Happy Birthday, Tom Hanks: Oscar-winning (and nominated) films of actor
One of the greatest actors of all time, Tom Hanks, turned 67 years old on Sunday (July 9). The legendary Hollywood actor has so far been nominated for the Academy Awards as many as six times, out of which he won the prestigious Oscar twice: for Philadelphia and Forrest Gump. On his birthday, we take a look at the actor's Oscar-winning (and nominated) films.
'Big' (1988)
Penny Marshall's fantasy comedy, Big, was a breakout film in Hanks's career. It brought him his first Oscar nomination for playing Josh Baskin, a young boy who wishes to grow big. Hanks beautifully embodied an adult with a child's innocence and fun. One of the best scenes of the film is when he is seen dancing on the keys of a giant toy piano.
'Philadelphia' (1993)
The 1990s era was the golden period in Hanks's career. Philadelphia was the movie that won him his first Oscar award. Directed by Jonathan Demme, the courtroom drama also starred Denzel Washington in the lead. It is about a man who seeks a lawyer's help in suing his ex-bosses for firing him from the job after discovering he was gay and infected with AIDS.
'Forrest Gump' (1994)
Hanks won his second Best Actor Oscar award for playing the titular character in Forrest Gump. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the 1995 film is based on an eponymous 1986 novel written by Winston Groom. The film's Hindi adaptation, titled Laal Singh Chaddha (2022), was directed by Advait Chandan and starred Aamir Khan in the lead along with Kareena Kapoor Khan and Naga Chaitanya.
'Saving Private Ryan' (1998)
One of the greatest films of the Steven Spielberg and Hanks duo is Saving Private Ryan, for which the latter earned an Oscar nomination. Starring him and Matt Damon, Hanks essayed the role of Captain Miller, who leads a platoon in World War II in search of Private Ryan (Damon) on the battlefield after three of his brothers are killed in the war.
'Cast Away' (2000)
Directed by Zemeckis again, Cast Away featured Hanks as a FedEx employee who gets stranded on an uninhabited island after his plane crashes in the South Pacific. Despite being released in December 2000, it became the third highest-grossing Hollywood film of that year. Hanks's performance was particularly praised. Besides an Oscar nomination, he won the best actor trophy at the 58th Golden Globe Awards.
'A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood' (2019)
Marielle Heller's directorial A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood is a biopic on the life of popular television presenter Fred Rogers. Apart from Hanks, it also featured actors Matthew Rhys, Susan Kelechi Watson, and Chris Cooper in important roles. Hanks was seen in the role of supporting actor in the film and was nominated for the same for various awards, including the Oscars.
