Film Review: Cast Away (2000)

7 months ago

(source: tmdb.org)

People generally tend to watch past with rosy glasses, but Hollywood studio executives would have some reasons to look at the turn of millennium as a time when they could indulge themselves in some things that seem impossible right now. That includes spending ridiculously large budget of over 90 million US$ on a film about single man living on deserted island. Many would have call that madness, but in the case of Cast Away, 2000 adventure drama directed by Robert Zemeckis, the madness actually paid off, resulting in one of the most successful and most memorable films of its time.

The protagonist, played by Tom Hanks, is Chris Noland, system analyst for FedEx whose job requires almost constant travelling between continents. Because of that he has very little time to spend with his girlfriend Kelly Frears (played by Helen Hunt). One day FedEx plane with him on board, while flying over Pacific, crashes into the sea. Chris barely survives on a rubber raft and is brought by seas currents to small tropical island. His radio beacon has been lost and he gradually accepts that the possibility of him being rescued is extremely small. So, the more immediate concern is his long time survival, so he must use everything he learned from films and TV shows to find many things he has previously taken for granted – food, drink, shelter and his mental health.

Few films represented the antithesis of concept of modern Hollywood blockbuster like Cast Away did. Zemeckis had simple idea and turned into a very simple film, deprived of many conventional features that are supposed to make films attractive. There isn’t almost any music in the film; the most of the plot takes place on deserted island where the only sounds are natural or protagonist talking with Wilson volleyball. On the other hand, Zemeckis as director shows how he can apply different styles in different sections of film. When showing protagonist’s life on the island, the shots are long and slow, making them very effective in showing how the protagonist is lonely and helpless towards natural forces. The scene of actual air crash is, on the other hand, shown solely from the perspective of the protagonist. We don’t see actual explosion or crash, but editing and use of sound very effectively bring the horror felt by the protagonist.

Another great asset of the film was Tom Hanks. He actually lost spectacularly large amount of his body weight in order to realistically portray man who has survived years living without proper food. But he also plays character who is essentially good, but not a perfect, so the average viewer could easily identify with him. Another good thing about Cast Away is script by William Broyles Jr. which, in very intelligent way, show problems await person suddenly deprived of civilisation comforts and how idealistic visions of popular culture differ from banal and bleak reality. Film is filled with irony, like in the scenes where seemingly petty and useless objects become essential tools of survival or those in which the tropical island that looks like paradise becomes hell for protagonist. Cast Away had great potential to become grand masterpiece, but it missed that opportunity because slightly excessive length and too much corniness in the ending. On the other hand, it was recognised as great film by critics and general public alike and although Tom Hanks failed to win his third Oscar with it, this film can recommended as one of increasingly rare examples of a Hollywood risk that paid off.

RATING: 8/10 (+++)