In the opening scene of Forrest Gump, Forrest states that life is like a box of chocolates.
The line appears as Forrest sits on a bench in Savannah, Georgia, telling his life story to a succession of strangers. His full thought is that you never know what you’re going to get, comparing life’s unpredictability with the unseen assortment inside a chocolate box. The image gives the film its central emotional idea: chance, surprise, and the way ordinary decisions can lead to extraordinary events.
Forrest Gump was released in 1994 and stars Tom Hanks as the title character. The film uses the bench conversation as a framing device, moving between Forrest’s present-day storytelling and major episodes from his past, including his childhood, military service, and relationships.
The quotation is often shortened to “Life is like a box of chocolates,” but the second part matters because it explains the comparison. The line is associated with the film, though similar chocolate-box metaphors appeared in earlier writing and popular culture.