---
title: "Cast Away"
year: 2000
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/cast-away"
fi1m_id: "cast-away"
imdb_id: "tt0162222"
tmdb_id: 8358
wikidata_id: "Q213411"
fi1m_score: 81
critics_score: 72
critics_reviews: 7
published: "2026-09-14"
updated: "2026-10-06T12:12:42.407324+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Cast Away (2000)

Directed by Robert Zemeckis · 2h 23m · MPA PG-13 · Adventure, Drama

## Identity

Cast Away

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/cast-away
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** cast-away
- **IMDb ID:** tt0162222
- **TMDB ID:** 8358
- **Wikidata ID:** Q213411
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0162222/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/8358, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q213411

**Fi1m score: 81** · Critics 72 from 7 reviews

*In a sentence:* Tom Hanks makes surviving a day look harder than most films make saving the planet

> Tom Hanks makes the physical work and loneliness of survival absorbingly clear. Robert Zemeckis is less convincing when he presses for life lessons, but *Cast Away* earns its long silences and most of its sentiment.

## Synopsis

Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks) is stranded on a desert island after an aircraft crash. Alone and cut off from civilisation, he has to learn how to survive, improvising solutions to problems that now take up his days. Physical hardship is only part of the task: without other people, he must also contend with loneliness and the passage of time. His immediate needs leave little room for anything beyond getting through the next day. Robert Zemeckis directs this adventure drama, with Helen Hunt playing Kelly Frears.

## Review

*Cast Away* is an absorbing survival drama, with a performance strong enough to carry it through some heavy-handed life lessons. Robert Zemeckis strands Tom Hanks on a desert island and trusts him to keep the business of getting through a day interesting. Chuck Noland’s predicament follows an aircraft crash, but the film does not need to keep finding comparable disasters to hold our attention. For much of its length, one man trying to manage without help is sufficient.

The crash is an early indication of how well Zemeckis can make physical danger register. We were frightened by it, because Hanks looks so helpless inside the disaster: we never get the comfortable sense that a capable leading man has things in hand. The staging keeps the danger clear without making it feel safely manageable. Hanks carries that vulnerability into the island scenes, where we remain conscious of how much is being asked of one body.

As Chuck, Hanks is particularly good at making concentration visible. His attention to a task lets us follow the work without needing somebody to explain what the scene is for. The sustained, largely wordless passages could easily become an actor asking to be admired, but he stays busy with the immediate difficulty. He allows frustration and awkwardness into the performance, too. The loneliness is affecting because we have spent time watching this man cope without the ordinary help and distraction of another person.

The island is well served by Don Burgess’s cinematography, which makes the space around Chuck feel exposing rather than inviting. We can follow the physical work without forgetting how alone he is. Rick Carter’s production design is equally important to the credibility of the improvisation: the surroundings present convincing difficulties, and the effort involved in dealing with them feels real. Neither contribution makes the island feel conveniently arranged for an adventure.

Arthur Schmidt’s editing is patient with that work, letting a task occupy a scene without hurrying towards the next crisis. This is the part of the film that feels most assured of what it has to offer. The patience occasionally becomes slackness, and the 143-minute running time leaves some stretches longer than their dramatic interest warrants. Survival adventures often hurry through this kind of labour; here it supplies much of the drama, and we would be reluctant to lose too much of it.

William Broyles Jr.’s screenplay is less persuasive when it presses the experience into a lesson about what matters in life. The symbolism feels too emphatic, as though Chuck’s isolation might otherwise strike us as a minor inconvenience. Alan Silvestri’s music supports the more openly sentimental writing, and its emotional weight is not always needed. Hanks has already made the suffering and loneliness clear. We do not need every feeling encouraged quite so firmly.

Viewers who want a brisk sequence of escapes may find the long concentration on one person trying. For us, that concentration is the reason to watch: Hanks makes frustration and persistence interesting without turning Chuck into a collection of admirable qualities. There is more sentiment than we would choose, but it does not undo that achievement. Give it an uninterrupted evening, when the small actions can receive as much attention as the crash.

*Fi1m score 81, published 14 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics respond warmly to Cast Away, with praise centred on Tom Hanks’ physical performance and the sustained attention to the practical work of survival. The island sequences are widely judged absorbing, making isolation, improvisation and loneliness compelling with little need for dialogue. Robert Zemeckis’ visual storytelling, the staging of the plane crash and the detailed production design also earn approval, even from reviews less persuaded by the film’s larger ideas.

The reservations concern heavy symbolism, uneven momentum and a tendency towards sentimentality outside the central survival story. The spread is wider than the broadly positive consensus suggests: Time Out finds the solemn tone wearing, while The Guardian objects to the commercial branding and lack of psychological curiosity. The Telegraph goes further, rejecting Hanks’ credibility as a survivor and finding little dramatic subtlety; most other reviews regard his performance as the film’s chief strength.

## Straight answers

**Is Cast Away worth watching?**

*Cast Away* is worth watching for anyone content to spend two hours with one man working out how to survive, and we scored it 81. Tom Hanks makes the physical labour and loneliness of the island absorbing, though Robert Zemeckis presses too hard on the life lessons and the 143 minutes include some slack stretches.

**How long is Cast Away, and what is it rated?**

*Cast Away* runs 2h 23m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is an adventure and drama film.

**Where can I watch Cast Away in the US?**

*Cast Away* is available to rent from Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Cast Away, and is it suitable for children?**

*Cast Away* is a UK 12 with little violence, but its aircraft crash is frightening: Hanks looks helpless inside it, and the staging never lets the danger feel manageable. Beyond that, the film is a slow study of hardship and isolation rather than peril, so older children should cope, though younger ones may find the long silent passages trying.

**How does Cast Away compare to The Red Turtle?**

*Cast Away* and [*The Red Turtle*](https://film.one/film/the-red-turtle) are both patient, largely wordless stories of a man alone on an island, but Hanks's film grounds isolation in physical work and a star performance, while Michaël Dudok de Wit's animation makes it strange and tender. The Red Turtle is the sparer and more restrained of the two; Cast Away offers more incident and more sentiment.

**What should I watch after Cast Away?**

After *Cast Away*, try [*All Is Lost*](https://film.one/film/all-is-lost) (2013, Fi1m 82): Another solitary survivor, with practical problems allowed to provide almost all the drama. Then [*The Red Turtle*](https://film.one/film/the-red-turtle) (2016, Fi1m 84): Animation makes island isolation strange and tender, with little need for spoken explanation; and [*Touching the Void*](https://film.one/film/touching-the-void) (2003, Fi1m 87): A climbing documentary that makes each small decision feel frighteningly consequential.

### Reviews we read (12)

- **The New Yorker**, David Denby (85/100, inferred): The critic highlights the film's startling physicality and mesmerizing depiction of suffering, improvisation, and survival, focusing on the detailed airplane crash and Hanks' bodily performance. It is described as an old-fashioned adventure epic rather than a triumph of the human spirit. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2000/12/18/high-tide)
- **Screen Daily** (80/100, inferred): Zemeckis delivers an intriguing survival and redemption saga that should be a huge box-office hit and earn Oscar nominations; it is more mature than his prior work but still features simplistic symbolism, with Hanks giving an awesome everyman performance. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/cast-away/404487.article)
- **The AV Club**, Keith Phipps (80/100, inferred): Zemeckis' film is gripping and thoughtful, with Hanks delivering a strong performance that turns his everyman character into something more universal. The director's visual sense and the film's focus on time, isolation, and survival are highlighted as strengths. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/cast-away-1798192552)
- **Variety** (80/100, inferred): The critic commends the bold risks taken by Zemeckis and Hanks in this unique stranded-on-an-island story, praising Hanks' bravura performance and the meticulous production design. Some stretches lack dramatic momentum and veer into the overly metaphysical. [Read](https://variety.com/2000/film/reviews/cast-away-2-1200465966/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (70/100, inferred): The critic notes the film's top-notch filmmaking and visuals but finds it more of a straightforward survivor tale than the philosophical work intended, with the high-minded ideas only sporadically realized. The production details and Hanks' commitment are singled out for praise. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-dec-22-ca-3283-story.html)
- **Time Out**, GA (40/100, inferred): The critic finds Hanks' performance solid enough to carry much of the film alone and praises the well-staged crash, but faults the overly serious tone and heavy symbolism that make the story drag on too long. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/cast-away)
- **Empire**, William Thomas: The film delivers a powerful, absorbing depiction of a man marooned on a desert island, with expertly sustained wordless moviemaking and strong performances elevating familiar survival tropes. It falters somewhat on the emotional payoff after the protagonist's return to civilization. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/cast-away-review/)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw: The film is a two-hour-plus advertisement for FedEx with no interest in the personal or social implications of being marooned. It is deeply silly, with Hanks emerging unchanged and robust rather than traumatised. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/jan/12/culture.reviews)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt: The film is an intermittently successful survival tale that fails to fully deliver on its themes of what is truly important in life. Hanks' performance and Zemeckis' visuals are praised, but the emotional undercurrents after the return to civilization are underexplored. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/cast-away-review-2000-movie-1171361/)
- **The New York Times**, Stephen Holden (NYT Critic’s Pick): The critic praises the film's gripping central section depicting survival and isolation on a desert island, highlighting Hanks' performance and the evocation of loneliness and human insignificance. The bookend narrative is seen as more formulaic and corny. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/22/movies/film-review-ultimate-survivor-man-against-nature.html)
- **The Telegraph**, Andrew O'Hagan: Hanks is hardly credible as a survivor and the movie itself is beyond belief, with no human or dramatic subtlety. It is tabloid cinema obsessed with media frenzy rather than genuine drama or character. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturereviews/10514113/Cast-Away-2000-original-Telegraph-review.html)
- **Eye for Film**, Angus Wolfe Murray (70/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's focus on survival and Tom Hanks' performance in keeping the audience engaged during the long island sequence, but finds the post-rescue section overly sentimental. [Read](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/cast-away-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray)

## Details

- **Director:** Robert Zemeckis
- **Director:** Robert Zemeckis
- **Writer:** William Broyles Jr.
- **Cinematography:** Don Burgess
- **Editor:** Arthur Schmidt
- **Music:** Alan Silvestri
- **Production design:** Rick Carter
- **Costume design:** Joanna Johnston
- **Producer:** Tom Hanks, Steve Starkey, Jack Rapke
- **Cast:** Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland; Helen Hunt as Kelly Frears; Nick Searcy as Stan; Jenifer Lewis as Becca Twig; Geoffrey Blake as Maynard Graham; Peter Von Berg as Yuri; Chris Noth as Jerry Lovett; Lari White as Bettina Peterson
- **Runtime:** 2h 23m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 22 December 2000
- **Genres:** Adventure, Drama
- **Budget:** $90 million
- **Box office:** $430 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tVklCz2jcI

## Where to watch in the US

- Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $9.99, uhd
- Apple TV: buy $9.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-14.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, SE, SG, TH, TR, UA, US, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2001: Best Actor (nominated); Best Sound (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *All Is Lost* (2013), Fi1m 82: Another solitary survivor, with practical problems allowed to provide almost all the drama. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/all-is-lost.md)
- *The Red Turtle* (2016), Fi1m 84: Animation makes island isolation strange and tender, with little need for spoken explanation. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-red-turtle.md)
- *The Naked Island* (1960): Daily physical labour becomes absorbing drama, told with patience and almost no dialogue.
- *Touching the Void* (2003), Fi1m 87: A climbing documentary that makes each small decision feel frighteningly consequential. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/touching-the-void.md)
- *The Martian* (2015), Fi1m 82: For more resourceful problem-solving, with company on the radio and a lighter mood. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-martian.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/cast-away