CAST AWAY (EXCLUSIVE SERIES)

Initial release date: December 22, 2000

Studios: 20th Century Fox/DreamWorks Pictures/ImageMovers/Playtone

Tagline: At the edge of the world, his journey begins.

Plot: Obsessively punctual Fed Ex executive Chuck Noland is en route to an assignment in Malaysia when his plane crashes over the Pacific Ocean during a storm. The sole survivor of the flight, Chuck washes ashore on a deserted island. When his efforts to sail away and contact help fail, Chuck learns how to survive on the island, where he remains for years, accompanied by one his handmade volleyball friend, Wilson. Will Chuck ever return to civilization and reunite with his loved ones?

Cast

Tom Hanks - Chuck Noland

Hene Hunt - Kelly Frears Lovett

Nick Searcy - Stan

Chris Noth - Jerry Lovett

Lari White - Bettina Peterson

Vince Martin - Pilot Albert 'Al' Miller

Writer: William Broyles, Jr. (Flags Of Our Fathers; Jarhead; The Polar Express; Unfaithful; Apollo 13)

Director: Robert Zemeckis (Disney Plus' Pinocchio)

Rated PG-13 for intense action sequences and some disturbing images (152 minutes)

Tom Hanks had had numerous amazing films and performances throughout his career. And, one of his best films has to be the 2000 film, 'Cast Away.'

His performance in the film is simply amazing. I'm sure it was likely difficuly to act primarily on your own on an island. But, Hanks easily pulls it off. Hanks is truly emotional when he needs to be and is one of his best roles ever.

The film can also have you on the edge of your seat and his entire journey on the island is incredible. You can see this so many times (like I have) and you can still wonder if he would ever make it off the island.

'Cast Away' is a sensational film that has to be seen! If you have never seen the film before, two things: 1) I highly suggest you do and 2) HOW COME YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN IT!!! The film is available on Hulu through the rest of the month and also can be rented via Google Play, YouTube, Apple TV, Vudu and Amazon Prime.

Here are some interesting tidbits for 'Cast Away':

• To make himself look like an average out of shape middle-aged man, Hanks didn't exercise and allowed himself to grow pudgy. Production was then halted for a year so he could lose 50 pounds and grow out his hair for his time spent on the deserted island. During this hiatus, Zemeckis used the same crew to film 'What Lies Beneath.'

• Job applications for Fed Ex went up by 30% after the release of the film.

• Actual lines of dialogue were written for Wilson the volleyball, to help Hanks have a more natural interaction with the inanimate object. The lines for the volleyball were cut from the final film, possibly because they wanted to make the film more realistic, rather than imaginative, or perhaps fantastical.

• Most of the night scenes on the island (except for the creation of fire scene) were shot during the day. The darkness and night sky effects were added in post-production.

• 'Cast Away' was filmed on Monoriki, one of the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji. It's in a subgroup of the Mamanuca archipelago, which is sited off the coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. The island became a tourist attraction after the film's release.

• The film opened in 2,774 theaters in North America and grossed $28.9 million in its opening weekend. It kept performing well and ended up earning $233.6 million domestic and $196 million internationally, for a worldwide total of $429.6 million, against its production budget of $90 million.

https://youtu.be/qGuOZPwLayY