![]() “ Cast Away Movie (2000) Review” notes Fast break Yet, contrived or not, this reviewer was moved in spite of his better judgment, partly because of Silvestri’s haunting melody and partly because of Tom Hanks’ touching, minimalist look of renewed hope. ![]() Yet if the overlong (144-minute) Cast Away is considerably less profound than its makers intended it to be – much like Robert Zemeckis’ previous collaboration with Tom Hanks, that monumental paean to idiocy and conformism known as Forrest Gump – the film does have a number of good qualities, boasting top-of-the-line production values and state-of-the-art special effects that are used to create what may well be the most harrowing plane crash ever filmed.Īlan Silvestri’s music returns later on to help elevate Cast Away’s tacked-on whimsical finale – a “fateful” contrivance that feels more like a poor imitation of Krzysztof Kieslowski’s Three Colors: Red than the intended moment of epiphany in the spiritual journey of our hero. For instead of dealing with Chuck’s inner metamorphosis from Man of the Clock to Man of the Now, William Broyles Jr.’s screenplay focuses on the hero’s failed attempts at leaving the island and on his determination to break a coconut shell. Not helping matters, Cast Away also leaves much to be desired in terms of character development unless, that is, one takes into account Wilson’s radical transformation from brand new volleyball into something resembling a rotting pineapple. The story of a workaholic who must learn to live without work, without clocks, and without people – Chuck’s sole companion on the island is a volleyball named Wilson – this $90 million budget turn-of-the-millennium release looks fantastic while only scratching the surface in its exploration of the ever-elusive Meaning of Life. And one of the most heart-wrenching moments of Cast Away - for which Hanks received an Oscar nomination - comes when Wilson is lost at sea during Chuck’s escape from the island.Most people will see Robert Zemeckis’ 2000 hit movie Cast Away as a celebration of the Triumph of the Human Spirit.Ī (however small) minority, this reviewer included, will prefer the more mundane explanation that this adventure/psychological drama merely depicts a man following his survival instincts, which propel him – like any other animal, from cockroaches to crocodiles – to fight to remain alive almost against his will.īut whichever way one perceives the survival of Tom Hanks’ Federal Express engineer Chuck Noland ( No-land, get it?) after being stranded for years on a small, deserted Pacific island (mostly shot in Monuriki, Fiji), one thing is obvious for all to see: Cast Away is little more than an elaborate, crowd-pleasing star vehicle disguised as an existential drama that borrows heavily from both Daniel Defoe’s 1719 novel The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe and Alfred Tennyson’s 1864 poem “Enoch Arden.” A volleyball named Wilson After four years on the island, Chuck gets more than a little attached to Wilson. In order to stave off loneliness, he begins talking to Wilson as if it is his closest friend. After Chuck injures himself, he grabs the ball in a fit of rage and throws it, leaving a bloody handprint.Īs the isolation of his circumstances sets in, Chuck ultimately turns that bloody stain into a face for Wilson. And while some of the items Chuck finds are useful, perhaps the most vital turns out to be a Wilson brand volleyball. His only company are the many packages that wash ashore. Tom Hanks | 20th Century Fox Wilson is 1 of Tom Hanks’ most famous co-starsĬast Away stars Hanks as Chuck Noland, a FedEx employee who winds up stranded on a deserted island after a company plane crashes. Thankfully, Wilson’s real-life fate is much more lucrative than what happens in that hit movie. Then in 2000’s Cast Away, he made audiences emotional over a volleyball. With the exception of his first film role - a forgotten slasher flick called He Knows You’re Alone - Hanks spent his first several years in the business in comedic roles. ![]() For years early on, he was known almost exclusively for getting laughs. Looking back now, it’s probably wild for some Tom Hanks fans to realize how much of a comedy star the actor was.
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