Some good moments but ultimately goes nowhere

Rating: 6/10 (18 January 2001)

After the good reception in the US, I looked forward to seeing this film when it opened here in Australia. In the end, I was disappointed.
The first part of the film builds the character of Chuck (Tom Hanks), and shows us his relationship with his girlfriend Kelly (Helen Hunt). I thought that a lot of the dialogue in this section (especially in the plane before the crash) was poorly timed and delivered, and didn't really contribute much to the story.
The crash scene itself is excellent, and the middle section of the movie (on the island) is enjoyable. The use of an 'imaginary friend' to allow dialogue on the island (and to show the character trying to cope with the loneliness and avoid madness) was novel and effective.
However I felt it went downhill when he returned to civilisation. There were many unanswered questions (why try and tow the raft when he had oars? If the package was so important to his will to live, why leave it unexplored until the end?) and an unsatisfactory examination of the effect of Chucks return on the relationship between him, Kelly, and her new husband.
In all I felt it was a fairly average movie, with some missed opportunities and fairly good performance from Tom Hanks. I'd recommend waiting for it on video.