William Hurt Movie:

		List Price: $39.99		Label: Paramount Home Entertainment Salesrank: 13642 Released: March 4, 2008
		Our Price: $2.89
		Used Price: $2.95
		MPAA Rating: R (Restricted) Media: HD DVD

Editorial Review:
This is the true story of Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch). Freshly graduated from college with a promising future ahead, McCandless instead walked out of his privileged life and into the wild in search of adventure. What happened to him on the way transformed this young wanderer into an enduring symbol for countless people -- a fearless risk-taker who wrestled with the precarious balance between man and nature.

Description of Into The Wild [HD DVD]:
A superb cast and an even-handed treatment of a true story buoy Into the Wild, Sean Penn's screen adaptation of Jon Krakauer's bestselling book. Emile Hirsch stars as Christopher McCandless, scion of a prosperous but troubled family who, after graduating from Atlanta's Emory University in the early 1990s, decides to chuck it all and become a self-styled "aesthetic voyager" in search of "ultimate freedom." He certainly doesn't do it halfway: after donating his substantial savings account to charity and literally torching the rest of his cash, McCandless changes his name (to "Alexander Supertramp"), abandons his family (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden as his bickering, clueless parents and Jena Malone as his baffled but loving sister, who relates much of the backstory in voice-over), and hits the road, bound for the Alaskan bush and determined not to be found. For the next two years he lives the life of a vagabond, working a few odd jobs, kayaking through the Grand Canyon into Mexico, landing on L.A.'s Skid Row, and turning his back on everyone who tried to befriends him (including Catherine Keener and Brian Dierker as two kindly, middle-aged hippies and Hal Holbrook in a deeply affecting performance as an old widower who tries to take "Alex" under his wing). Penn, who directed and wrote the screenplay, alternates these interludes with scenes depicting McCandless' Alaskan idyll--which soon turns out be not so idyllic after all. Settling into an abandoned school bus, he manages to sustain himself for a while, shooting small game (and one very large moose), reading, and recording his existential musings on paper. But when the harsh realities of life in the wilderness set in, our boy finds himself well out of his depth, not just ill-prepared for the rigors of day to day survival but realizing the importance of the very thing he wanted to escape--namely, human relationships. It'd be easy to either idealize McCandless as a genuinely free spirit, unencumbered by the societal strictures that tie the rest of us down, or else dismiss him as a hopelessly callow naïf, a fool whose disdain for practical realities ultimately doomed him. Into the Wild does neither, for the most part telling the tale with an admirable lack of cheap sentiment and leaving us to decide for ourselves. --Sam Graham

Into The Wild [HD DVD] Reviews:
Excellent, taken with a grain of salt
2009-12-24 - "Into the Wild", based on a true story, is a fine film with some fundamental flaws. Christopher Johnson McCandless, leaves a comfortable environment to live on his own and to seek his own destiny. He wanders through South Dakota, Arizona and California before eventually finding Alaska, where everything changes.

Sean Penn's film is often heart-wrenching but it dwells too much on platitudes. Added to that, Christopher seems unusually too well-equipped for the realties of the harsh life portrayed. He gets into some scrapes, mischief and trouble but often comes out looking better than he has any right to do. That said, "Into the Wild" is worth viewing for one main reason...the gratifying performance of Emile Hirsch. This young actor is terrific and keeps the viewer's eye on him all the time. I can't think of another actor who is better suited for this role and I recommend "Into the Wild" for this performance alone.

I was very surprised that I liked this movie; a solid movie
2009-12-17 - 1. I read this book many moons ago and frankly found it boring and kind of pointless; but that was a long time ago.

2. I generally hate "coming of age" movies because I find them overly self-indulgent and pointless as well.

3. And for various other reasons, I was expecting to dislike this movie but since I had it--> I gave it a go and was very very surprised and impressed with all involved in making this film. It was very well written, the acting was excellent, relationships between the various characters was awesome and most impressively--> the movie was not "preachy" nor did it have an overt axe to grind, one way or another. It was just a sad but poignant film about an unique and remarkable young man.

4. Highly recommended, even for the non "touchy / feely" type folks out there.

thought provoking for the right audience
2009-12-15 - I selected this book to read with a freshmen college pretech reading course. It is thought provoking and well written. Most of my students, however, felt it was at times confusing and other times boring. I think this book is more appealing to those over 20 years of age who may have shared some similar experiences as Chris McCandless. It is a challenging read with intense vocabulary. It is one of those books that has changed me and how I see life. Not sure my students were ready for a change.

Reality Drama
2009-12-14 - It is a sad story of a wasted young life while screening a natural beauty of America and her inhabitants, a 23-year-old main character inclusively.

My Indonesia-made DVD is of a good jacket and a low technical quality substantially diminishing a pleasure at viewing this reality drama.


Great service
2009-12-11 - Great movie, really love it. Such a sad ending though.... I'm glad i got it so soon, it was for a birthday present, thanks for the great service.