Forrest Gump By David Vaughn   •   November, 2009 Winner of six Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Forrest Gump was the second-best film of 1994 in my opinion, right behind The Shawshank Redemption. Regardless, Paramount's third entry in its Sapphire Series is a hit with outstanding audio and video and a kick-ass DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack.

Run Forrest, run

• Chapter 3, 00:17:18
• Audio dynamics
• Alan Silvestri's Oscar-nominated score is one of my favorites from the '90s. In this scene, Forrest (Tom Hanks) breaks out of his leg braces running away from a pack of bullies. As the score opens up and envelops the room, listen to Hanks' clear narration and how it never loses focus, despite the bloom of the score.

A conversation about shrimp

• Chapter 5, 00:32:28
• Shadow detail, fine detail, surround imaging, dialog intelligibility
• When Forrest meets Bubba (Mykelti Williamson) on the bus, notice the beads of sweat running down Forrest's face, the distinct pores on Bubba's neck, and the raindrops streaking down the window.
• Listen as the raindrops fall on the roof of the bus and how Bubba's voice sounds so natural and balanced. Closing my eyes, it feels like I'm with the two men on the bus eavesdropping on their conversation.

All hell breaks loose

• Chapter 7, 00:49:15
• color, detail, frequency response, surround imaging
• A lot of American soldiers lost their lives in Vietnam, but it certainly looks like a beautiful place in this 1080p encode—that is, until the bullets start flying. This scene depicts the multilayered greens of the jungle with its many textures, but what lurks out there isn't so beautiful.
• When the ambush is sprung, prepare your senses as you're dropped into the middle of a war zone with bullets flying throughout the room and mortar shells falling from the sky.

Release Date: November 3, 2009
Studio: Paramount

Movie: 9/10
Picture: 9/10
Sound: 9/10