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Cast Away movie review
Tom Hanks does a superb job of carrying “Cast Away” all by himself for about two-thirds of its running time, but isn’t much helped by additional characters in the opening and closing sequences. Here is a strong and simple story surrounded by needless complications, and flawed by a last act that first disappoints us and then ends on a note of forced whimsy.
Hanks plays Chuck Noland, a time-obsessed Federal Express executive who troubleshoots all over the world, arranging hurry-up package transfers in Moscow before flying off to solve problems in Asia. Helen Hunt plays his fiancee, Kelly Frears, who tries her best to accept a man ruled by a beeper. She comes from clock-watching stock, and for Christmas gives Chuck her grandfather’s railroad watch.
Source: https://www.rogerebert.com/
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Cast Away Movie analysis
According to psychologist David Richo, “Hope is about believing in the potential in us for a life that is greater than the one our frightened and limited ego has designed, a wisdom larger than our thinking mind can muster, and a love wider than that with which we embrace our immediate circle of friends.” Hope is the secret buried inside us all waiting to rise to the surface when we need it most. It is a Divine gift, a treasure without measure.
Cast Away has taught me a bunch of great lessons. When I watched it for the first time around 20 years ago, I was thinking whether one can live alone happily or not. Depending on your personality, especially whether you’re introverted or extroverted, the answer to this question might vary.
I noticed that the director intentionally did not use much music throughout the film except for a couple of scenes. That was a right decision as the sound of nature was supposed to be the background music of this inspiring movie.
Cast Away made me deem that nothing is predictable in this world. As Chuck was treating a cut on his thumb with a band aid, all of a sudden, he was blown away and experienced almost the worst on the falling plane. Then on the island, which was both picturesque and menacing at the same time, Chuck had to take the bull by the horns. He was not trained for such that calamity. Yet through trial and error, he had to get the hang of the essential survival skills, such as setting a fire, fishing, and taking necessary risks.
Wilson, his only friend as a volleyball ball with a human face printed in his own blood and the picture of his fiancée were Chuck’s only companions over the passage of four years of sheer seclusion, and he was ready to kill himself to save Wilson.
The main message of Cast Away is HOPE. Logically, he was not expected to be found through the calculations he made on the cave wall. Nevertheless, as he put it, Chuck kept breathing and remained optimistic.
The ending of Cast Away was so sad to me. He said, “I have now ice in my glass, but I’ve lost her, Kelly, all over again”. At least, on the island, he thought Kelly was with him, which was wishful thinking. However, this didn’t break the champion as he said, “tomorrow the sun will rise and who knows what the tide will bring!”
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