This is a very original film. There's hope for Hollywood yet, folks.
Cast Away (2000)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:150
Fresh:134
Rotten:16
Average Rating:7.3/10
Consensus: Critics say that by focusing on one man in one setting, Cast Away takes considerable risks, but ultimately it succeeds. Tom Hanks is excellent in the role, and the movie's themes make it larger than a simple physical survivor story.
Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] intense action sequences and some disturbing images
Runtime: 2 hrs 23 mins
Genre: Dramas
Theatrical Release:Dec 22, 2000 Wide
Box Office: $233,249,446
Synopsis:
Hanks stars as Chuck Noland, a FedEx systems engineer whose personal and professional life are ruled by the clock. His fast-paced career takes him, often at a moment's notice, to far-flung locales...
Hanks stars as Chuck Noland, a FedEx systems engineer whose personal and professional life are ruled by the clock. His fast-paced career takes him, often at a moment's notice, to far-flung locales -- and away from his girlfriend Kelly, played by Helen Hunt.
Chuck's manic existence abruptly ends when, after a plane crash, he becomes isolated on a remote island -- cast away into the most desolate environment imaginable. Stripped of the conveniences of everyday life, he first must meet the basic needs of survival, including water, food and shelter. Chuck, the consummate problem solver, eventually figures out how to sustain himself physically. But then what? Chuck begins his true personal journey.
After four years, fate gives Chuck a chance to fight his way back to civilization, only to find an unexpected emotional challenge greater than all the earlier physical ones. His ability to persevere and to hope are a product of his life-changing experience. Though the conclusion of Chuck's story may not be a conventional Hollywood ending, it is, like life, full of truth, pain and promise. -- © 2000 20th Century Fox
Starring: Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, Nick Searcy, Lari White
Starring: Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, Nick Searcy, Lari White, Chris Noth, Viveka Davis, Valerie Wildman
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Screenwriter: William Broyles
Producer: Steve Starkey, Jack Rapke, Robert Zemeckis, Tom Hanks
Composer: Alan Silvestri
Studio: 20th Century Fox
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Reviews for Cast Away
The beginning and ending of the film are a bit underdeveloped, but that’s just quibbling.
I wish that all of the film's 144 minutes were spent alone with Hanks.
This is Mr. Zemeckis' most confident directing to date. If he only had as much faith in his audience.
Though Hanks comes across as blandly as ever, at least his solid performance shows he's up to carrying half a movie on his own, and Zemeckis' direction is at first as busily efficient as the protagonist.
It's really kind of ironic. The old Chuck's life is ruled by the clock. Once he's learned better, we don't get enough time with him because the author's decided it was time to go. Oh, well.
While his philosophical ventures seem stuck in the shallow end of the pool, Zemeckis takes an important step forward as a filmmaker.
This isn't a first time a long-awaited movie has turned out to be a crushing disappointment and it won't be the last, but the loss is made even more wrenching when one considers how little it would have taken to make Cast Away a great movie.
It's a risky venture, and a fascinating, straightforward glimpse into the soul of a man.
When I prayed to the film divinities that I wanted less Tom Hanks at the movies, I didn't just mean that I wanted him to be thinner.
If all of Cast Away were as gripping as its long midsection, it would be overwhelming; still, even with its flaws, it marks another milestone performance for Tom Hanks as well as for Robert Zemeckis.
Cast Away says what you (yes, you) would end up doing if you were on a deserted island.
An enjoyable, moving drama in which you’ll believe a man can love a volleyball. Highly recommended.
Hanks made more faces and walked around with his mouth open more than I might have liked, but he has a way of revealing his thoughts without words that kept me intrigued.
The challenge to the character is matched by the challenge to the actor; for most of the movie Mr. Hanks is the only human being we see or hear. He tackles the job with stunning confidence in a performance stripped of gimmicks and driven by need.
Hanks's Everyman quality has never been more aptly utilized: He's the perfect stand-in for all of us who never made it to Eagle Scout.
Cast Away remains daring and quite unique even though it could have been even more, and Hanks' performance is really something to be seen.
In addition to Hanks’ superb acting, amazing cinematography by Don Burgess helps lift this movie above the ordinary.
Latest News for Cast Away
June 22, 2005:
Ridley Scott Jumps In to "Shadow Divers"
The always-busy Ridley Scott ("Kingdom of Heaven") has signed on to bring Robert Kurson's novel "Shadow Divers" to the big screen, says Variety. Mr. Scott... More...
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