Into the Wild

Emile Hirsch, Jena Malone, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt, Brian Kierker, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn, Hal Holbrook

Dir. Sean Penn
Scr. Sean Penn (based on book of the same name by Jon Krakauer)

This review is going to be hard to write – I finished reading Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer the day before I saw this film. The book is absolutely brilliant and I was eager to see how it translated onto the screen. And I was pleasantly surprised to be presented with a film almost as good as the book itself – in large part, undoubtedly, due to Krakauer’s close involvement with the making of the film. However, unlike many who see this film, I knew everything that was going to happen. I was waiting for each revelation, each obstacle, each set-back, each triumph, and for the ending (THAT ending, which I will refrain from talking about here). So, can I truly write a review of JUST the movie? Probably not, but here goes.

Into the Wild tells the true story of Chris McCandless; a bright, talented, privileged young man who, for a variety of reasons, abandons the path which he is expected to take and instead sets off in 1990 on a two-year voyage of discovery – a discovery of place and truth and, ultimately, of himself. He becomes what one character calls a “leather tramp” – without a vehicle, often without money, without a place to stay, Chris renames himself Alexander Supertramp and hitches around America. His goal is Alaska – to truly live in the wild and leave behind the trappings of society. Without giving away too much, Into the Wild is both a tragic and beautiful tale of a man who had to leave everything behind in order to discover that “happiness is only real when shared”.

This film will bug some people – you’re not necessarily going to like Chris/Alex. But, in the end, you don’t have to – I think understanding him and perhaps sympathising with him is much more important. In the end, what he did may well have been foolhardy. And there’s no doubt he was just a little too influenced by Jack London and Thoreau. But to truly uncover who you are, well, that is something.

Penn has produced a beautiful movie – visually, Into the Wild is a treat. Whether it’s a desert landscape, the fierce rapids of a river, or snow-capped mountains, Penn has captured the vastness of America and made us understand a man’s desire to try to see and experience it all. Penn has also done an excellent job of adapting a complex story – although, in an endeavour to truly tell the whole story, the films does run to 140 minutes. Not a fatal length, as it was compelling throughout, but perhaps a little too long for most audiences. Penn also succeeds in, well, having some mighty cool friends – the original songs produced for this movie by Eddie Vedder are fantastic.

Penn also gets brilliant performances out of all of his actors – without exception, the cast is spot-on. Special mention must go to Keener (in my opinion, the best American actress working today), Hurt (as Chris’s/Alex’s father), and Holbrook who I suspect will get a few best supporting actor nominations come awards season. However, this movie really does rest on the shoulders of Hirsch (as Chris/Alex). This is one man’s story and Hirsch does an absolutely sublime job in this demanding role (so demanding, Hirsch had to shed 40 pounds to play Chris/Alex in parts of the film). Although not a complete unknown (he was in the awful teenage flick The Girl Next Door in 2004), Hirsch is enough of a fresh face to make this role his landmark one.

I really loved this film. It won’t capture everyone – I think my view might have been coloured by reading the book and knowing the story inside and out. But perhaps not. Either way, I recommend this film – it might annoy a little, but ultimately it is a fantastic story of a highly idealistic road-trip of discovery. Into the Wild is not trite or overly clichéd – it is, at its core, about a man looking for meaning. Isn’t that what we’re all looking for?

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Chris McCandless: Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth.