Remember what I was saying earlier about celebrating special cinematic anniversaries? Well, The Little Rascals wasn't the only movie that was released back in 1994 and is celebrating its 20th birthday this year. It's rather hard to believe that Robert Zemeckis' award-winning dramedy Forrest Gump is already done with two full decades of existence, but Paramount is about to cheer its legacy in a BIG way. This Friday we will see the specially remastered cut of the film arrive in IMAX theaters nationwide, and when buying a ticket you'll not only getting the chance to see what many consider to be one of the best movies ever on the biggest screen possible, but will also possibly getting a free copy of the poster you see above.
As a special extra promotion for the new screenings of Forrest Gump - which is a one-week-only engagement - Paramount Pictures has announced a team up with IMAX to commission the artwork you see, which will be given out in theaters with purchase of a ticket. If you're hoping to pick up one of these prints, I would highly recommend going to a theater on Friday night. While no specific number is mentioned in terms of copies, they are described as being "exclusive limited edition" posters and that they will only be around "while supplies last."
But that's not the end of Forrest Gump's IMAX push. To both get people pumped about the re-release and provide a little background on how it all came together, the folks at IMAX have published a brand new featurette featuring Robert Zemeckis both explaining some of the technical process behind the revamp and why his movie should be seen on the biggest screen possible.
While an IMAX ticket will still cost you a few more dollars than standard admission, it's surprising to note that this cut of Forrest Gump has only been remastered for the bigger screens - it hasn't been re-done in 3D. This is pretty rare nowadays, as nearly every studio re-release since 2009 has been because of a special post-conversion from 2D to 3D. Personally, my love for IMAX far outweighs any appreciation I have for 3D, so hopefully this winds up being the start of a growing trend.
But what would Forrest himself make of all this? Surely all of the technological talk about remastered audio and video would go way over his head, right? Fortunately we still have Tom Hanks around to provide us some access into the mind of the sourthern simpleton, who Tweeted the following earlier today:
Forrest Gump in IMAX arrives in theaters this Friday, September 5th.
