Film review: Into The Wild.
The concept of freedom is a difficult one to grasp, let alone define.
Some would define it as not being persecuted for your beliefs, political, religious or otherwise. Some would define it as having all the money in the world. A cynic would say that absolute freedom is an unattainable fantasy, its definiton unknowable. An optimist would perhaps characterise freedom as happiness, an equally indefinable concept. Hell, some would settle for a day or two off work.
My best approximation is as follows: freedom as I see it is the opportunity to own your own destiny, within the limits of reason and morality.
Which, I admit, does not help much at all.
Christopher Johnson McCandless had his very own definition of freedom and he risked it all to attain it. In the process he lost his material possessions, his family, his identity, and, one could argue, his sanity. Even his life.
Sean Penn's introspective Into The Wild, based on John Krakauer's non-fiction novel of the same name, beautifully captures McCandless' journey into the heart of Alaska where he hopes to be able to escape the constant oppression of society and the all-devouring monster that is capitalism. The film has virtually no narrative; it is a succession of encounters and stories as seen through the eyes of McCandless, eyes clouded (or cleared?) by an all-encompassing and eventually suicidal need for freedom.
Emile Hirsch puts in a powerful performance as McCandless, exhibiting Christian Bale-like determination in his portrayal of the physicality of the role -going from clean cut college graduate to beefed up, adventurous hiker to starving, shaggy introvert- but it is director Sean Penn and DoP Eric Gautier who are the real stars of this film, beautifully capturing both McCandless' descent into madness/freedom ánd the extraordinary beauty of the landscapes the protagonist travels through. McCandless running with wild horses at sunset or kayaking down the Colorado river to the sound of Eddie Vedder's brooding score is simply stunning to behold.
An exceptional film of rare beauty.
A 90 out of 100.
Some would define it as not being persecuted for your beliefs, political, religious or otherwise. Some would define it as having all the money in the world. A cynic would say that absolute freedom is an unattainable fantasy, its definiton unknowable. An optimist would perhaps characterise freedom as happiness, an equally indefinable concept. Hell, some would settle for a day or two off work.
My best approximation is as follows: freedom as I see it is the opportunity to own your own destiny, within the limits of reason and morality.
Which, I admit, does not help much at all.
Christopher Johnson McCandless had his very own definition of freedom and he risked it all to attain it. In the process he lost his material possessions, his family, his identity, and, one could argue, his sanity. Even his life.
Sean Penn's introspective Into The Wild, based on John Krakauer's non-fiction novel of the same name, beautifully captures McCandless' journey into the heart of Alaska where he hopes to be able to escape the constant oppression of society and the all-devouring monster that is capitalism. The film has virtually no narrative; it is a succession of encounters and stories as seen through the eyes of McCandless, eyes clouded (or cleared?) by an all-encompassing and eventually suicidal need for freedom.
Emile Hirsch puts in a powerful performance as McCandless, exhibiting Christian Bale-like determination in his portrayal of the physicality of the role -going from clean cut college graduate to beefed up, adventurous hiker to starving, shaggy introvert- but it is director Sean Penn and DoP Eric Gautier who are the real stars of this film, beautifully capturing both McCandless' descent into madness/freedom ánd the extraordinary beauty of the landscapes the protagonist travels through. McCandless running with wild horses at sunset or kayaking down the Colorado river to the sound of Eddie Vedder's brooding score is simply stunning to behold.
An exceptional film of rare beauty.
A 90 out of 100.
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