Cast Away

Rating: 10/10 (30 April 2016)

Cast Away demonstrators the struggles between man verses wild. Chuck Noland (played by Tom Hanks) is on his way overseas to help fix a production and processing problem at a FedEx station. Chuck is an expert at this, and he loves his job. He loves his job so much that it has kept him from getting married to his longtime girlfriend, Kelly Frears (played by Helen Hunt), because of him always leaving unexpectedly. Right before he boarded the plane, though, he finally decided it was time to give Kelly the ring. While on the plane, chaos suddenly takes hold when the plane starts to shake around. Before he knows what is happening, the plane is falling very rapidly into the ocean. Chuck is the only one on the plane who survives the crash, and he manages to float to a deserted island in the middle of the ocean. Now all alone on this island, Chuck has to not only figure out how to survive but also get off the island. For four years, Chuck lives on the island until he finally manages to create a raft that can withstand the powerful waves. After a large boat rescues him off the raft a few hundred miles from the island, Chuck finally returns home to find Kelly. Chuck's worst nightmare comes true when he finds out that Kelly had in fact moved on and got married. Now Chuck has to start his life all over, and move on from everything he had lost and missed while being on the island.
A main theme in this movie is how devoted people are to things they love. Chuck had such a will to live and survive because he had promised Kelly he would be right back from his trip. He did not like having customers wait for their packages in the mail, and he did not like knowing he was keeping Kelly waiting for him. Another movie that displays this theme is the Titanic. Jack was willing to freeze to death in the cold water so Rose could be safe on the board until help came. Rose was also willing to lose respect from her family by wanting to be with a man of much lower social ranking. Rose was willing to lose her family, and Jack was willing to lose his life, all in the name of truly devoted love.
Cast Away did a very good job in showing how a situation like Chuck's can change a person mentally. Chuck started to talk to a volleyball and considered it his close friend. The producer also used this as a good way of having Chuck talk to something instead of just talking to himself. The movie also showed the physical changes Chuck went through. After being on an island for four years, Chuck lost a lot of weight. His teeth were yellow and his hair was very long and dirty. This helped make the progression in time seem more realistic.
During the entire time Chuck was on the island, all he could think about was Kelly. He would draw pictures of her on the walls of the cave he was living in. He was also willing to risk his life and leave the island on a small raft because he just could not stand living there without her anymore. Through Chuck's strong devotion to the woman he loved, he was able to survive an unthinkable situation we all hope never to have to experience.