movie places him in the midst of almost every major cultural event throughout that timeline.

the scene where Jenny tells him it's his kid makes me cry every time no matter how many times i see it. never fails.

It's a testament to our Scientists and Doctors that we no longer immediately think of AIDS when a character says they have an incurable disease. That scene with Jenny was crystal clear to audiences when this came out.

48:14 "I'm thinking she doesn't think she deserves Forrest..."
Yes! This is exactly right and so many people don't understand this and give a lot of undeserved hate to Jenny. Many people in her situation - sexually abused as children which leads them into a lifestyle of drug use and promiscuity - end up having very low self esteem and dangerous lifestyles. She knew this and didn't want to burden Forrest with that. That's why she finally was able to have a normal relationship with him later on, once she had cleaned up her life. Her past life of drug use and sexual behavior are also why she ended up getting sick: According to the screenwriter she died of AIDS, which fits that profile and also the timeline of the early eighties, which is when she died in the movie. (In the book she dies of hepatitis).

I've watched this film a hundred times and as a 50 yr old guy......I still have tears.......this is how good this film is......I love the way you ladies reacted....a lovely review and please do more...a beautiful review by 2 beautiful women...thankyou xxxx