Cast Away facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cast Away
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Robert Zemeckis
Produced by	Steve Starkey Tom Hanks Robert Zemeckis Jack Rapke
Written by	William Broyles Jr.
Starring	Tom Hanks Helen Hunt Nick Searcy
Music by	Alan Silvestri
Cinematography	Don Burgess
Editing by	Arthur Schmidt
Studio	20th Century Fox DreamWorks Pictures ImageMovers Playtone
Distributed by	20th Century Fox (North America) DreamWorks Pictures (International, through United International Pictures)
Release date(s)	December 22, 2000 (2000-12-22)
Running time	144 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$90 million
Money made	$429.6 million

Cast Away is a 2000 American survival drama film. It was directed and produced by Robert Zemeckis. The movie stars Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt, and Nick Searcy.

Tom Hanks plays a character named Chuck Noland. He works for FedEx and helps solve problems. His plane crashes in the Pacific Ocean, leaving him stuck on an uninhabited island. The story shows his brave efforts to survive and find his way back home.

Filming for Cast Away happened in two parts. The first part was from January to March 1999. Then, it paused and started again in April 2000, finishing in May. The movie was released on December 22, 2000. It earned $429.6 million around the world. This made it the third-highest-grossing film of 2000. Critics generally liked the movie. They especially praised the story and Tom Hanks' acting. He won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama for his role. He was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor.

Story of Cast Away

In December 1995, Chuck Noland works for FedEx. He is a systems analyst who travels a lot. His job is to fix problems with how things are done. Chuck lives in Memphis, Tennessee with his girlfriend, Kelly Frears. They want to get married, but Chuck's constant work trips make it hard. This puts a strain on their relationship.

During a Christmas dinner, Chuck gets called away to Malaysia. Before he leaves, Kelly gives him her grandfather's pocket watch. It has a photo of her inside. Chuck gives Kelly a small box. He tells her to open it on New Year's Eve when he returns. This hints that it might be an engagement ring.

The FedEx cargo plane Chuck is on crashes into the Pacific Ocean. A terrible storm causes the crash. Chuck is the only person who survives. He washes ashore on an island where no one lives. Chuck finds some FedEx packages that also wash up. He sorts through them. He also buries the body of one of the pilots found on the beach.

In the days that follow, Chuck struggles to find food and water. He tries to leave the island on a life raft, but the ocean tide stops him. He also hurts his leg. Chuck realizes he might not be rescued soon. So, he opens most of the packages. He finds useful items inside that help him live better. However, he does not open one package with pink angel wings painted on it.

While trying to start a fire, Chuck cuts his hand. In anger, he throws several objects. One of them is a Wilson volleyball. His bloody handprint lands on it. He then draws a face on the bloodstain. He names the ball "Wilson" and starts talking to it. Wilson becomes his only friend. Chuck knows that finding him will be very hard because the ocean is so big. He even pulls out his own tooth using a rock and an ice skate.

Four years later, Chuck looks very different. He has a long beard and messy hair. He has learned to live alone on the island. One day, a piece from a portable toilet washes ashore. Chuck uses it to build a raft. He successfully launches his raft past the waves. He takes Wilson, the unopened FedEx package, and his other things with him.

Chuck survives a big storm at sea. But after the storm, Wilson falls off the raft and floats away. Chuck tries to save Wilson but cannot. He is very sad to lose his only friend. Soon after, a cargo ship finds him and rescues him.

Four weeks later, Chuck is clean and back on the mainland. He learns that his family and friends thought he had died. He gets a hero's welcome party at the FedEx Headquarters in Memphis. There, he finds out that Kelly has gotten married and has a daughter. Kelly is too emotional to greet Chuck at the party.

One night, Chuck visits Kelly. They talk and share a loving moment. They both say they still love each other. But they realize Kelly cannot leave her new family. They say goodbye, and Chuck gives Kelly back the watch she gave him.

Chuck drives to Texas to return the angel-winged package. He finds no one home, so he leaves it at the door. He adds a note saying the package saved his life. He drives away and stops at a quiet crossroads. A woman in a pickup truck stops and tells him where each road goes. As she drives off, Chuck sees the two angel wings painted on her truck's tailgate. He looks at the roads, thinking about which way to go. Then, he notices the wind blowing back towards where the woman drove. He smiles and turns his vehicle in that direction.

Main Characters

Making the Movie

How the Idea Started

The idea for Cast Away came from actor Tom Hanks. In 2017, he shared how it began. He was reading an article about FedEx and realized how many planes fly across the Pacific Ocean every day. He wondered, "What if one of those planes crashed?"

Hanks wanted to explore what it would be like to live for four years with no hope. He imagined having no food, water, shelter, fire, or company. It took six years to bring this idea to life with writer William Broyles Jr. and director Robert Zemeckis.

Filming Locations and Challenges

The island of Monuriki, where much of the film was shot.

The movie was not filmed in the order of the story. Filming started on January 18, 1999. It stopped two months later. This break allowed Tom Hanks to change his appearance. He gained about 50 pounds (23 kg) before filming started. Then, during the break, he lost the weight and grew his hair and beard. This made him look like he had been on the island for years.

Filming started again on April 3, 2000, and finished the next month. Another four-month break happened before they filmed the scenes where Chuck returns home. During the year-long pause, director Zemeckis made another movie called What Lies Beneath with the same film crew.

Tom Hanks faced a real danger during filming. He got an infected cut on his leg and almost died. He had to go to a local hospital for surgery and stayed there for three days. Filming was stopped for three weeks so he could get better.

The island scenes were filmed on Monuriki. This is one of the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji. After the movie came out, the island became a popular place for tourists to visit. In the movie, Kelly says the island is "about 600 miles (966 km) south of the Cook Islands." However, there is no land between the southernmost Cook Islands and Antarctica.

The movie starts and ends in the same place. This is on the Arrington Ranch in Texas Panhandle, near the city of Canadian, Texas.

The Music of the Film

The movie's music was composed by Alan Silvestri. He won a Grammy Award for it in 2002. What's special about the music is how little there is. While Chuck is on the island, there is almost no background music or sounds of nature. This helps the audience feel how isolated and alone Chuck is.

Original music only starts when Chuck finally escapes the island. There is one Russian song heard at the beginning of the film. It's a traditional song called "Oh, My Field" ("Polyushko, Polye"). It was not composed by Silvestri and is not on the official soundtrack.

The official soundtrack CD is a collection of music from many films directed by Zemeckis and scored by Silvestri. The only song from Cast Away itself is the theme from the end credits.

FedEx's Role

Wilson the volleyball, Chuck's companion on the island.

FedEx helped a lot with the movie. They let the filmmakers use their buildings in Memphis, Los Angeles, and Moscow. They also provided airplanes, trucks, uniforms, and help with logistics. A team from FedEx watched over the production for more than two years.

The CEO of FedEx, Fred Smith, even appeared in the movie as himself. He was in the scene where Chuck is welcomed back home. This scene was filmed at FedEx's main facilities in Memphis, Tennessee.

At first, FedEx was worried about a story where one of their planes crashed. But they realized the overall story was positive. FedEx did not pay for their products to be shown in the movie. However, after the film's release, more people in Asia and Europe became aware of the FedEx brand.

Wilson the Volleyball

In the movie, Wilson the volleyball becomes Chuck Noland's only friend. Chuck treats Wilson like a real person. He talks to Wilson during his four years alone on the deserted island. The ball is named after its maker, Wilson Sporting Goods.

The character of Wilson was created by screenwriter William Broyles Jr.. To research for the film, he talked to survival experts. He then spent a week alone on a beach in the Gulf of California. He forced himself to find his own water, food, and shelter. During this time, a volleyball washed ashore. This gave him the idea for Chuck's silent companion. From a writing point of view, Wilson allowed Chuck to have conversations, which made the solitary situation more realistic.

It is believed that one of the original volleyball props was sold for $18,500 at an auction. It was bought by the former CEO of FedEx Office, Ken May. When the movie came out, Wilson Sporting Goods made a special volleyball. It had a copy of the bloody handprint face on it. It was sold for a short time and is still offered on the company's website.

Home Video Release

Cast Away was released on VHS and DVD on June 12, 2001. The DVD version was a special two-disc set. It included extra features like galleries, special effects videos, and interviews. This DVD became the fastest-selling DVD for 20th Century Fox at the time. It sold 1.8 million copies. It also earned $5.5 million in rentals, setting a new record.

See also

In Spanish: Náufrago para niños