Rating: 
Summary: Very Beautiful Bore
Review: ... Although the film was beautifully made with some fantastic shots on the island, there are few times that I have been more bored. If you do watch it, be prepared for an hour of minimal dialogue. There is a well acted scene by Tom Hanks where he gets very excited about the fire he builds. The rest of the dialogue is with Wilson the volleyball. There was a moment that held my interest briefly when he casted Wilson away after realizing his situation in talking with a volleyball but soon retrieves it. "Wake me when he's off the island," is what some of you may say. The third act doesn't get much better. I almost quit watching it but thought that it may redeem itself with a cool ending....
Rating: 
Summary: Not the Big Picture, but The Great Acting
Review: I like this movie, it's OK. I don't plan on watching it often as it will most likely get tired fast. But when I want to see a sample of some very, VERY good acting, then this is where I'll go. Tom Hanks does a great job. Those vacant looks, anger, frustration, excitment, they are all very convincing. The slimed down version of Mr. Hanks after 4 years on the island is a pretty stunning transformation. And talk about a beard or bad hair day. WOW! I can see where this movie is not going to be very popular as there is not a lot of action, special effects, or even sound track. It's very minimal in nature. If one watches the special features on the second disk, then the point of the movie will be very clear. There are many additional features on the 2nd disk, most of which could be lived without ("Life and Death of a Hollywood Extra" for example). If I may, try these when you listen/watch this movie. Notice that there is no music or 20th century sound on the island. Listen hard for it, it's really relaxing in a way. You'll notice that it's very hard to listen to the nothingness of the film. Then make sure to listen hard after the return. There are some great points being made. Pay special attention to the Elvis selections that appear during the movie. Very interesting choices. Finally, watch Mr. Hanks' eyes. There lies the story, and amazingly so. You'll enjoy this movie at home, especially with a home theater or quality stereo surround sound stereo. Don't watch it often, as the "I'm tired of it" syndrome will develop quickly. Bravo to Mr. Hanks and the crew in making the film. Lastly, do not watch this film if you're going somewhere on a plane a few days after seeing it.....
Rating: 
Summary: This Cast Away is a keeper
Review: I love a movie that challenges me as a viewer and this movie definitely did that. The non-dialog, non-soundtrack portion of the film is original and different and challenging. I have decided I loved the uniqueness because they weren't there just to stretch but as storytelling techniques. I left my initial viewing not knowing for sure how I felt about it. During the film I was intensly interested in Tom Hanks and his performance as well as what his character's next step would be. So, when watching the DVD, seeing the film for the second time, I was just as involved in the tale. In addition to the excellent film this DVD included the kinds of things we are growing to not only love but expect from DVDs. The "how it was done" feature was great as was the vollyball feature and I just loved the Charlie Rose/Hanks interview. Anytime Hanks or Bob Zemmekes (spelling?) has something to say about the film I was facinated. I loved both discs in the two disc set and I know that from time to time I will pull out this gem and enjoy it all over again.
Rating: 
Summary: Ordinary "man stranded on island" movie, nothing special
Review: I was disappointed. I expected something emotionally moving, grand performances, something. I didn't expect to be bored by the story. I wanted to fast-forward, but I didn't. I kept thinking "you'll miss something"... but no sir, nothing to miss. Sad, boring, depressing movie.
Rating:
Summary: Good concept, great acting.
Review: "Cast Away" is the embodiment of a frequent fantasy of many people to be stranded on a deserted island. Great concept for a movie, and Tom Hanks was perfectly cast as the cast away. I doubt that any other actor could have carried the movie - which mostly consists of just Hanks on the island - so well. The movie starts with the premise that Hanks' character, Chuck Noland, is a Federal Express executive obsessed with time. A little obvious but still a nice contrast with his life on the island where time becomes meaningless. Also, since he's on a Federal Express plane that goes down, several parcels are washed up which provide Chuck with a variety of items he can use try to use in his effort to survive. By the way, the scenes from the plane crash are particularly well done and seemed very realistic to me (never having been in a plane crash, I can't speak with absolute authority on that). I can't say enough about how good Hanks' performance was . Personally, I thought the ending didn't live up to the rest of the movie. I would have liked to see a little more of his transition back into a world that changed drastically during his absence. Be sure to watch the "Making of Cast Away" on the DVD. The story of filming the movie is almost as interesting as the movie itself.
Rating:
Summary: Simply a great, great film.
Review: I loved CAST AWAY. It's a facinating film about one man (Tom Hanks) leaving his home to go on a plane only to find himself stranded on a deserted island for four years. From beginning 'til the end, you are engrossed to discovering what happpens to Hanks' character. I loved every moment of this film, and Hanks definitely deserved the Oscar for Best Actor. I mean, what's so great about Russell Crowe?! I didn't even really like GLADIATOR all that much. Also, the special effects in this film are just specatular and the storyline is solid and strong. I don't know why but for some reason this film reminds me of THE PERFECT STORM (maybe it's because both have to do with disasters at sea). But this is one film I definitely recommend. I didn't catch it in the theaters, unfortunately. But I watched it on VHS and thought it was just as superb! A must-see.
Rating:
Summary: incredible transformation of Tom Hanks
Review: This is one of a very few movies where physical transformation of the main actor is very visible during the course of the movie. For the first half-an-hour or so, the beer-belly Tom Hanks is difficult to go unnoticed. Yet, after he has supposedly spent few years on a deserted island, Hanks emerges thin, tanned and "fat-free", just like your best archetype of a survivor. One must admire the lengths to which Tom Hanks have gone in order to prepare for this role. Otherwise, the film itself is what you would expect it to be: a modern Robinson Crusoe story with the necessary effects, casting and quality of a good movie. Yes, it could have been better, but it's still worth seeing. If you are fond of Tom Hanks, you will want to have this one in your DVD library!
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable...but flawed.
Review: A Fed-Ex workaholic, recently engaged, is the sole survivor of a plane crash and survives on an uninhabited island for four years. This movie, like almost all of today's films, was poorly sold. In the space of a sixty second commercial, not only did they tell you all of the above info-admittedly this is a simple story-they also took out all of the suspense of the movie by spilling the beans about the 3rd Act and the fact that he gets rescued. All that's left to discover is the last 20 minutes. We don't know much about Hanks' character beside the fact that he's a workaholic, and that his life is dictated by the Clock. And this is where the film falls short. By not knowing what kind of man this is, or even what he thinks he is, there is nothing to discover about his transformation,of which there is very little, other than the physical. Sure there is the isolation and the depression to witness and the creation of fire and the finding of food and shelter, but there is a larger protrait missing here. It's the difference between a good film and a great film. Hanks is very, very good here, but without a truely full dimensional character to play, it's Hanks we see on the island, not Chuck Noland. Noland is more of a statistic than a character. An actress of Helen Hunt's stature, and talent, is badly needed because we can plug in bits of her other characterizations into the story to keep her presence alive. Robert Zmeckis is a good director for entertainment films, and he's got taste and class, but this film needed an artist, which Zmeckis is not. And like his other big film FORREST GUMP, you're not sure what,if anything, he's trying to say. Zmeckis is a very external director, so it's no wonder many, many people didn't get the last scene of this film. It feels like a different, and more talented director helmed this scene. It's completely at odds stylistically with the rest of the film. Like the director started using a different film language, is the best way I can explain it.No wonder many people didn't get it. It's more in the style of older foreign language films. I think it's the best scene in the film, and I wish Zmeckis had started filming this movie after shooting this scene instead of the other way 'round....As for the DVD, the DTS sound is superb and the extras at times, do a better job of defining the movie's intentions, than the film itself.
Rating: 
Summary: I Have Amnesia...what was this movie about again?
Review: That sad thing is that the only part of this movie I remember clearly and that had more to it than the scenes I saw in the TV spots was that incredible plane crash sequence. I still have nightmares about that sequence. But then, this movie has me seeing the FedEx logo in my sleep. Zemeckis is brilliant with this kind of high-tech, meticulous filmmaking process where thousands of things happen at once and are clearly memorable in the process after the movie is over and down the street at the coffee shop after the credits have faded. However, I only distinctly remember three moments in the movie after that...Tom Hanks in Short Beard. Tom Hanks in Long Beard with Soccer Ball. Tom Hanks at home without soccer ball, but pining for Helen Hunt...not the ball. There were some things that I latch onto with some thought... like making fire, stealing the shoes off a corpse, asking the professor how the radio could work after three years on the island....but that might be a sleep bleed-through from TV Land. Sorry to say, I just didn't like it. When I say that I know there was a tremendous amount of work that went into it and a lot of money and time and talent...but you'd think through all that I'd remember something more than I do. Sorry...I own the 2-disk set and even the commentary doesn't jog my memory. Oh well. I'll try better with my next review.
Rating:
Summary: ryan hickneys cast away review
Review: i liked this movie alot. had alot of drama. the plane crase kinda scared me a little, because i am afraid of planes. but it was still a good movie. bye
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