Survival

Rating: 8/10 (17 April 2008)

This is a film about survival. Having survived a plane crash, the plane sinking, and being cast adrift in towering stormy seas, the next stage of Chuck Noland's survival is the basic Robinson Crusoe problem of keeping the "body" part of body and soul together - solving the problems of not starving or dying of thirst, and of being sheltered from inhospitable elements.
This film shows us those trials and tribulations, but also makes it clear that Noland had difficulties just as great with the "soul" part of body and soul. He survived this (barely - suicide was not only considered but rehearsed) with the help of three psychological crutches. One was his companion Wilson, the volleyball which he turned into his constant companion and confidante. The second was the preservation of one unopened FedEx package - as long as that package remained there to be delivered, Noland held on to a reason for surviving. And the third was the thought of returning to Kelly Frears, the fiancée who was waiting for his return.
In the event, of course, his engagement to Kelly didn't survive. But even the demise of that engagement was something else for him to survive.
This film struck a good balance between true life adventure, action spectacle, and human drama. Hanks is always good, and Cast Away was substantially better than the sentimental drivel of Forrest Gump, his previous collaboration with Zemeckis.
I watched it with my wife and 24-year old son (who, unusually, sat in the same room with us to watch TV), and all three of us thoroughly enjoyed this film