My second favorite movie Tom Hanks has acted in. Very powerful and just an all around awesome movie that teaches kids (and adults) to never give up on your loved ones, and do whatever it takes to be with them. 5 stars forever.
Cast Away
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Is it age appropriate?
About our ratings -
Is it any good?
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Common Sense says
Tom Hanks' powerful, brutal and mature story.
Why We Rated This 
for Ages 13–15
What to watch out for
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Violence:
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Sex:
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Language:
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Consumerism:
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Drinking, drugs, & smoking:
What Parents Need to Know
This review of Cast Away was written by Nell Minow
Parents need to know that this movie has brief strong language, a very scary plane crash, a dead body, and scenes of peril (some bloody). The deprivation and losses may be very upsetting to some kids and teens. Noland considers suicide, and speaks of attempting it, which some people may also find disturbing.
Families Can Talk About
Talk to your kids about the media in their life. We have more tools and tips that can help
- Families can talk about what is left when we strip away the conventions and conveniences of our society. How do we decide what our priorities are, and what our values are? Compare this movie to other desert island sagas, from Lord of the Flies to The Admirable Crichton.
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More on Cast Away
What’s the Story?
Called to duty on Christmas Eve, Chuck Noland (Tom Hanks), a precise time-watcher who works for Federal Express, promises his girlfriend (Helen Hunt) that he'll be home for New Year's. But his plane crashes in the Pacific, and everyone else is killed. Chuck washes up on a deserted island. Suddenly, all he has is time. He expects to be rescued, and sorts the FedEx packages that wash up. When he finally realizes no one's coming, he gets to work, using items from the packages as survival tools. A volleyball, stained with his own blood, becomes a companion. But he leaves one package unopened as a symbol of his identity – the man who gets the packages delivered. Four years later, the side of a cabin bathroom washes ashore, and Noland has what he needs to create a sail. He knows the tides and the seasons well and plans an escape, knowing he'd rather die out on the ocean than stay on the island. What finally makes it possible for him to leave isn't what he relied on in his old life, but the hope he has learned on the island. Still, it is his sense of the press of time that it spurs him to action.
Is It Any Good?
Cast Away is a moving exploration of what happens when everything we hold on to is taken away from us. There may be crystal waters and azure skies, but this is no "Blue Lagoon" and he is no Brooke Shields. There is no music, and almost no dialogue. It is brutal and painful. For 45 minutes, we are alone on the island with Noland. He shreds his leg on coral and has to extract an abscessed tooth. Noland is an engaging character, and Hanks is undeniably one of the world's most engaging actors. But it is more impressive than involving and begins to seem more of an acting exercise than a saga about the triumph of the human spirit or the importance of love and family.
There are some moving and beautiful moments on the raft, especially the glimpse of a whale's eye peeking just above the water. But once he gets home, the movie falters. We know, though, that the world he left now seems strange to him and that it will take a long while for him to reorient himself and decide where he will go next. He has mastered the skill of spearing a fish and making a raft, but he has to learn a whole new set of survival skills back at home.
Movie Details
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox, Director: Robert Zemeckis
Run time: 143 minutes
Theatrical release: 12/22/2000, DVD release: 03/05/2002
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some intense images and action sequences
Run time: 143 minutes
Theatrical release: 12/22/2000, DVD release: 03/05/2002
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some intense images and action sequences
Our Members Say
See all 15 member reviews
Most Recent Reviews
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I rate this title on for age 11 and give it
- My highlights are:
WILSON!
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I rate this title on for age 6 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
- Inappropriate language
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I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
Okay, this is the last time...
I apologize. Apparently I can't post the name of another site on here. Just know that this movie really isn't that bad, it just may be frightening for some. Preview screening is recommended.
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I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
Here's the site...
Sorry this didn't work the first time:
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I rate this title iffy for age 13 and give it
- My concerns are:
- Excessive violence
A Severe but Engaging Drama...
CAST AWAY is a good movie. Tom Hanks is great, and the story is engaging. It is probably okay for most people 13+, but there are numerous intense scenes. Chuck, the main character, is stranded on an island after a severe plane crash. On the island several encounters (such as finding a decomposed body by the shore, cutting is leg on some coral, splitting his hand on wood) may be too brutal for some viewers (note: all of these scenes of injury contain blood). Language is some "s**t"s and "d**n"s. NOTE: I'm afraid I won't be able to mention these scenes in detail, but, for detailed analysis, please go to the following site:
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I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
WIIIIIIIIILSON!!!!
For those who havent seen this movie yet... Get your heads out of the sand and rent it. Better yet, buy it! I know, I know, how can you like a movie that only has 2 characters for 90% of the movie? and one is a coconut (wilson). Well you will, Tom Hanks is simply Briliant in this movie! Must have seen this movie 20 times. Never gets boring! Watching Hanks learn how to make due on a deserted island is very entertaining. Cant tell you too much about this as to give away plot. ONLY ITS A MUST RENT/OWN for all viewers. Beginning of movie is a little scarry, but is entirely necessary to show how he ends up on the island. Wilson should have gotten the oscar for best supporting actor!
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I rate this title on for age 13 and give it
Interesting
The coconut should have won best supporting actor. Excellent movie
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
great haertwrenching sad movie
defintly a chick flick love it
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I rate this title pause for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
I liked this movie the first time I saw it, but on second viewing it just about bored me to death. A well-made film, just not all that interesting. Also, why did Tom Hanks's character have to walk all the way up the mountain just to hang himself? That kind of bothered me!
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Good but Creepy.
This movie was a great movie but its kinda creepy. The body found on the island and the airplane crash is graphic. Wait till your kids are pre-teens to see it.
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
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I rate this title on for age 0 and give it
Great movie that teaches children the importance of survival
My kids loved this movie. They were very interested in how he was going to survive and get off the island. Yes, there were a few brief disturbing scenes. However, they did not last long. Overwhelmingly, the movie captured my kids attention a lot more than I thought it could. They were trying to figure out what they would do and how they would handle this type of a situation.
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Ratings at a Glance
| 75% | of parents say it's too violent |
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