MovieChat Forums > Tomorrow (1992) Discussion > Boo Radley and Forrest Gump meet Silas M...

Boo Radley and Forrest Gump meet Silas Marner

posted 17 years ago by eadoe
5 replies | jump to latest

Or, "Boo Radley Speaks!" -- for those of us who wondered what he would have sounded like, we now know. Duvall's character had Forrest Gump's simplicity but with a much more convincing accent. It's interesting that both Jackson Fentry and Forrest Gump are Silas Marner type characters -- lonely, simple men who have a baby/toddler dropped in their laps by a dying mother and whose lives become transformed with love. No one could have played this character better than Duvall, whose manner, voice, facial expressions, and accent rang true in every shot. Makes me wonder if he didn't grow up with men like this, since the character seemed to flow so naturally and lovingly from him.

"The abuse of greatness is when it disjoins remorse from power."
- Julius Caesar, act 2 sc 1

[–] 17 years ago

[deleted]

[–] avalonrock 16 years ago

Yes. And Robert Duvall plays Billy Bob's father in "Slingblade". Now we know
or suspect where Billy Bob's accent comes from.

[–] ancatdoh 16 years ago

"No one could have played this character better than Duvall, whose manner, voice, facial expressions, and accent rang true in every shot. Makes me wonder if he didn't grow up with men like this, since the character seemed to flow so naturally and lovingly from him."

In the A&E bio of Duvall, they noted he always had a keen ear for accents and was a great mimic even as a kid, and that his dad was a Naval officer. My guess is that he spent some time in Tupelo, Miss (where it was shot) among the locals and based the portrayal on that experience, similar to the way Robert DeNiro spent time in Sicily to prepare for GF II.

Really brought the character to life and it's hard to believe this was made the same year he was playing Tom Hagen.

I surfed into this last night (7/18/08) and stopped because I recognized Duvall, and I was hooked after about a minute and a half. I was watching Duvall for about that long, then he just disappeared into the character. It was uncanny how much he conveyed just with facial expressions, manner and tone of voice.

The bio also described his research into Vietnam Air Cavalry officers for Kilgore in Apocalypse Now--he really puts in the effort, but the performances are absolutely natural and true to life.

[–] noveltylibrary 14 years ago

with a dash of sling blade...i even wondered if BBT was inspired by this role.

[–] cmashieldscapting 8 years ago

Or a somber twist on Charlie Chaplin's The Kid.