“There is a pleasure in the pathless woods, There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes, By the deep Sea, and music in its roar:
I love not Man the less, but Nature more, From these our interviews, in which I steal
From all I may be, or have been before, To mingle with the Universe, and feel
What I can ne’er express, yet cannot all conceal.”- Lord Byron
Hello,
Greetings again from the darkness …
Close your eyes. Let go. Unplug any contact with the world. Allow your body, your mind, the heart of a pure cathartic and satisfying emotion. Get carried by the sinuous and seductive charm of nature.
What if someone examined their own day-to-day life? Most of us would admit to leading a lifestyle that is systemised and orderly, doing the same thing you do every day. People get so accustomed to this style of life and satisfaction, that they never find the true meaning behind life. Chris McCandless in “Into The Wild” explains that, “So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future.”
A gruelling research on the true meaning of life: “Into The Wild” is a poignant road movie, sincere and passionate and rebellious, full of unconventional seasoned by a bursting strong spiritual reminiscences of a secular spirituality. The entire film is permeated by a deep and touching humanity. If there is one movie which one can watch a million times & still feel inspired every single time, then “Into the Wild” along with “The Shawshank Redemption” has to be there. Both are stories of eternal optimism of life & freedom of soul. The only difference between the two is that one is fictional while other is a true story.
The film grabs you, but you can’t really be sure why. It must have something to do with all of us carrying that buried desire to really find ourselves. Problem is, we are too caught up in living life every day to do something so selfish. This is a reflective, regretful, serious film about a young man swept away by his uncompromising choices. Sean Penn is able to give us a slow burn that keeps us warm inside for the whole adventurous experience McCandless goes through with outstanding results. Hirsch is able to give us a character who was non-fiction and step into his shoes without making it feel like it’s a biopic. This is a story about a man. He is not a musician, he’s not a scientist, he is simply a man on a journey, and that’s what we’re given.
It makes you look at nature with a far greater respect and circles back to the eras of hippies and free spirits taking in the gifts our earth has given us. Reminding us that it’s not about the money or the jobs, but the relationships we conjure on our roads less traveled, we are reminded as to what makes a life worth living. If this film doesn’t make you want to rethink your future, even a little bit, I’m not sure I believe you. With the help of spectacular performances by Marcia Gay Harden, Catherine Keener, and Vince Vaughn you are struck with an urge to leave your ordinary life behind for the hope you can get half as much as McCandless was able to get. I liked Hal Holbrook’s character, and many others in the film – seeing an 82-year-old man run and climb mountains is special. The interaction between people of different generations on something of an equal level was wonderful.
The lushness of the grasses and plains to the sheer pure white snows of mountain caps and Alaskan trails to fluidity of the great rivers, it all has a place. It’s a film about relationships and the value they carry whether good or bad and the experiences you will never forget. A testament of the adventurous nature of people and the never dying spirit we all possess and the sacrifices we choose to make for the sake of happiness and understanding.
This movie is not a sermon against “the man” and is not a movie about a hero. It is a movie about a young man that experienced more in two years than most do in their lifetimes and thus at the end of his life realises that the people he has met and left behind is what creates true happiness. “Happiness is only real if shared”: and that last look lifeless to the sky, perfectly framed by an extraordinary revival in the subject and the subsequent declaration of love of one who, aware of the danger, chose to love nature more than himself, this is an extraordinary visual poem of ancestral purity.
Into the Wild is not for the squeamish, or for the ones looking for light-hearted entertainment. It is a no-nonsense film about the struggle and determination of one man. Mammoth-sized, both in length and scope; this film is a riveting piece of cinematic achievement which will be looked upon as a classic in the years to come.
While the final 20 minutes are among the most difficult I personally have ever sat through in a cinema (I found it hard to breathe during one particular scene, openly weeping during others) this is a rewarding, potentially life-changing experience and a unique work from a major voice in American cinema. The very definition of “must-see”.
I am still shaken by the intensity of its crushingly moving climax, and I cannot help but feel indebted to the whole team behind this film because they lent their creativity and effort for a higher cause: making the world aware of an indomitable spirit, a real human being. A film then, about a real human life – a life worth celebrating with the reverence it deserves.
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