Tom Hanks: up there!

Tom Hanks happens to be my most favourite actor. He is by far one of the most versatile actors we have, who can portray any role given to him with ease. Having watched almost every movie of his, I thought it was time for me to mention some of those movies of his that I loved the most. I'm also sure many people would have already watched these movies. For those of you who haven’t, what are you waiting for… grab the DVDs! There's no way these movies can be missed, each being a classic in its own way.

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• Forrest Gump (1994)

I'm sure no human exists on this planet who has not watched or heard about this movie. One of the best movies ever made in Hollywood. This was the movie which made me fall in love with Tom Hanks’ acting. No other actor could have done justice to the role, I feel. "Stupid is as stupid does" was one of the most amazing dialogues in the movie. I love this quote from the movie: "My momma always said, Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get." The movie has humour, romance, drama, tragedy… everything and is very entertaining too.

• The Terminal (2004)

This is another great movie which must not be missed. Tom Hanks gets stuck at an airport in US since his passport becomes invalid. The way he learns to speak English, the way he goes to that girl every single day with the hope that she might put a stamp, the way he pushes carts to get cents is really touching. Catherine Zeta-Jones looks amazing. She is seriously very pretty in this movie.

Favourite quote - Frank Dixon: "Sometimes you land a small fish. You unhook him very carefully. You place him back in the water. You set him free so that somebody else can have the pleasure of catching him."

• Green Mile (1999)

Very few movies touch your heart and this is one such movie. You literally tend to cry at the end, since you hope for a happy ending.  But nevertheless, it makes an entry into my all-time favourite movies. Based on the novel by Stephen King, it is little violent at some parts. There's this one dialogue by Tom Hanks that I liked the most in the movie : "I’ve done some things in my life I’m not proud of, but this is the first time I’ve ever felt in real danger of hell" and this one too: "On the day of my judgement, when I stand before God, and He asks me why did I kill one of his true miracles, what am I gonna say? That it was my job? My job?" And the way Tom Hanks delivers these dialogues makes the scene so touching. The most powerful dialogue makes a lasting impression on my mind, understandably!

• Cast Away (2000)

I'd hoped for a happy ending in this one too, but it was not to be. We can relate to his character so much. What would we do if we accidentally ended up at a marooned island, all by ourselves? Watch Tom Hanks struggle on one such island. The scene where he loses his pal Wilson is the most touching scene in the entire movie.

Chuck Noland: We live and we die by the clock, that’s all we have. Chuck Noland: Don’t worry Wilson, I’ll do all the paddling. You just hang on. Chuck Noland: I couldn’t even kill myself the way I wanted to. I had power over nothing.

 

• Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Matt Damon and Tom Hanks in a single movie! A war movie where Tom Hanks is assigned with the mission to rescue Matt Damon, since all his brothers are dead. A slightly different role compared to the rest of his movies (considering most of them were emotional), but does he deliver again!

Favourite quotes -

Captain Miller: It’s like finding a needle in a stack of needles. Captain Miller: He better be worth it. He better go home and cure a disease, or invent a longer-lasting light bulb. Captain Miller: I just know that every man I kill, the farther away from home I feel.

 

• Apollo 13 (1995)

I'm so crazy about science that I had to watch this movie. With my favourite actor in it, it couldn’t have gotten better in any way. Love the way Tom Hanks keeps his calm throughout the movie, even when they are in a situation they are in. Somebody tells me that the scene where Hanks tries to resolve a conflict between two fellow astronauts is actually shown at some training. Apollo 13 was indeed a very unlucky mission for NASA, just like the unlucky number 13 but thankfully they managed to save the astronauts. The most famous words from this movie are “Houston, we have a problem”.

Some more favourites -

Jim Lovell: Gentlemen, it’s been a privilege flying with you. Gene Kranz: I don’t care about what anything was DESIGNED to do, I care about what it CAN do. Gene Kranz: We’ve never lost an American in space, we’re sure as hell not gonna lose one on my watch! Failure is not an option.

 

• Sleepless in Seattle (1993)

A romantic movie to the core. This one's such a cute movie that you will fall in love with the characters. Meg Ryan looks amazing in this movie and I really started liking her after watching this movie. A kid talks to an RJ about his concern that his father might never marry again. One of my (girl) friends was quite keen on visiting The Empire State building to check whether it was really so romantic up there! One of the favourite quotes: “Destiny is something we’ve invented because we can’t stand the fact that everything that happens is accidental.”

Another quote - Sam Baldwin: [looking at a photograph] She looks like my third grade teacher, and I hated my third grade teacher… wait a minute, she IS my third grade teacher!

 

• Catch me if you can (2002)

Again, you have two of the best actors present currently - Leonardo Di Caprio and Tom Hanks. Leonardo plays the role of a crook whose ways of cheating are amazing and Tom Hanks is the cop. Their relationship is beautifully depicted in the movie. Baba tells me the book is as exciting, if not more, as the movie, probably because it's based on a real-life incident.

I like this dialogue - Frank Abagnale, Jr.: Stop chasing me! Carl Hanratty: I can’t stop, it’s my job.

• You’ve got mail (1998)

Another romantic comedy involving Meg Ryan and Hanks again. It is a movie about how two people who have never met, start chatting on the Internet and then end up liking each other. I love this dialogue the most:  “Well, let me ask you something. How can you forgive this guy for standing you up and not forgive me for this tiny little thing of…putting you out of business?”

• Road to perdition (2002)

A completely different kind of role that Tom Hanks has portrayed here. He plays a hitman in this. I love the relationship that he shares with his son. Not a genre everybody will like, but you need to check this out.

Michael Sullivan: So what does the clutch do?
Michael Sullivan, Jr.: It clutches

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Here's wishing Tom Hanks a very happy birthday today and hoping that he continues to enthral us with his stellar performances!

Again, not an exhaustive list of his movies. Let me know the ones you love or the ones worth watching I've missed out here. Also, stop gaping – roughly remembered the quotations; referred the Internet and played the movies again to put the quotes verbatim :)