Into The Wild (2007)
Into The Wild (2007) 9/10
In 1992, Chris McCandless gives his life savings to charity, burns all of his identification, and begins hitchhiking across America, his ultimate goal being Alaska. This is the story of his life, an ode to nature and a powerful, almost heartbreaking tale of a young life wasted. We sense his yearning and can almost understand his rationality of abandoning civilization. Director Sean Penn obviously has a somewhat sympathetic view towards his subject matter. But there is also an underlying current of how irresponsible he is to desert his family, and how utterly foolish he is to embark of his journey to Alaska without proper equipment. McCandless is the ultimate conflicted hero, one whom we admire his unblemished idealism even as we deprecate his folly. But the film is as much about the process as it is the end point. Emile Hirsch puts in a strong performance in his portrayal of Chris, and he is supported by an excellent supporting cast. In many respects, it reminds me of Grizzly Man, Warner Herzog’s excellent documentary about a character who similarly yearned the solitude of nature. Into the Wild is the sort of movie that, unless it wins some major awards, has little popular appeal. People won’t pay to watch it, and it lacks the sort of edgy appeal to turn into a cult classic. It is a firmly arthouse film that few people will ever notice, but that is a great pity because Into The Wild represents filmmaking at its best.
More than anything, this is a film where the supporting characters, even if they have only a short screen time, make a big impression. The scene with Hal Holbrook ranks as one of the strongest scenes of the year- a powerful and touching scene that is just one of the many little touches that make this film a deeply personal and humanistic experience. As a director, Sean Penn has certainly matured and displays remarkable craft. He wisely refrains from too much directorial tricks and lets the strong script speak for itself. Into the Wild is a tour de force and has a firm spot in my top 10 of 2007.
“Emile Hirsch gives an intense and mesmerizing performance that lights up this drama and keeps it reverberating in our minds long after we have left the theater.”- Brussat
“But this is a serious, personal movie about what it is to be human, and what happens when we admire nature more than humanity: does it make us less than human, or do we fulfil and even transcend our humanity?”- Bradshaw
