What if Forrest Gump was a Space Alien?

[Birdman]

What if Forrest Gump was a Space Alien?

Before we go any further, let's all take a ride in the Way-back machine to 1951. "The Day the Earth Stood Still"

A space alien named "Klaatu" lands on Earth to deliver a warning. We have become far to violent and aggressive. There is fear that our violence and primitive nature may become a threat to other civilizations throughout the universe. He leaves an indestructible robot behind to rule over us and make sure we get our act together, because if we don't, ...........then Earth will be destroyed.

...That arrogant, fucking bastard! "Klaatu Barada FuckYou!"

Fast forward to 1994 "Forrest Gump"

Here we have a man with a rather sub-IQ intelligence level. He's not smart at all. He's socially lacking and oblivious to the human condition we face in everyday life. Forrest could easily be perceived as an "idiot". But actually, he's an "idiot savant".

He excels in everything he does. Give him a rifle, and he'll assemble it in seconds flat. Give him a ping pong ball, he'll keep six of them going at once. Tell him, "Run, Forrest, run!" and he'll run 20 Marathons. Put him in a war, he'll come back with the Congressional Medal of Honor. Give him a shrimp business, he'll end up a millionaire. The guy is simply beyond belief! He has REMARKABLE skills that no normal human being could ever possess. You can toss him in the middle of a Black Panther's meeting along with Anti-war activists while Vietnam soldiers are scurrying around willy-nilly ...and the only thing he can add to the mix is, "Sorry I had a fight in the middle of your Black Panther Party" because a man should never hit a woman.

Yeah, we ALL LOVED Forrest Gump ....but why?

Because here we have a very simple, "naïve" character who is lost in a strange world he doesn't understand. He struggles to fit in and tries his best to do what he's supposed to. He has this "inner peace", innocence and purity that we all don't seem to have. ...We love him for that!

Another reason we loved Forrest Gump is because he poses no threat to us. Despite his incredible physical capabilities, endurance, purity and virtue ...at the end of the day ...we're still dealing with a moron. Any one of us can walk up to Forrest Gump and feel "comfortable". He has the skills of a superhero, yet we never have to worry about him being smarter than us. He'll never put you on the spot with a tough question. You'll never have to worry that you're being judged by a higher level of being. It's just dumb old Forrest Gump, and we all love him.

But what if he were a space alien? What if Forrest Gump was actually a highly-intelligent alien from another world millions of light years away from Earth who has traveled across the universe to visit our primitive, evil planet? What if he was able to do all of those 'special things" because he was a far more advanced creature ...he just doesn't understand why humans are the way that they are. He "seems" like an idiot, ...but inside he sees our world as it really is. ....He knows! He's seen the universe. He's been to places you could never imagine. Seen sights you could never comprehend. His civilization was exploring the universe while we were still whacking wooly mammoths in the head for food.

If Forrest Gump was a space alien .....we would HATE HIM!

How dare this bastard come to our planet and judge us? Who the hell does he think he is? Why doesn't he go back to his own fucking world, because we don't need his sorry ass around here showing us all how fucked up our world is. He should try walking a mile in MY shoes! What does HE know about losing a job? ...losing a family? Having to struggle every fucking day trying to scrape up enough money to pay the bills.

He can just whisk away on a fancy spaceship whenever the hell he wants to. I'm stuck here on this planet whether I like it or not ...so fuck'im!

You can't just walk up to Forrest Gump the "Space Alien". He might ask you a question far beyond your level of understanding. He may look inside you and see shit you don't like to be seen. We hate him! We hate everything about him and his perfect fucking untopian society and we want nothing to do with him.

============================

Remember the movie "Powder"?

Kid gets zapped at birth by a lightening bolt and ends up being phenomenally intelligent with super-human abilities. The police are afraid of him. School officials fear him. His classmates hate and mock him. We love him, though, because deep down inside we saw him as just a normal kid who got a raw deal in life.

But the truth is that we "hate what we fear" and "we hate what is more intelligent than us"...so people hated Powder. Let's beat him up! Let's humiliate him! Let's arrest him and take him away! ....Let's treat him like that alien fuck, Forrest Gump!

It all goes back to 1951 when that rat bastard "Klaatu" flew his sorry ass over to our planet and tried to lecture us all on how "bad" we are. Well, .....fuck him, too!

My point in all of this is that the "Space Alien" isn't allowed to experience "human emotions" or "Human Interaction" like other characters do. If you try this it will be declared "Cliché" or "Trope". Other characters are allowed to do this, but not space aliens. We "allow" Tom Cruise to explore the life of a Samurai. We "allow" Robert De Niro to explore and assimilate into a South American Indian Tribe ...but in NO WAY do we allow a "Space Alien" to assimilate into our world.

We're sick and tired of their sorry asses standing in judgment of our world and we CERTAINLY don't want to watch a movie showing another one of these silly space bastards trying to do so!

-Birdman

 

[maz]

*must.... restrain.... self.....*

 

[mlesemann]

mmmmm I hated Forest Gump. But I know I'm the only one.

 

[mus]

what did i just read?

 

[trueindie]

All I know is that I loved Forrest Gump because he was constantly an underdog, and so everytime he overcame something I rejoiced, even if it was due to luck, or hours of practice. I also rejoiced when Lieutenant Dan won his battle against God and his storm.

That's all I know. I f**king loved Forrest Gump. And I got to listen to all the greatest hits, from Elvis up to present day, whenever it was. They didn't play those songs on the radio where I grew up.

 

[Nikola Damov]

 

[Birdman]

All I know is that I loved Forrest Gump because he was constantly an underdog, and so everytime he overcame something I rejoiced, even if it was due to luck, or hours of practice. I also rejoiced when Lieutenant Dan won his battle against God and his storm.

That's all I know. I f**king loved Forrest Gump. And I got to listen to all the greatest hits, from Elvis up to present day, whenever it was. They didn't play those songs on the radio where I grew up.

I loved him, too!

We all love to root for the "underdog". ...Good thing he wasn't a piece of shit alien, though.

Here's the rules now:

If you are a screenplay writer out there and you are considering writing a story about a space alien interacting with Earthlings .... WATCH OUT!!!

That's Cliché!!!!!!!

Aliens (by their own nature) come from another planet. Aliens can't help where they come from. They don't have any other choice. Pirates show up on boats. Pilots fly airplanes in the sky. Firemen drive big shiny red trucks. Policemen drive around all fast and shit with their blue lights on ....because that's what these characters do.

But don't you DARE consider having an Alien do what THEY do! That's already been declared "Taboo"

We can all post hundreds of pirate movies, cop movies, firemen movies, airplane movies, and all other typecasting character environments and NEVER see the word "Cliché" enter the scene. However, have one of these rat bastard "Aliens" want to take a crack at figuring out all the mysteries of life and you've got yourself a "Cliché premise" like it or not.

"That's the signpost up ahead - your next stop, the Twilight Zone! ...but leave your alien character at the door. He's not welcome here."

-Birdman

 

[trueindie]

I AM writing a story about a space alien. It's got cliches and it's got some new stuff. What's wrong with cliches? What am I supposed to be, some sort of genius and come up with a non-cliched story? We can't all be David Foster Wallace now can we?

Also, I'm just getting my feet wet in this science fiction business. I don't know jack about it. I definitely cannot indulge you on my thoughts on Forrest Gump Space alien.

But it sounds like a fun topic.

 

[Birdman]

I AM writing a story about a space alien. It's got cliches and it's got some new stuff. What's wrong with cliches? What am I supposed to be, some sort of genius and come up with a non-cliched story? We can't all be David Foster Wallace now can we?

Also, I'm just getting my feet wet in this science fiction business. I don't know jack about it. I definitely cannot indulge you on my thoughts on Forrest Gump Space alien.

But it sounds like a fun topic.

It's NOT "Cliché" and don't ever let anyone tell you it is. The posters who cry "Cliché" regarding aliens on Earth are totally unable to post any links to movies illustrating their point. It all goes back to their bitter hatred for "advanced alien life forms". They feel threatened and insecure at the thought of one of these lil' space bastards running around on planet Earth asking tough questions.

All the other characters get to ask the same questions an Alien would ....but you can't ask them if your an Alien, ....because they're fucking weird and we don't like them. .....Send them all back to planet, Cliché!

Birdman

 

[odd1out]

I loved him, too!

We all love to root for the "underdog". ...Good thing he wasn't a piece of shit alien, though.

Here's the rules now:

If you are a screenplay writer out there and you are considering writing a story about a space alien interacting with Earthlings .... WATCH OUT!!!

That's Cliché!!!!!!!

Aliens (by their own nature) come from another planet. Aliens can't help where they come from. They don't have any other choice. Pirates show up on boats. Pilots fly airplanes in the sky. Firemen drive big shiny red trucks. Policemen drive around all fast and shit with their blue lights on ....because that's what these characters do.

But don't you DARE consider having an Alien do what THEY do! That's already been declared "Taboo"

We can all post hundreds of pirate movies, cop movies, firemen movies, airplane movies, and all other typecasting character environments and NEVER see the word "Cliché" enter the scene. However, have one of these rat bastard "Aliens" want to take a crack at figuring out all the mysteries of life and you've got yourself a "Cliché premise" like it or not.

"That's the signpost up ahead - your next stop, the Twilight Zone! ...but leave your alien character at the door. He's not welcome here."

-Birdman

Alright birdman I think you are completely taking the cliche in this term out of context. Its not cliche for an alien to interact with earthlings at all. The cliche can be written in how the alien interacts with earthlings. We don't resent all aliens but like any new experience we are wary of anything different. Most people consider an alien who looks at humanity as strange creatures who's culture and emotions elude them as a cliche. An alien who ask a question like "So love feels like this?" or "Why do you feel the need to cook bread in a toaster?". It feels as though they are questioning things that are completely obvious to us as human beings. Although this is what makes the character archetype lovable seeing as its works but just shouldn't be over used. Aliens who don't share the same culture as humans can be represented in different ways. There are endless examples from the warrior alien race who view humans as honor-less savages who kill for no reason but respect our will to continue fighting. Or the super intelligent alien who sees humans as insects that don't effect them at all. Even the world dominating alien race who needs a new home has become some what of a cliche. Maybe even the misunderstood alien trying to return home (E.T, Super 8..ect.) There are many different ways to write alien/human interactions some are used more frequently then others but anyone of them could be considered a cliche. You just have to feel out what is the correct route for that character.

 

[trueindie]

It's NOT "Cliché" and don't ever let anyone tell you it is. The posters who cry "Cliché" regarding aliens on Earth are totally unable to post any links to movies illustrating their point. It all goes back to their bitter hatred for "advanced alien life forms". They feel threatened and insecure at the thought of one of these lil' space bastards running around on planet Earth asking tough questions.

All the other characters get to ask the same questions an Alien would ....but you can't ask them if your an Alien, ....because they're fucking weird and we don't like them. .....Send them all back to planet, Cliché!

Birdman

You sound like you'd be really fun to have a beer with.

I don't believe I've had this much fun on indieTalk in a single day.

Okay. We'll send them back to planet Cliche.

When you calm down, you'll realize that it wasn't personal. Or I would have felt it. .

He also said later that cliches weren't such a bad thing and can be used in a "fresh" way.

Calm down Birdman . Hide the remote from your wife.

 

[Birdman]

TrueIndie,

I haven't taken one thing personal in any of these threads. I may "vehemently" disagree with some of the follow-up posts and some of the comments may "grate" on me ...but I am not angry with anyone. Maz is still firmly planted on my "Thank You" list just as you are.

I've written my script and I'm VERY happy with it. If she ever makes it to the silver screen I guarantee you 117 minutes of solid entertainment and fun.

-Birdman

 

[Birdman]

An alien who ask a question like "So love feels like this?" or "Why do you feel the need to cook bread in a toaster?". It feels as though they are questioning things that are completely obvious to us as human beings. Although this is what makes the character archetype lovable seeing as its works but just shouldn't be over used. .

Okay, you've posted two questions you feel the "cliché" alien character might ask. I presume you have made up these two questions and that there is no actual link to these quotes (and that is fine, too). So far I have had a couple of responses highlighting apparent "Alien Cliché" questions and the one that rises to the top is Arnold as "The Terminator".

Here we have a Gatling-gun-wielding death machine hell bent on destroying everything in his path asking a young "John Conner", ... "Why do you cry?"

...Sickeningly sweet and hard to swallow.

As fate would have it, I happened to be switching channels only moments ago to see a special on Anna Nicole Smith on the "E Channel" Apparently she was in a little-known B-movie called "Illegal Aliens". This was a big surprise to me! They showed a clip from the movie on this special and she just happened to ask an Earthling a question just like Arnold did in "Terminator II".

Her question was, "Why does my poopyhole hurt?"


So there ya have it! All of the highly-skilled Science Fiction writers out there creating crazy, wild alien civilizations on other worlds and finding strange, hi-tech ways to span the galaxies to bring aliens to good ol' planet earth, and the entire "Cliché" intergalactic brain trust of questions asked of Earthlings by alien beings consist of the following two questions:



(1) "Why do you cry?"

(2) "Why does my poopyhole hurt?"



Now, I'm sorry, Mr. odd1out....but that leaves an awful lot of room for exploring "questions asked by Aliens" with it all falling into the stereotypical mindset of being considered "Cliché"!

-Birdman

 

[rayw]

You just wanna explore Anna's poopyhole, BMan.

 

[Jack Lynt]

I didn't love Forrest Gump.

I do love Tom Hanks.

They diiiid sorrrrrrt -of do the Forrest Gump is an alien thing in Dreamcatcher, which was an unfortunate departure from the book. In fact, much (but not all) of the movie was unfortunate.

Check out Farscape. They did some nice aliens as fish out of water on Earth stuff. Was that the final season? Also, the show is full of a lot of aliens as people too, with flaws and problems.

Good luck, Birdman. Are you practicing your pitch?

 

[odd1out]

Birdman,

richy kind beat me to the punch I was going to use Farscape as an example but there's instances of this in a lot of media like Star Trek for example. I'm not about to go searching for quotes because there are better ways to spend my time. Any The point I was getting at is there are plenty different examples of different ways to go about human-alien interaction. The confused alien who dose not understand things that we humans perceive as basic and is trying to grasp a better understand of us is a character type we have seen before and some people think of it as cliche. Let it be known that I also list several other types of alien characters that people find cliche. Simply stating that my point is not to bash the character type only to clarify that some people see it as cliche so one should take that into consideration when writing a character like that. It all depends on the context of the script and how the character is portrayed. From the two examples you gave the meaning and effect of them are miles apart Terminator say "why do you cry?" is an emotional heart felt seen that lets the view see the Terminator express is interests in John Conner and we can some what empathize with that. Now as far as Anna Nicole Smith asking "why dose my poppyhole hurt?" seems to come off childish and cheesy, its meant to be a joke. So depending on what context it is used in it can have different effect.

 

[Birdman]

Odd1,

The confused alien who dose not understand things that we humans perceive as basic and is trying to grasp a better understand of us is a character type we have seen before and some people think of it as cliche. Let it be known that I also list several other types of alien characters that people find cliche. Simply stating that my point is not to bash the character type only to clarify that some people see it as cliche so one should take that into consideration when writing a character like that.

Cliché -- Definition:

1. a trite, stereotyped expression; a sentence or phrase, usually expressing a popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse, as sadder but wiser, or strong as an ox.

2. (in art, literature, drama, etc.) a trite or hackneyed plot, character development, use of color, musical expression, etc.

3. anything that has become trite or commonplace through overuse.

: a phrase or expression that has been used so often that it is no longer original or interesting

: something that is so commonly used in books, stories, etc., that it is no longer effective


Okay, here's my point on this. I'm not expecting anyone to Google out links to alien characters who ask questions where they are "confused". I know people don't want to waste time doing this, but let's take the #1 purported "Alien Question" that I see posted in the threads in citing "Cliché". You posted one version and I've seen the latter one also:

"So love feels like this?"

"So you call this love?"

...Now, I'll bet you dollars to donuts that neither of these lines were ever spoken by an alien in any movie ...EVER! I'll bet you this line was made up as a way to express the alien character cliché. So, in essence, the alien character has been branded as "cliché" without ever really becoming a cliché character.

The movie world is packed with characters who are "confused" about life based on their upbringing, living conditions, level of isolation, social skills, education level, ...you name it! Still, it is the ALIEN who gets the "Cliché" sign nailed to his door if he needs to ask any questions about life.

My argument is that there's more to the story than just being "Cliché" The alien was labeled cliché before he ever even asked a question. The alien is labeled cliché ....because we don't like the little rat bastards!


-Birdman

 

[ChimpPhobiaFilms]

What did I just read?

A mockery of posters who argue with you about cliches?
A subliminally political statement about illegal immigration?
A troll post?
Or perhaps the ramblings of a madman?

You're a mystery to me Birdman.

 

[Birdman]

A mockery of posters who argue with you about cliches?

..."So you call this mockery?"

A subliminally political statement about illegal immigration?

...I've never heard of a Space Alien applying for a work visa.

A troll post?

...If it were, then it should be listed in the "Troll Post Hall of Fame".

Or perhaps the ramblings of a madman?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUi4UNYJTJI

-Birdman

 

[FantasySciFi]

The use of narrative to explore "accepted ideals" is not new or cliche. When the treatment is done without creating significant context and character development, the scene feels "flat". That "flatness" will often read/feel "cliche"--written solely because it is a well-known device to invoke a feeling. The "twinkle death scene" was classic in the 80s--Yoda ("Star Wars"), Mystic ("Dark Crystal"), etc. The "death resurrection tear jerk" is a popular one--"ET", "Matrix", etc.

A kid shows up on a doorstep and claims to be the child of the occupant. Simply having stock conflicts would read as flat and cliche. However, taking the time to show the growth of the relationship and the challenges it presents forms the basis for many excellent movies and series (Kramer vs. Kramer, Once Upon a Time, etc.).

Many new writers write one-dimensionally. Seasoned writers have sub-plots, foreshadowing and triggers that weave throughout the script. Sometimes the audience wants a "cliche" plot device but they want it done well. Data on STNG is an example where some writers handled his lack of emotions well and others did not. Brent Spiner remarked that he would often have discussions with the director and writers about how his character would react. I think that is an important point. Even if the script is written without cliche elements, they can be thrown in by a director or sometimes an actor hired to bring a character to life. Again, some memorable movie lines were not written by the writer but off the top of the actor's head.

As writers, we do the best we can to create solid driving stories with concise, relevant dialogue. How that is translated to the screen is often out of our hands. Worrying about "So love feels like this?" is kind of ludicrous. An actress may cock her head and say "So this is love?". Cut, wrap, that's what ends up in the final shooting script posted on the internet. Birdman is considered a dialogue genius. Or the director may say, "Kiss him awkwardly, the step back and look puzzled and say 'Is this what you humans call love?'". Again, Cut, wrap. Box office smash. The director is a genius! The actress is amazing. The screenwriter is lousy having written something so trite and cliche. But hey, he made money and got screen credit. What's his name again? Hawkman, Birdfellow? Well, we'll look it up on IMDB.