One can be thorough and verbose as to describing the plot and storyline of the new Sean Penn film, based on a true story, appropriately named Into the Wild, but I will purposely choose to do the opposite, in hope that what I write just may spark your interest enough to make you go see the film, and truly experience it for yourself, for I leave you with a word of caution that this film is indeed one of those films.
It seems that more and more every year we seem to forget what "cinema" truly means. And in saying that, I hope I\'m not being melodramatic or smitten or anything similar, but I truly have to say that there are too few films I see every year, out of my average of a hundred or so, that truly possess that feeling.
I should perhaps start with the minor fact that I was surprised by the credits and the absolute visual style of the fonts, colours, and lettering. It almost annoyed me! I thought it looked juvenile and almost like the work of an amateur, which shouldn\'t be much of a surprise as Mr. Penn does not have that much experience as a director (though as an actor, I find the statement made on him being one of the greatest actors of our time to hold true time and time again). But Into the Wild is far from being the work of an amateur: it is merely gritty (and I hold myself responsible in saying that gritty does not mean noir, or action, or dirty or grunge or violence or anything similar! Gritty means rough, maybe even somewhat flawed!). But moving on, the aforementioned flaw (which is, in my humble opinion, the only flaw of the film), is completely and inadvertently excusable. I mean, if all I can complain is of the typeset of the lettering, well then what else should I say? But what was left were scenes, scattered left and right, front to back, that contained that true feeling of cinema, with the wonder and awe intact.
Honestly? I\'m doing a horrible job as it is trying to convey what cinema is. The film was divided up into chapters, and it seemed very much jumbled, but it seems that through this format, there were so many scenes that visually screamed CINEMA! Words cannot describe the beauty, and I shall stop my poor attempt at doing so on this very line.
As the film finished and the credits rolled, I expected a thunderous applause, but what I got was a mumbling audience of which I was surprised to find in such an affluent and upscale neighborhood. But as the seconds ticked and the unappreciative marched out, the remnants of those who remained were something of shock and dismay: their faces glued to the screen, their eyes lost, and their minds wandering, trying to recoup from what they just saw. I can truly say that I was a part of that minority who felt the film was a gem, to say the least. It should come as no surprise, however, that Penn strung together such a meaningful film from a novel (by the same name), by Jon Krakauer.
And throughout the film, I was constantly beset by not only the cinematic value, the very images that made my stomach cringe in delight and my body sweat from nervousness and even a tinge of déjà vu (from similar experiences of brilliance from such masters as Kar Wai Wong, Martin Scorsese, and Abbas Kiarostami to name a radical few), but by the application of the feelings and emotions from the main character (played heartily by a young, talented, and natural Emile Hirsch). I was thoroughly applying the story to my own life, adding and subtracting the figures in my bank account, mapping out my own adventure, and multiplying and dividing the consequences that I too may face on my own venturing out Into the Wild. What could the future hold? Why wouldn\'t I do this?
There has been some disarray in comments as to the original story, and on the characters the main character meets, to which I have no complaint myself. I can admit that there was a love interest, and that segment of the film felt quite short, as I quietly-agreed to myself that an entire film could have been made from the dwindling moments of such virgin teenage courtship. But alas, maybe the film was about just that: the fleeting moments of life and what one brave soul did to capture them. In fear of giving away the ending, beginning, or any other fair portion of the film, all I can say is that the several months that the main character (and the true, real-life character, Christopher McCandless) felt, enjoyed, and cherished just may be more meaningful and well-received than the lifelong moments (years!) that you and I may feel during the course of our respective lives. And that certainly hurts! But if I have learned anything from the film, it just may be that it is never too late to change that hurtful truth; it is never too late to turn ones life around and feel and breathe and hope and love. And it is all about love, isn\'t it?
But in the end, the rub just may be that this was a true story of a brave soul wandering Into the Wild, and that such a true story was portrayed on film in such a manner that I can only assume, as being a poor soul who has never read the original work, held as true to the original as possible. Beautifully.
"Into the Wild" opens September 21, 2007 and is rated PG13. Drama. Directed by Sean Penn. Written by Sean Penn, John Krakauer (novel). Starring Catherine Keener, Emile Hirsch, Kristen Stewart, Marcia Gay Harden, Vince Vaughn, William Hurt, Hal Holbrook, Jena Malone, Brian Dierker.
