This is not about "social criticism" at all

Rating: 9/10 (22 April 2013)

I do not think this movie is about criticizing society or the parents etc. It is "based" on a true story, not the story itself.
I see Christopher afraid/unsatisfied, because he wants to do something that is entirely his own, without the help of others or the continuous help of the towering figure of the genius father. A desire to be as independent as possible, not from civilization (he uses a gun to hunt), but from the people he knows. He wants to create his own society and his own self, and challenge both.
Yes, he is naive, but that's not a reason to criticize him. In my life I have seen most entrepreneurs and investors analyze all the risks before jumping into a new business/investment, and the vast majority of them fail, even in a protected environment, and they put others into risk as well. That is the nature of exploration in areas you have not lived before. Chris is not doing anything different than any daredevil, he just does it by himself, doesn't put others into immediate danger.
Chris wants to put things "under his belt", experiences that are his own, without the protective measures that others have already put in place. He knows this is not his natural terrain, yet he throws himself into it, with a childish enthusiasm. You know, sometimes it works. When the American rebels wanted to be independent from England, the vast majority of Europeans believed that they won't make it by themselves, without the protection and know-how of the king and Europe.
This is a very tender, beautiful and emotional story, and there's something about the acting, the cinematography, the plot, that kept me watching myself with admiration, even if I'm generally not interested about such stories or about Alaska. An excellent movie.