My Love for Cast Away

***SPOILERS!***

I haven't seen this movie in a long time, so immediately hit the record button when I saw it was going to appear on BBC 1 the other night!
I find it so hard to believe that this movie was slammed by so many critics when I think it is arguably one of the best movies ever made ... probably in the top 500 (which, when you think about how many movies actually exist, is actually a pretty decent place for a movie to be).

For those who don't know the movie (and if you don't then I think you should watch it), it focuses around Chuck Noland (played by Tom Hanks), who is a FedEx executive who finds himself stranded on a Desert Island for four years (ish) after enduring a plane crash.

So basically, it's all about how he copes physically and emotionally with his isolation and new lifestyle (and I might add that the fact he doesn't die in the plane crash isn't a spoiler as it is about his life on the island...).

What I find very interesting about this movie is the fact that Hanks has very little dialogue throughout the movie, despite being the main character... I mean, there is some dialogue.. but not very much, and considering his conversations are mostly with himself and inanimate objects, I think it is fantastic that he somehow manages to keep an audience captivated and almost emotionally attached to Chuck Noland's character.

What I definitely see, (that most critics did not apparently...) is the change in Noland's character throughout his stay on the island. I think most people where looking to see him break down or go insane or whatever they think would usually happen if you found yourself alone on a desert island for four years.. but I really disagree! Here are my reasons:

• Firstly, we don't see every year that he is on the island. For all we know, and I'm assuming it probably happened nearer the beginning of his time there, he could have had so many breakdowns and emotional moments, as well as suicide attempts (which we do actually see that he considers).
• Okay, secondly, Just like every other human/animal/living organism he learns to adapt to his new environment over FOUR YEARS!
• Thirdly, if talking to and becoming emotionally attached to a ball that you have named "Wilson" is not what you would call "going insane" then I don't know what is.

One of my favourite things about this character is also his belief that he will deliver one of the FedEx packages (he leaves one unopened). I think he sees it as some sort of goal, and sees the opening of the package as admitting defeat. I also love that idea of him having a picture of his love interest/girlfriend (Helen Hunt) to look at.. but I don't think they meant to portray this in a cheesy "someday I will be reunited with my love" kind of way, but I think it is a way of keeping the character emotionally connected to the "real world", and to feeling something "real" to prevent him becoming less "human". (Sorry a lot of quotation marks going on today... )

Anyway, in case you haven't already got the picture, I love this movie. I think it is different and interesting and as always, Tom Hanks is brilliant. I definitely think that even if it is not in everyone else's top 500, it can be argued as one of the most underrated films in history...

.. In my opinion anyway ;)