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Summary: HYPE HYPE
Review: The crash scene was unbelievable , I found myself bored after the first hour. Perhaps I am not a cerebral person. I don't wish to see this movie again unless it's winter and on HBO
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Summary: Cast Away
Review: Tom Hanks manages to act this entire adventure movie solely on his own and still capture the audience's attention throughout the movie. Tom Hanks is a master at acting in almost any roll. The man truly amazes me and I loved Cast Away. I will watch it many more times.
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Summary: A harrowing tale of survival
Review: In "Cast Away," Tom Hanks portrays an employee of a package delivery service. When one of the company airplanes crashes, Hanks' character must survive alone on a tropical island. "Cast Away" takes on a compelling theme: one human being alone, stripped of the comforts of civilization, and forced to survive in a sometimes hostile natural environment. In much of the film, Hanks is the only human character onscreen; fortunately, the filmmakers hit on an excellent device to provide Hanks with an opportunity to speak some dialogue. Hanks received an Oscar nomination for his performance, and he makes the film worth watching. It is fascinating to watch his character's ingenuity at coping with this situation. The tropical locale is excellently shot; the island becomes as much a "character" in the film as does Hanks' castaway. The film as a whole is not entirely satisfying. This may have to do with the overall structure of the narrative, which struck me as somewhat episodic, and lacking in payoff. Nevertheless, "Cast Away" is well worth watching.
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Summary: A Must See...
Review: A must see for any fan of Tom Hanks. The scenes in the middle of the movie where he's stuck on the island are extremely poignant. You can actually see him losing his mind. EXCELLENT!
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Summary: Some fantastic moments make this another hanks masterpiece.
Review: Ok, i didnt give it 5 because, well it wasnt quite right. I dont know what it was but it wasnt quite perfect-maybe it was the end, but i will say no more becuase there are some poor souls out there who havent seen an otherwise gripping movie. Hanks is, hanktastic and didnt let me down at all, who else in holliwood could they throw onto an island and say 'go ahead to your thing', there was a 2001 esque quality about a wonderful 30 minutes in which hanks doesnt say a word, and in some ways the arrival of wilson, his only friend - a volley ball is a shame. I laughed more than once at hanks' antics, especially when he is fishing! Highlights are plentiful if you let yourself get involved, dreamworks once again work their magic, surely the biggest power in holliwood at the moment?! The best plane crash in the history of cinema, i hope it's as good on the small screen! I admire hanks for a wonderful porformance, shame about a certain 'father to a murdered son', Russell Crow. If you havent seen it you should. Tom hanks and dreamworks come together to produce a blockbuster with a bit of guts and a lot of heart. bravo.
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Summary: For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also
Review: I won't recap the plot of the movie, since this has already been done so many times. I want to comment on what seems to have been missed by virtually everyone who has seen the movie. There are TWO things that keep hanks going while on the deserted island: First, and most obviously, he is devoted to his fiancé. This gives him someone to hold onto in his heart as a reason to survive - and hope. His need for human companionship is demonstrated, of course, in his turning a volleyball - with his own blood as a marking pen - into a pal and fellow castaway with whom he can commiserate. But the other thing that is of no less importance to his will to survive is the Fed Ex package that he does NOT open. He is determined to do his job and deliver this package (though perhaps a bit late). It is this devotion to duty that ultimately leads him to his fateful encounter at the end of the movie. Thus, Zemeckis shows that by staying true to his inner voice, maintaining hope in impossible circumstances and seeing it through to the bitter end -- even though he could not possibly have known that this would lead him to happiness -- Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) winds up finding his destiny after all. I loved it.
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Summary: A Rare Big Budget Charmer
Review: When I first heard about Castaway, a Tom Hanks/Robert Zemeckis collaboration, I expected something like Robinson Crusoe. Due to the Holywood nature of the project I also expected wild adventure scenes and the movie to be a generally pleasant affair. This however is a trap that I think a lot of other people fell into as well which may have left a lot of viewers feeling short changed. The simple fact is, Castaway is a very depressing movie. Although many people wanted adventure on a tropical island, it would be foolish to write this off as anything other than a great film. The movie is divided up into three seperate parts. The first sees Hanks, a frantic fedex courier, travelling all around the world in an attempt to keep the mail system up to speed. Part two, he crashes in the pacific ocean. This, incidentally is the most terrifying plane crash scene which you will ever see and is likely to go through your mind the next time you go on vacation. Anyway, Hanks the sole survivor is marooned on a tropical island and over four years lives a lonely existence. His only connection to civilization is a volleyball. Lastly, Hanks returns home only to find his wife remarried. It is hard to nail down exactly what is good about Castaway because the movie cannot really be broken up into little scenes and scrutinized. The movie works incredibly well as a mood piece and establishes a huge sense of desolation and loneliness. Hanks puts in a subtle performance that for the most part relies on body language rather than expansive monologues. The film is also very real which definitley helps add to the pervading sense of loss. There are no Holywood touches to Hanks' survival, he lights his own fires (after three days of trying), bleeds when he steps on a reef and doesn't have batteries that last in his flashlight for four years. Unlike other stranded in nature films like "The Edge," where Anthony Hopkins and Alec Baldwin are seen sporting bear coats right after killing a bear with a stick, Castaway is about as real to life as you can imagine. There are of course some flaws. The whole third act is a dissapointment. Throughout the entire film Hanks does a great job so it is a shame to see him reverting to his usual "I have to get home to my wife" type of character taht he has done about three million times before. Helen Hunt is pretty poor as well, her only purpose seems to be to taunt Hanks by chasing him down in the rain to only kiss him once and then go back to her new husband. These are minor quibbles to another wise great movie. Castway is real and the sense of desperation and loneliness it creates is uncommon in movies of this scope. Take it for what it is and don't be expecting Hanks to be setting tiger traps for pirates.
Rating: 
Summary: Overrated Garbage
Review: This movie was disappointing to say the least. I defy anyone to convice me that this was worthy of all the praise people are showering on it. It had exactly ZERO of the elements that make a good flick. Drama? None. Humor? None. Suspense? None. Good acting? None. I'm sorry, but the abilty to gain and then shed 30 lbs in the timespan of a movie shoot does not make a good performance. Plus, I felt like I was watching the abridged version of a movie. He's on the island, he figures out how to do some stuff and then, BAM, it's four years later. Later on, it skips over something else that seems to me would be essential to the story if, indeed, it had one. And the volleyball thing? PLEASE. Zemeckis tried to makes us feel emotions for an inanimate object and I, for one, felt insulted. Then, at the end, they tack on this lame message about having to go on because tomorrow's another day..blah blah blah. I've never seen anything so contrived and pointless. I normally like Hanks and Zemeckis, but this Castaway is garbage. Pure and simple.
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Summary: Castaway Grand Euphoria
Review: In seeing Castaway on the big screen, my original synopsis of the movie was that it was an incredible journey into the mind of a brilliant director. The infinite struggles, and challenges that would be faced have been shown in ugly true color in this movie. The actor, Tom Hanks, and his friend Wilson (A volleyball), show a very exhuberant and live action film. Would recommend to anyone.
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Summary: Can an epic of a film only star one man?
Review: Magnificent film, and for one chief reason: Tom Hanks. Only Hanks could mesmerize an audience for 70-plus minutes all by himself. Only Hanks could pull it off: Stranded on a deserted island with nothing but sand, coconuts and FedEx packages to see him through. Only Hanks could shed pound after pound of body fat, and grow inch after inch of beard to look the part. The truth is, this is not a story about being on an island. Rather, it is a case study in reclamation, in finding your niche all over again. Put it this way: We've all come home from long vacations, and then dragged ourselves back to the grind of every day life. It's that sublime emotion that stirs in your gut whenever you see your friends and co-workers for the first time after not having seen them in a while. This feeling of adjustment, of 'coming home' is Cast Away. Hanks portrays it well, and the superb, simplistic direction by Robert Zemekis gives it gravity. In short, whatever you thought you might have heard or read about 'Cast Away,' chuck it out the airplane window... See the movie; view it by yourself on one of those rainy, snuggly nights, and you'll find yourself seeking 'home,' wherever that may be.
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