“Into the Wild”


“No longer to be poisoned by civilization he flees, and walks alone upon the land to become lost into the wild.” Imagine giving away $25,000 to charity, leaving your family, abandoning your car, and burning the rest of the cash in your wallet and beginning a journey to Alaska. Well, that’s exactly what Chris McCandless did. “Into the Wild” starring Emile Hirsch is based on the true story of Chris McCandless. I’ll tell everyone more about the movie through the plot, the actors, and how the movie can affect everyone’s life.

The movie starts off with when he finally hitchhiked all the way to Alaska, which took 2 years. Throughout the movie they show how he got there and all his experiences. From hitchhiking, to stealing a kayak, jumping on trains, or just walking, he always seemed to see everything in a positive way. Its easy to tell that he loved being around nature considering he lived in an abandoned bus he found in Alaska and how he basically didn’t live in an actual home for 2 years. Some people probably thought it was a waste of money and time, but for a person like Chris (who calls himself Alexander Supertramp whilst on his adventure) there really wasn’t any other way he could’ve lived his life. Parts of the movie are narrated by his “sister”, Carine (played by Jena Malone) who describes what he was like, which really helps for watchers to understand why he was going on this immense adventure. Also in real life, Chris kept a journal of everything he did, which they sometimes read out of during the movie. It’s also easy to guess that every person who met Chris was definitely changed after being around him, which is portrayed amazingly throughout the movie by how well Emile Hirsch played him.

Along with Emile Hirsch and Jena Malone (recently seen in the new Hunger Games movie “Catching Fire), there is quite a fabulous cast surrounding these two. Actors and actresses like Vince Vaughn, Kristen Stewart, Marcia Gay Harden, Hal Holbrook, and even Zach Galifianakis gets a small bit. Also, Jim Gallien plays himself in this movie who was the actual person to spend time with Chris.The director was Sean Penn and the author of the book (also titled “Into the Wild”) was written by Jon Krakauer. I can honestly say I think everyone did an absolutely astonishing job depicting their roles as a real person who experienced being with Chris. “Into the Wild” really isn’t the most heard of movie or story, but it did win a few awards! Awards such as being nominated for the Academy Awards for best supporting male actor for Hal Holbrook and winning an Academy Award for best achievement in film editing. For the Golden Globes it was nominated for best original score and for the AFI movie awards it won movie of the year! Along with these achievements there are many, many more well deserved ones.

This movie made me laugh, cry, and really ponder on how people should really live their lives. It’s probably safe to say the whole story of Chris McCandless really changed my life just because it shows on how people should live during every moment and I think everyone should definitely watch this movie. The way Sean Penn shows this amazing story is truly mesmerizing. Seeing how little Chris had, yet how happy he was and just that he consistently went on doing what he wanted to do and all the while changing others lives makes him seem like an incredible person. For the book there’s a review on the back from St. Petersburg Times that states “A must for all travelers of the road and soul” which I think sums it up incredulously.

So if anyone is looking for a movie with awesome actors, life changing events and a heart wrenching story, I highly recommend “Into the Wild” which I would give a 10 out of 10 on any movie review. Although I’m not encouraging anyone to burn their money or run away from their family, I do think everyone should have a little part of them living the way Chris McCandless did. In the last words written down on August 18, 1992 by a brilliant man…”Happiness Only Real When Shared.”