Ryan McNeil
When more than half of a movie depends solely on one actor’s performance, it’s a lot like walking up to a roulette table and placing a really big bet on black. Get the wrong actor, and you’re finished. Get the right actor, and you get to experience something special. With INTO THE WILD, director Sean Penn placed a rather large wager on actor Emile Hirsch, and the risky bet paid off big.
INTO THE WILD is based on the nonfiction book of the same name by Jon Krakauer. The story is that of Christopher McCandless (Hirsch), a young man just out of college, who leaves everything of his life behind. He donates his $24,000 savings to charity. He burns his social security card. He leaves his car abandoned off the side of the road. Inspired by the writings of Tolstoy, Thoreau, and Jack London, he turns his back on much of material society in his search for enlightenment…much to the anguish of his parents (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden), who haven’t the first clue where he has gone to, or why.
His journey leads him through South Dakota, Arizona, Mexico, and California, until his ambitions send him north to the wild of Alaska. Through much of his venture, he is blessed by the kindness of strangers. However, when he arrives in Alaska at the end of April 1992, he strikes out on his own. This was his goal all along, the oneness with nature he hoped to achieve, and it is the point where the story becomes the most powerful and poignant.
I got to my screening with moments to spare, and as such was forced to sit in the third row for the first time in years. In a way, I’m glad I did, since my entire field of vision was filled with forests, ice caps, rivers, mountains, sunsets, and canyons – using just about every colour I can think of. With many moments shot like something from a National Geographic film, director Sean Penn shows us the vast beauty of Christopher’s journey. Standing in direct contrast to the beauty of the great outdoors, is an early scene which brings the audience into Christopher’s mindset. At a dinner with his parents, the viewer can’t help but feel as disjointed and on-edge as Chris must feel in the face of his overbearing parents. The shots are all off-centre and close cropped, and every cut is a jarring one. Indeed, if I was at this dinner with these people, I might head out into the wild myself.
Emile Hirsch shines as Christopher McCandless. He looks like an actor you might cast if you wanted a younger-looking DiCaprio, and plays Chris in a way that you can understand why people want to help him. The innocence in his walk, the smile in his eyes, and his entire carefree manner will remind you of your brother, your best friend, or your son. He looks out to the horizon with tears in his eyes, as if he can’t believe where his life has taken him. There is a touch of narration that helps move the film, but for the most part, Hirsch only plays off himself – he doesn’t even get a volleyball to work with. In an adventure like this, the smallest mistakes can be costly – and indeed Chris makes more than one. He barely raises his voice, but Hirsch will make you feel every ounce of frustration in these life-changing moments.
The rest of the cast is mostly solid. Brian Dieker and Catherine Keener play Rainey and Jan, two carefree hippies who give Christopher his first boost, and feel like the parents he wishes he had, rather than the ones he got. Vince Vaughn feels miscast as Wayne, the South Dakota grain farmer who gives Christopher a job and imparts a whatever life wisdom he has. I kept waiting for him to finish a sentence with “You’re so money”. Vince can do drama, but he didn’t do much of it here. As Tracy, Kristen Stewart gives Christopher a bit of an object of affection, though she basically spends fifteen minutes doing little more than looking smitten. And finally there is Hal Holbrook, who is Ron – an older man who temporarily takes Christopher in, and gives him some real life wisdom…and receives some in return thanks to Christopher. In the case of all of these people, you can tell that Christopher McCandless is someone they won’t soon forget.
INTO THE WILD is about wanting more from life, and wanting to get back in touch with the world itself. The movie is remarkable – but it’s a difficult one to watch. There isn’t much grey area; you will either understand Christopher’s philosophy and be saddened by his fate, or you’ll find him a fool and shake your head at his decisions. Indeed, I was left wondering what Christopher McCandless would have made of the stores I had to pass on my walk home as I cut through one of Toronto’s pricier shopping districts. I can’t say I could ever flip materialism the finger, cut loose, and take off like Chris did…but the idealist in me would sure like to give it a try.
I caught a sneak preview of Into the Wild before it opened in theatres last week. I loved it. One of the best films I have seen all year, and I have seen a lot of good films this year.
I also watched The Girl Next Door over the weekend. Emile Hirsch has really transformed into a remarkable young actor from that film, through Alpha Dog and now in Into the Wild. I’m excited to see what he does next.