As usual, Zemeckis crafts the film beautifully, taking his time with each scene to create just the right tone, never worried about trying to sustain a more commercial sense of pace or action. The result is mind-bogglingly oppressive--we feel the overwhelming boredom and fear of Chuck's predicament. Yes, it's very slow (and a half hour could've been cut fairly easily), but at the same time the film's scale drives home the point beautifully. As does a lot of rather obvious (but effective) irony. Technically, the film is virtually flawless; the effects are astonishing (the plane crash sequence is terrifying) and the use of landscape and sound are fantastic. The script is insightful and unafraid to tackle very serious issues head on. And the performances are brilliant. Hunt is exceptionally good (no surprise), while Hanks transforms himself inside and out as the film progresses. His mental and physical struggles are powerfully moving, right up to the clever, provocative final sequence. With its rather difficult structure, slow pace and tough themes, the film is unlikely to be a huge hit. But it deserves to be.

"The most over-rated film of the year. Four years on an island and this man is unchanged ... give me some catharsis! And not over some lost volleyball with a face! How Hanks spends all that time next to nature and not become a different person is beyond me. And to imagine his girlfriend is not going to find another and figure him dead ... unimaginable. The whole point of the movie seems to be summed up in the line 'you never know what is going to be swept up on shore by the tide' is really banal." --David Ogden, Cincinnati 4.Jan.01.