Starring: Emile Hirsch (Lead), Brian Dierker, Hal Holbrook, Catherine Keener, Kristen Stewart, Vince Vaughn, William Hurt, and Marcia Gay Harden
Direction and Screenplay by: Sean Penn
Nominated for two Academy Awards in its year (Film Editing and Supporting Actor)
Based on the novel ‘Into the Wild’ by John Krakauer
‘Into the Wild’ tells the true story of Christopher McCandless, a young man who feels that he has been neglected by his parents. He decides that instead of going on to continue his education, he will donate his $25,000 college fund to charity, and eventually ditch his car, in order to explore the wild. The film takes you through the adventure of the people that Chris meets and the things that he learns.
I have not read the book; therefore, giving me no prior knowledge about the story of Christopher McCandless. I will check out the book sometime, and when I do, I’ll be sure to write a follow-up. With that being said, I have heard that this film is one of the cases where the film does the book the justice that it deserves.
Hal Holbrook at the 80th Academy Awards, where he was nominated for his performance in ‘Into the Wild’.
I have been a fan of Emile Hirsch’s work ever since seeing him in The Emperor’s Club (2002). He makes Christopher McCandless his own, and really wins you over with his character. On another acting note, why would they cast Kristen Stewart? In my opinion, she is one of the worst actors in the buisnes, and I can not understand the reasoning behind the decision to cast her. The rest of the extensive supporting cast are all very strong in their roles; however, the stand out performance was given by 82 year-old Hal Holbrook. Even at his advanced age, Holbrook manages to give arguably the best performance of his career. His character’s wisdom is visible through his amazing performance. I very rarely come to tears when watching movies, but Holbrook’s performance did make me shed a tear.
Director and Writer Sean Penn
While I am not a fan of Sean Penn as a person, there is no denying his genius both infront and behind the camera. ‘Into the WIld’ is no exception. ‘Into the Wild’ would have been a very difficult movie to direct, and Penn does an amazing job at doing so. My one complaint with Penn’s writing was the order that the story was told. Instead of it being told chronologically, you keep getting taken back from the beginning to the end. It was unnecessary to the story, and there was no benefit for the film to be told in this order.
The greatest accomplishment of ‘Into the WIld’ is that it seems real. This is something that can only be accomplished in cinema when everyone involved is passionate about the work that they are doing. Every part of the movie from the relationships to the props seemed relatable and human. This is something that many movies struggle to accomplish, but ‘Into the Wild’ manages to do it perfectly.
Overall, ‘Into the Wild’ is one of the “must sees” in 2013, and it’s a picture that I would recommend to just about everyone.
IMDb: 8.2/10 (#160 on the top 250)
Rotten Tomatoes: 82%
Metacritic: 73/100
Best Picture Movie Reviews: 84
Best Picture Movie Reviews 