Funboy
December 16th, 2012, 12:30 PM
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8a/Into-the-wild.jpg/220px-Into-the-wild.jpg
Anyone watched this?
This week I watched Into the Wild, I had heard very good things about the film, and had been on my list of ‘to-watch’ films for a very long time. It did not disappoint – the amazing panoramas of deserts and forests and rivers, the acting by Emile Hirsch and the incredible soundtrack by Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder all combined to create an epic movie which had me on the verge of tears at the end.
Emile Hirsch delivered a perfect performance as Christopher McCandless aka Alexander Supertramp. At various times he reminded me of Tom Hanks, Bill Hicks and Christian Bale. There are some scenes that are reminiscent of Cast Away, as Emile Hirsch is alone, in the wilderness, trying to forage and hunt to fend for himself – his improvements are shown incrementally, much like Tom Hanks’ character when he is fishing in Cast Away; and while there are no inspired Wilson conversations, there are a few instances where Emile Hirsch has conversations with himself playing himself and the roles of both his parents. The likeness to Christian Bale comes in the physical nature of the performance – while never reaching the extremes that Bale imposed on his frame for The Machinist, there are times when Emile Hirsch looked very frail and sickly. Throughout the film I saw shades of Bill Hicks in Emile Hirsch’s character – not only in appearance, with beard and wire-frame glasses, but also with the ideology he believed in, and the stubbornness with which he followed it. “Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness…give me truth.”
Christopher McCandless needed to be free, to get away from parents who sought after materialism and consumerism, to get away from the life they had planned for him – Harvard law – but despite his straight As and ability to get into that course, he instead donates the bulk of his college fund ($24,000) to Oxfam, burns some other money and goes on a personal odyssey to live in the wild of Alaska. He is single-minded in his determination to get there, and at times it can be selfish and grating. I felt sorry for the little sister he left behind. She is the co-narrator of the film, filling in stories of Christopher’s childhood and how life continued after he left. He needed to get away from his parents and their lies, but in his pursuit of truth and freedom, he can become somewhat arrogant and asocial.
On his journey to Alaska, he renames himself Alexander Supertramp and makes his way hitchhiking, walking, kayaking, and train-hopping. The story is divided into chapters: Birth, Adolescence, Manhood, Family, Gaining of Wisdom; and at each point there are various characters that fulfill the roles he was missing at home. He meets hippies, who act as surrogate parents; works for a ‘big brother’ character (Vince Vaughn) and receives hunting advice from a barely recognizable Zach Galifianakis; reunites with the hippies in ‘Family’ and has a very beautiful scene with an old man played by Hal Holbrook. Each of these people help him in his quest for freedom, but he is stubborn and blind and selfish to their kindness; while he maintains good relationships with them, and undoubtedly improves their lives while he is with them, much like in his treatment to his sister, he doesn’t appreciate them as he should.
The film is constructed well, with the story moving from his time in Alaska in his ‘Magic Bus’, his childhood, and his journey from one to the other. It is shot beautifully, from deserts to forests, from sunrises to sunsets, he runs with horses, kayaks down a river, marches through the desert and hunts through the forest. Again, I should mention that the soundtrack is amazing, adding to each scene. It is a moving film about a man who needed to find himself, believing that “the core of man’s spirit comes from new experiences” , but in his desire to remove himself from society, he ends up removing himself from everybody and realises too late that “happiness is only real, when shared.” I will be getting the book to see what the film adapted or left out; he is an immensely interesting character with an amazing story, and the film is well worth a watch. Quality stuff.
Anyone watched this?
This week I watched Into the Wild, I had heard very good things about the film, and had been on my list of ‘to-watch’ films for a very long time. It did not disappoint – the amazing panoramas of deserts and forests and rivers, the acting by Emile Hirsch and the incredible soundtrack by Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder all combined to create an epic movie which had me on the verge of tears at the end.
Emile Hirsch delivered a perfect performance as Christopher McCandless aka Alexander Supertramp. At various times he reminded me of Tom Hanks, Bill Hicks and Christian Bale. There are some scenes that are reminiscent of Cast Away, as Emile Hirsch is alone, in the wilderness, trying to forage and hunt to fend for himself – his improvements are shown incrementally, much like Tom Hanks’ character when he is fishing in Cast Away; and while there are no inspired Wilson conversations, there are a few instances where Emile Hirsch has conversations with himself playing himself and the roles of both his parents. The likeness to Christian Bale comes in the physical nature of the performance – while never reaching the extremes that Bale imposed on his frame for The Machinist, there are times when Emile Hirsch looked very frail and sickly. Throughout the film I saw shades of Bill Hicks in Emile Hirsch’s character – not only in appearance, with beard and wire-frame glasses, but also with the ideology he believed in, and the stubbornness with which he followed it. “Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness…give me truth.”
Christopher McCandless needed to be free, to get away from parents who sought after materialism and consumerism, to get away from the life they had planned for him – Harvard law – but despite his straight As and ability to get into that course, he instead donates the bulk of his college fund ($24,000) to Oxfam, burns some other money and goes on a personal odyssey to live in the wild of Alaska. He is single-minded in his determination to get there, and at times it can be selfish and grating. I felt sorry for the little sister he left behind. She is the co-narrator of the film, filling in stories of Christopher’s childhood and how life continued after he left. He needed to get away from his parents and their lies, but in his pursuit of truth and freedom, he can become somewhat arrogant and asocial.
On his journey to Alaska, he renames himself Alexander Supertramp and makes his way hitchhiking, walking, kayaking, and train-hopping. The story is divided into chapters: Birth, Adolescence, Manhood, Family, Gaining of Wisdom; and at each point there are various characters that fulfill the roles he was missing at home. He meets hippies, who act as surrogate parents; works for a ‘big brother’ character (Vince Vaughn) and receives hunting advice from a barely recognizable Zach Galifianakis; reunites with the hippies in ‘Family’ and has a very beautiful scene with an old man played by Hal Holbrook. Each of these people help him in his quest for freedom, but he is stubborn and blind and selfish to their kindness; while he maintains good relationships with them, and undoubtedly improves their lives while he is with them, much like in his treatment to his sister, he doesn’t appreciate them as he should.
The film is constructed well, with the story moving from his time in Alaska in his ‘Magic Bus’, his childhood, and his journey from one to the other. It is shot beautifully, from deserts to forests, from sunrises to sunsets, he runs with horses, kayaks down a river, marches through the desert and hunts through the forest. Again, I should mention that the soundtrack is amazing, adding to each scene. It is a moving film about a man who needed to find himself, believing that “the core of man’s spirit comes from new experiences” , but in his desire to remove himself from society, he ends up removing himself from everybody and realises too late that “happiness is only real, when shared.” I will be getting the book to see what the film adapted or left out; he is an immensely interesting character with an amazing story, and the film is well worth a watch. Quality stuff.