Jul 07, 2001 03:04 AM
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I have always been and will continue to be a fan of movies that make the viewer think. I am also a fan of movies that appeal to every type of personality. Needless to say, Cast Away covers both of these criteria.
Brief Plot Summary
Hanks works for FedEx and his plan crashes in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, he being the only survivor. He learns (by chance and by skill) how to survive this island for 4 years, only to return and see that his life is essentially over anyway. His love has married another man, his family has already given him a funeral, and he finds himself at a crossroads, literally and figuratively. The end is neither intense or frightening, but it is thought-provoking and innovative.
The Star
Tom Hanks gives his most inspiring performance ever in this movie. I, for one, never thought he could develop a deeper character than Forrest Gump, but he has done it.
I remember sitting in the theatre and thinking about each of my reactions. There is not an actor in this world other than Hanks who can make you laugh and cry in the same movie like this. There is a scene when Hank's character is first stranded on the island and hears a strange noise coming from the bushes. His reactions put the audience into uproarious laughter. I found myself forgetting that this man's plan had crashed, he was all alone on an island in the middle of nowhere, and had no food or usable source of water.
A scene down the line portrays Hank's only friend on the island in his 4 years of captivity, an old volleyball with a blood-painted face on the front, named Wilson, as he drifts out to sea. Part of you wants to smile at Hanks tears, thinking of the absurdity that comes with loving a volleyball, but you check yourself. You realize that, regardless of what it is, it was his only friend for 4 years of his life, and you find yourself sympathizing and emotionally attatched to Wilson as well.
All in all, an amazing performance from an amazing actor.
The Support
Helen Hunt plays Hank's would-be fiance and is the only other notable character in the movie. She does a good job playing the confused and in love woman who's best friend essentially comes back to life. She, too, finds out what she must do with regard to Hanks, but I certainly wouldn't give it away.
Why this is for YOU
Have you ever lost a friend?
Have you ever been in love?
Had that love swept away?
Fought so hard for something that was never really there?
Given all you could for someone?
Maybe you haven't done any of these things. Maybe your life, like mine, is normal and free of drama. Maybe a stranded guy struggling to find food and shelter, battling the ocean, giving up, being saved, having his plane as well as his world crash into a sea of nothingness doesn't pull any heart strings or hit close to home.
I don't cry in movies, not because of any masculine pride, but because I never feel what the actors feel. I never win and lose with the people on the screen. But let me tell you something. I did win with this man. I did lose a friend when that old piece of junk volleyball fell into the ocean. I did have my heart pulled out when he realized he had been rescued and taken to a world that had already burried him. And you will too, my friend. You will too.
