It is no small irony in Robert Zemeckis' Cast Away that Chuck Norland, a FedExefficiency expert whose professional life revolves around the clock, winds up stranded on adeserted island where time is quite literally meaningless. Norland, as played by Tom Hanks,is a driven professional who is sent around the world to ensure that various FedEx offices areworking at optimum capacity and maximum speed. "Don't ever make the sin of turning yourback on the clock," he instructs a group of Russian employees. One night, the plane on whichhe is flying crashes into the South Pacific ocean, and Norland manages to survive longenough to wash ashore on a small, tropical island.

It is on this island that the majority of the film takes place, and it is testament to the actingprowess and undeniable humanity exuded by Tom Hanks that he can carry long stretches ofthe film literally by himself, without even the aid of a musical score. Once on the island,Zemeckis removes all extradiagetic sound, only allowing the natural noises of the island--thewind in the trees, the repetitive crashing of the waves on the shore--to fill the soundtrack. Itenhances the literalness of Norland's physical isolation, constantly reminding us that there isno one else there.

For close to an hour, we watch as Norland learns to survive on his own, fashioning a tent outof his life raft, creating make-shift shoes out of his pant legs, and learning the easiest ways tocrack open a coconut. When various FedEx boxes wash ashore from the crash, he opensthem and makes use of their content, from videotapes to ice skates. Because we have seenNorland in action in his professional life, it is not hard to imagine that he would be a doggedsurvivor. He doesn't necessarily have the know-how, but he has the determination and thewill.

Norland ends up spending four years on the island, and the physical transformation throughwhich Hanks went in order to dramatize that passage of time is astounding. In something of areverse of Robert De Niro's transformation in Raging Bull (1980), in which he wentfrom a lean, wiry prize fighter to an overweight has-been, Hanks transforms himself from apale, meaty professional man of the city who has obviously eaten too many rich meals andspent too much time sitting on international flights to a taut, browned, muscular survivor.Zemeckis filmed Cast Away with this transformation in mind, taking a year off in themiddle of production so that Hanks could lose 50 pounds and grow out his hair and beard.The result is nothing less than astonishing, and it is nothing special effects could haveproduced.

Yet, the problem with Cast Away is that it doesn't have much to do with Norlandonce he is off the island. In the opening scenes, the film establishes his hectic, time-crunchlifestyle and his relationship with his serious girlfriend, Kelly (Helen Hunt), who is a doctoralstudent. They are contemplating marriage, and right before he leaves, Norland gives Kelly asmall box that is surely an engagement ring, asking her to hold on to it until he comes back.Little does she know how long it will be.

In the last portion of the film, Norland returns to civilization to discover what has changed inhis absence. Although the script by William Broyles, Jr., is excellent in its existentialminimalism during the island period, it falters badly at the end by missing a prime dramaticopportunity in depicting Norland's return to his previous life. Rather than showing us how hebecomes reacclimated to a cushy Western lifestyle after four years spent in completeisolation fighting for his very survival, we are given a simple title card that reads "Four WeeksLater" over a shot of a clean-cut, bathed, and completely calm and well-adjusted (although stillthinner) Norland on a plane.

What happened during those four weeks? What his reaction to his first human contact inmore than 1,500 days? What questions did he ask? How did he get used to eating cookedfood again? Did he need any psychological counseling? Did he have nightmares? How longdid it take to shave off four years worth of scraggly facial hair?

Unfortunately, none of these questions are answered in the rush to get Norland and Kellyback into the same room together. Thankfully, the scenes between them are well-written andhandled poignantly and realistically by Hanks and Hunt. They suggest the pain of time lostand decisions that can never be reversed, and even though the end is a bit forced in its drive toconclude on an upbeat note, it more or less works.

Despite these faults, Cast Away is still a film of notable merit. Director RobertZemeckis, who reteams with Hanks for the first time since they both won Oscars forForrest Gump (1994), keeps the film's visual style rather simple (except for a sillygimmick in the opening scene that depicts the travel of a FedEx package from the package'spoint of view). In the island scenes, he is content to let the camera lens absorb the wild beautyof nature, emphasizing Norland's smallness in the grand scheme of things. His staging of theplane crash is magnificently terrifying--it is one of the most memorable disaster sequences inrecent memory.

Hanks, from whom audiences always expect a great performance, does not disappoint. Hisone-man show is captivating precisely because it is kept low-key. He has the occasionaldramatic outbursts, one in anger when he cuts his hand while trying to light a fire, one ofexuberant joy when he finally gets the first started ("I have made fire!" he proclaimsto no one). Mostly, it is the primal urge to survive that drives the simple narrative, and Hanksembodies that drive perfectly.

Even in his darkest moment or when he is reduced to holding conversations with a volleyballon which he has painted a face with his own blood, there is never any doubt that this man canand will survive. It is not because there is anything special about him, but rather it is becauseof his very lack of specialty. He is simply a member of the human race whose basest drive isstay alive no matter what.

Copyright ©2001 James Kendrick