Track your parcel, because this is one FedEx package you're going to want on time.
At almost two and a half hours in length, this is no walk in the park, or island for that matter, but Tom Hanks throws himself into this so much its hard to know what the clocking in time is.
In the first ten minutes we start to see a convincing ad for FedEx to use concerning time on delivery, but that is besides the point.
Hanks has one of those styles where we immediately feel sorry for whatever dire situation he finds himself in, his story in Cast Away is no different.
But the film separates itself from anything you will have seen before. almost carried solely by Hanks, we have his character, FedEx systems analyst Chuck Noland, stranded on an unknown island due to a tragic plane crash, with nobody else there, he must fend for himself, and this is where we see Tom Hanks at his very best. Through is performance and Robert Zemeckis direction, we see a story of taking each day at a time if this sort of situation arose, not a 'right heres what Im going to do' type story, that is unrealistic, we see him licking water from a leaf for goodness sake, it brings everything to the table, being alone, emotional withdrawal and lengths we would go to just to stay alive, who ever thought of needing the dentist while on a deserted island.
Hanks delivers a stellar performance, his weight loss as the film progresses is clearly visible, another indication of ability to to place himself in the mind of whoever he is portraying.
This film was of course the birth of the infamous 'wilson ball' friendship which Hanks had with a simple blood stained Wilson ball, this was ahidden message within which was in are darkest and most despaired moments, its simplest things we can turn to, no matter who or what, to realise who we are and what we are capable of.
What was surprising the most was how Hanks convinced us how alone he really was, talking to 'Wilson', fighting with coconuts and attempting to escape, it was all these realistic and yet simplistic gestures which created a thrilling journey and emotional performance from Hanks. It was definitely the quieter moments with no dialogue that really showed the capabilities of of Hanks, so much more than Forrest Gump on a desert island.
FedEx need to maintain a reputation after this film, Hanks, on the other hand, has nothing to prove, see this to believe the brilliance.… Expand

Robert Zemeckis' "Cast Away" is a movie that is not only a revolutionary piece of film, but it is as poignant and affecting as they come. One of the most interesting and, often, unsung aspects of "Cast Away" is that Zemeckis and his crew basically crafted this movie on the fly and during production. In fact, the whole concept of "Wilson The Volleyball" was not conceived until about halfway through shooting. Another interesting aspect of the film is that a very large portion of it has no dialogue, yet it still remains highly entertaining experience. Much of the film's complexity comes from the incredibly moving performance as Chuck Noland, a FedEx engineer who is tragically separated from everything he loves. Which leads me to another point, and, possibly, my favorite aspects of "Cast Away" - the themes conveyed. The movie is deeply driven by the central idea that life can be cruel and unforgiving thing, but that shouldn't stop us from pursuing something better. This theme is accentuated to an enormous degree by the movies soundtrack by Alan Silvestri. Though the soundtrack is absent throughout most of the first half of this movie, the movie's main theme is slowly introduced towards the end of the film. It's a very solemn musical piece that effectively illustrates the pain the Chuck Noland experiences throughout the movie, but it also presents a sort of hopeful tone to the film. In the end, I feel that "Cast Away" presents a number of innovative and impressive techniques that, ultimately, make it a near-perfect film.… Collapse

Cast Away don't have an amazing direction.Tom Hanks and that screenplay stole the film.The director,Robert Zemeckis didn't do an amazing direction.Do not trust the part of the trailer ''For the Academy Award winning director of Forrest Gump''.The cinematography did it by John Burgess also he didn't do it OK.If you see it but you don't like it see Forrest Gump to try.But,despite all that the rest is OK,including the sound mixing.… Expand

I found this a totally absorbing film; one of those that make the time pass much more quickly than you expect. You very quickly get involved in the story and you find that you actually care about this man stranded on this island. You really want him to survive and get back to the woman he loves; and you feel his pain when things don

I like survival movies and this one met my needs. Tom hanks really got into the role by losing and gaining weight. It has a good emotion but the movie is slightly overrated. .

Tom Hanks really put a lot into this movie. My favorite character though is, Wilson. A classic story that was brought to the big screen with humor and sadness.This movie is kind of scary in a way too.

Tom Hanks is an actor who almost never fails. And, to be honest, he does not fail in this. It is the movie around him that fails; a largely vapid drama, devoid of tension or insight into a horrifying situation, and simply interested in showing off Hanks' acting. We've seen Philadelphia, we don't need proof.

For me this one was a dissapointment. Don`t get me wrong. I fully agree with Hanks` Oscar nomination for this role. I guess he is the only thing holding this film from being a failure. The music is good, though it doesn`t go too well with what we`re watching. The effects and pictures are well made, though they do not contribute in any better way. I divide this film into chronological 3 pieces. The first one is good, mostly because there is realatively alot of happening and we see the planecrash. The second one I found to be boring. Here, as much as Hanks tried to keep me interested, it didn`t really work as there was not much content to it. We see how he tries to survive on the island, how he builds his home and what difficulties he faces. There is not enough psychology to the main character which would serve the movie well in this central time-piece. It seems that the director didn`t really have an idea how to portrait it. The third piece of the movie is going home, watching how time went by and how things changed. It is supposed to be sad inspite of a miracle that brought Chuck back. Also Helen Hunt didn`t get a chance to shine, as she plays it roughly average. A movie that is nice to see but doesn`t manage to execute too well.… Expand

Tom Hanks is mesmerising in Cast Away, but the overall high marks should go to director Robert Zemeckis, who, for me, is one of the insightful directors out there. The airplane crash scene, with the haunting noise of the swirling plane, the virtually realistic performance of the plane crew, especially Hanks' fright, is just an amazingly directed AND choreographed scene. Was it right for Helen Hunt's character to move on? Absolutely. Zemeckis has lent true validity to her character - she may have moved on, but she's still caring enough to keep every track of her boyfriend's voyage, from the time he got on the plane to the time he came back to the civilized world. I especially enjoyed the movie soundtrack theme during the "Wilson, I'm sorry" part - it was just apt. No overblowing orchestral music, just the right mix for a moving, serious film. We all have our fantasies - what if we were stranded alone on a remote island, without nothing to eat or drink? Hanks does it impeccably....it's totally understandable and reasonable for him to learn to break a coconut in half, sip water from a leaf, go exploring his new surrounding, or learn how to make fire. I was fascinated by how the story built up - and impressed by how Zemeckis keeps our eyes on the screen by simply focussing on Nolan, and not in how the world back home might have been reacting. The movie might be a fantasy-theme, but in no scene does it venture into the unknown, or the unrealistic - it is as normal as one would probably find themselves in, if one were alone in that environment. I recommend it very much - not in the least the penultimate scene when Nolan drives into his ex-girlfriend's house in a rainy evening. The characters do apt justice to their roles, how would you feel if the person whose dreams sustained you in that remote island for four years has now moved on, had a family of her own? Hanks and Hunt are just brilliant in their characters. Cast Away is a brilliant movie - watch it for positivity and optimism, not with scepticism or negativity - it is highly moving and uplifiting. I should know - it is one of my wife's favorite movies! Of course, there will always be questions asked about movie plots and directions, I can surely do without them!… Expand

Really Good only 8 because of the visual effects when he crashed on the island

What a great movie! It's brilliant. The idea, the acting, the dramatics. everything is fabulous. This movie shows in a very realistic way how a human being adjust and live in solitude. The deep feelings and emotions keeps you with high pulse till the end. After you've seen this movie you live different among your friends and just sometimes you scream 'Wilson!!!' when you are alone.....

I love this movie, Tom Hanks was awesome! I think this movie ir very realistic, one of the best perfomance of Tom Hanks!! the storyline is just incredible, A must-see movie

what an awesome and riveting movie. Its been a long time since a flick help me in total captivity the entire time and gave me goose bumps. A genius movie. outstanding!

This movie is one of the greatest. So emotional to me, the 2 hours past in no time. I love this movie.

very superficial. This guy spends 4 years alone in an island and the only things he learn is to fish. I find this unrealistic. In a situation like this anybody would need to find a reason to live, to go deep inside oneself. That is totally missing.

One of the best movies I've seen in the past 10 years! The storyline is remarkable. What struck me the most is that there was no background music at all when his plane went down and the time spent on his island. Then when he left, the music returned, as he was looking away! A very beautiful movie from start to finish. However, a warning for all you action-packed movies, this one is not for you.… Expand

A modern American Robinson Crusoe, with his man Friday convincingly played by the contents of a parcel that absolutely positively washed ashore overnight. Doesn't have the zing of an epic, but otherwise is believable and absorbing. Life indeed is what happens while you are making other plans. Meanwhile, other people make plans while you continue to live. Good performance by Hanks. He had a ball on the island. Best supporting actor should have gone to Wilson for maintaining an appropriate facial expression and remembering his lines. … Expand

One of my very favorite movies of the last 5 years, but not for everyone. Requires a viewer predisposed to examine his own values and the direction of his own life. A quiet meditation from a skilled filmmaker (Zemeckis) and actor (Hanks).

A mainstream Hollywood production(big budget, big name director and actors)reaching for meaning and significance and barely making it to shore. Hanks plays a pushy workaholic American who flies around the global village for Fed Ex. He's blind to everything except his career and his love interest. Stranded alone on an island after the plane crash he's forced to readjust to a radically different kind of existence of surviving on bare necessities, of cyclical time, and in utter loneliness. He's forced to become a primitive and a mystic, succeeding reasonably well as former but not so much as latter, mostly babbling to an imaginary friend in the form of a volleyball. The movie has a somewhat pompous Biblical thrust where modern man is forced into a vast timeless conundrum. As years pass Hanks comes to resemble a prophet meditating in the wilderness. Sadly, the movie focuses far too much on Hank's physical struggle for survival and not enough on his mental struggle to maintain sanity or to attain some kind of peace(for that, there's the truly great Woman in the Dunes). Still, the movie's recalls some of the best moments of Contact--also by Zemeckis--where, too, the protagonist attains a measure of wisdom and humility only after undergoing a profoundly transformative adventure. Hanks hams it up a little in the final scenes but is otherwise immensely likable. Helen Hunt though no great beauty emanates spiritual beauty. … Expand

This Is One Of The Best Movies Ever,The Story Is Well Played Out, Its A Two Hour Movie However It Never Drags Out. Buy It!

Great plane crash. I hope I haven't spoiled the only reason to see this movie. Unless watching Tom Hanks learn to eat a coconut is your idea of great entertainment.

Am I the only one that loved the final act! The movie greatly surpassed my expectations, and I greatly prefer it to "Forest Gump".

Why Helen Hunt? Her irritatingly bad performance took away from what was a great Tom Hanks performance.

How many times have you been anxious to do or see something? Can you remember thinking 'it's taking forever for this thing to happen?' Now you look back and think of how great a time you had. This movie is like finding hope in the waiting period and it tells something about life. Whatever it is you are waiting for will come. You just need to be patient and wait till the time is right and take advatage of it because "You never know what the tide may bring."… Expand

Great backgrounds and effects. But the ending and the story really stunk. Not enough exploration was done on the on the real star of the movie...the island!

It is surprisingly good...better than I thought it would be. A must-see.

What a waste. Bad ending. Bad theme. Cast a whats the point!

Someone said to me "not many actors could have pulled off that role". Well, Hanks didn't. I want my money back, my back side was in agony after sitting through all that drivel.