Like life itself, Into the Wild is a wild and beautiful flower with some nasty thorns attached

Rating: 8/10 (5 June 2010)

The best stories are those that even the greatest novelists couldn't make up. Real life, the real world creates some incredible adventures led by incredible characters. In this film, we follow one of the most amazing true stories ever captured on film. Into the Wild is a very deep and engaging one-man trip through the unknown portions of the United States. Based off the best-seller written by John Krakauer, Into the Wild is about a man that gives up all his material possessions and life altogether in search of purpose, in search of happiness, and in search of a direction to head towards in his life. Written and directed by Sean Penn with a lot of love and detail, this movie is beautifully shot, beautifully edited, and even though the third act drags quite a bit, you'll remain hooked on Christopher McCandless' travels up until the bitter end.
In case you had not read the startling true story, Christopher McCandless was a very gifted athlete and student with high marks and an extremely bright future. But, spiritually, he was extremely lost; emotionally, he was empty. Upon this, he donates all his money to charity and runs away from his family, his college, everything he had worked for. Now, whatever your stance is on his decision-making, we can all agree he was clearly a man that was lost, and needed to be found. You can be unhappy for only so long before you decide to do something drastic. Some move to another city, some pursue a new career, some search for love. In his case, he chose to become one with nature. Like I said, you can question his common sense and decisions, but don't question his desire for something more. Sean Penn and John Krakeuer clearly admired the emotional strength and bravery of our main character, as they infused his story with a lot of love, a lot of content, and a lot of overall emotion.
The main core and best element in this film is the overall acting. While not one performance stood out, everyone did an exceptional job. Emile Hirsch does a spectacular job portraying a strong-willed yet spiritually lost man hellbent on achieving true happiness. The smaller roles (people Christopher meets during his journey) added charm to the overall flick, including Vince Vaughn, Kristen Stewart, Hal Halbrook, and Catherine Keener. The writing supported the acting, as not one line sounds forced or shoved upon, and it adds an added layer of realism to the already-true story.
The directing however is a bit of a mixed bag. Sean Penn really loved this story and definitely displayed it with the elongated running time, insistence on shooting every scene on location, and the artsy final moments; but sometimes the French-style directing was a bit too much. There are instances in which the characters look at the camera and make faces or pose, and that totally breaks down the fourth wall and throws you away from the main structure of the film. You realize it's a movie and not a story when the main character glares at the camera for a few split seconds. Then the final act, when the climax drags, hinders the overall quality of the movie. Approximately ten minutes could have been cut from the last third and it would have been fine.
Finally, we have the controversial element of morality. Sometimes, moral codes amongst each of us prevent us from sympathizing with the main character, leading to some issues. A recent example is Sex and the City's first movie's final act, which results in us totally losing sympathy for the main four (with the exception of one, but avoiding spoilers). Into the Wild also suffers from this. While we can clearly understand and see the frustrations of Christopher against the world we live in, his actions are heavily on the selfish side, despite what he's gone through.
Instead of seeing a man that has suffered through the childhood and teenage years and needed to escape everything, we see a person so closed-minded on his journey that he shuts off all the people that cared about him throughout his trip. All the offers of help he received, and he practically shuns them all (especially the final human encounter, in an especially gut-wrenching scene). Upon seeing this, the viewer knows how he is going to end up. And whether or not you'll feel sorry for him is entirely up to you, the witness to all his decisions.
Bottom Line: Enjoy the journey, even if the destination and bumps on the road is going to create some discussions and disagreeing points. Into the Wild is a wonderful film that is beautifully shot, despite the direction being misguided at some instances. Once you get past the questionable directing though, prepare for a visually stimulating trip chronicling the adventures of a man on a self-discovery expedition like nothing else seen before on film. While this movie will not convince you to do what he did, it will lead you to questions concerning fulfillment, love, faith, and happiness. Into the Wild is about a journey in search of answers, and despite it being a beautifully flawed (mildly) flick, it does lead to more questions. Great movie to emotionally digest, just do it slowly.
P.S. Where on earth is Eddie Vedder's Oscar for his musical contribution?