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Into the Wild (Sean Penn, 2007)
The tragic true-life story of Chris McCandless is brought to the screen by writer/producer/director Sean Penn in a meticulous production which not only honors the young man, but enables Penn to fly like the birds with all the flair of the high altitude jets' contrails. I'll try to explain that soon enough, but first off, this film presents, at least to me, Sean Penn's most heartfelt, poetic and personal depiction of his prowess as a filmmaker thus far. Penn basically takes a straightforward, yet heartbreaking story, and impressionistically makes it as complex as he possibly can. But, I believe that the result is so inclusive that most people won't even notice all the gymnastics he actually brought to the powerful story.
In the Spring of 1992, McCandless (who renamed himself Alexander Supertramp) made his way to the wilderness north of Fairbanks, Alaska. This was the culmination of a two-year journey where he rejected all the things which his rich, but unhappy family believed in. This journey is told in parallel lines which are made even more complex by Sean Penn's technique. Basically, one thread of the film follows Chris' story in Alaska, from the time he found the remote "Magic Bus" up through his fate. The other thread shows him graduating from college two years earlier and traveling across the country on his own personal odyssey to find the truth without ever resorting to communicate with his parents (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden) or his loving younger sister (Jena Malone).
Another way in which the film is told in multiple ways is that McCandless' diary sometimes tells the story, while at other times, his sister narrates their story, which not only includes the loss their parents feel after he disappears, but includes earlier episodes of family tension involving adultery and earlier expressions of disharmony amongst the family before Chris went "into the wild". On his journey, Chris comes across many interesting people who are also living an alternate lifestyle, and he also becomes a true adventurer. Some of the most spectacular scenes in the film, besides those in Alaska, involve his kayaking through the Grand Canyon without a permit or a helmet and his subsequent kayaking trip to the Sea of Cortez.
The contradiction which I find in the character is that he obviously rejects his parents' way of life, but he never honestly seems to reject people in general because he comes across far too many giving individuals who want to help him. He seems to have his sights set on a way to "punish" his parents, but his naivete leads him to shortsidedly neglect certain provisions to get himself out of a "no-win" situation. As the film gets closer to the end, Chris' "fellow travelers" reach out to him more and more, none more than the 80-ish Ron (Hal Holbrook), who is a kindred spirit and a truly worthy grandfather for the young man. Looking at things in hindsight, the saddest part of the movie is when Chris leaves Ron.
Basically, Penn uses every technique he can think of to tell this story. Besides using Eddie Vedder's personal songs, he includes plot-pertinent oldies such as "Going Up the Country" and "King of the Road". He also includes fake home movies, split screens, freeze frames, poetic shots of birds and high altitude jets, and they are all meant to show a young man's quest for freedom. Most of us yearn for and dream of getting away from it all, but Chris McCandless actually got literally away from it all, and this film is his memorial. I know that some people dislike Sean Penn because of his politics, but his artistry is evident all over this mostly-unassuming film which is chockful of individuality.
The tragic true-life story of Chris McCandless is brought to the screen by writer/producer/director Sean Penn in a meticulous production which not only honors the young man, but enables Penn to fly like the birds with all the flair of the high altitude jets' contrails. I'll try to explain that soon enough, but first off, this film presents, at least to me, Sean Penn's most heartfelt, poetic and personal depiction of his prowess as a filmmaker thus far. Penn basically takes a straightforward, yet heartbreaking story, and impressionistically makes it as complex as he possibly can. But, I believe that the result is so inclusive that most people won't even notice all the gymnastics he actually brought to the powerful story.
In the Spring of 1992, McCandless (who renamed himself Alexander Supertramp) made his way to the wilderness north of Fairbanks, Alaska. This was the culmination of a two-year journey where he rejected all the things which his rich, but unhappy family believed in. This journey is told in parallel lines which are made even more complex by Sean Penn's technique. Basically, one thread of the film follows Chris' story in Alaska, from the time he found the remote "Magic Bus" up through his fate. The other thread shows him graduating from college two years earlier and traveling across the country on his own personal odyssey to find the truth without ever resorting to communicate with his parents (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden) or his loving younger sister (Jena Malone).
Another way in which the film is told in multiple ways is that McCandless' diary sometimes tells the story, while at other times, his sister narrates their story, which not only includes the loss their parents feel after he disappears, but includes earlier episodes of family tension involving adultery and earlier expressions of disharmony amongst the family before Chris went "into the wild". On his journey, Chris comes across many interesting people who are also living an alternate lifestyle, and he also becomes a true adventurer. Some of the most spectacular scenes in the film, besides those in Alaska, involve his kayaking through the Grand Canyon without a permit or a helmet and his subsequent kayaking trip to the Sea of Cortez.
The contradiction which I find in the character is that he obviously rejects his parents' way of life, but he never honestly seems to reject people in general because he comes across far too many giving individuals who want to help him. He seems to have his sights set on a way to "punish" his parents, but his naivete leads him to shortsidedly neglect certain provisions to get himself out of a "no-win" situation. As the film gets closer to the end, Chris' "fellow travelers" reach out to him more and more, none more than the 80-ish Ron (Hal Holbrook), who is a kindred spirit and a truly worthy grandfather for the young man. Looking at things in hindsight, the saddest part of the movie is when Chris leaves Ron.
Basically, Penn uses every technique he can think of to tell this story. Besides using Eddie Vedder's personal songs, he includes plot-pertinent oldies such as "Going Up the Country" and "King of the Road". He also includes fake home movies, split screens, freeze frames, poetic shots of birds and high altitude jets, and they are all meant to show a young man's quest for freedom. Most of us yearn for and dream of getting away from it all, but Chris McCandless actually got literally away from it all, and this film is his memorial. I know that some people dislike Sean Penn because of his politics, but his artistry is evident all over this mostly-unassuming film which is chockful of individuality.