Cast Away

Released 2000
Stars Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt
Directed by Robert Zemeckis

Tom Hanks does a superb job of carrying "Cast Away" all by himself for about two-thirds of its running time, but isn't much helped by additional characters in the opening and closing sequences. Here is a strong and simple story surrounded by needless complications, and flawed by a last act that first disappoints us and then ends on a note of forced whimsy.

Hanks plays Chuck Noland, a time-obsessed Federal Express executive who troubleshoots all over the world, arranging hurry-up package transfers in Moscow before flying off to solve problems in Asia. Helen Hunt plays his fiancee, Kelly Frears, who tries her best to accept a man ruled by a beeper. Noland hitches a ride on a FedEx flight across the Pacific, which is blown off course before crashing after an onboard explosion. Noland survives the crash, and floats in a life raft to a deserted island. 

Summary by Roger Ebert

I was enthralled by the first two hours of this movie. Everything was perfect. The struggle to adapt to the harsh environment and to the lack of human contact was thrilling. I loved the subtle score, which allowed the natural sounds to be heard. It made us feel like we were there. After a great story of survival and near madness, Chuck is rescued, and we're given a half hour of forced sentimentality. As my friend likes to say, "that's what plays in Peoria." Yeah, yeah. I know it's true, though, because when I came out of the movie theater, my sister-in-law's sister-in-law (that's not a typo) was gushing over the deep meaning of the ending. At first I thought she had seen something I hadn't until I realized she was talking about "the look" at the end. Who writes this stuff? I know it would have been a downer, but the best ending would have been Chuck slowly slipping under the water as he tried and failed to rescue Wilson. Chuck had food and shelter on the island, but he had no social contact. The message that man is a social animal and will risk death to avoid isolation would have been better made if Chuck's daring escape had failed. Instead we slipped into "You've got Mail" territory. -- Bill Alward