Into The Wild

Into The Wild / 2008 Paramount Vantage / 148 Minutes / http://www.intothewild.com / http://www.paramountvantage.com /

Into The Wild is a film adaptation of the Jon Krakauer book that in turn details the story of Christopher McCandless, an individual struck with wanderlust that ultimately drove eir to set up shop in Alaska. Ultimately dying there, this story (and film) looks to probe McCandless’ soul to see what made eir tick. The film version of McCandless’ life was directed by Sean Penn, and has Emile Hirsch (Lords of Dogtown, The Girl Next Door, Alpha Dog, and The Emperor’s Club) act as the lead character. Before hitting shelves in DVD format, the theatrical cut of the film netted Penn and Paramount Vantage a number of awards – the American Film Institute tapped it as one of the best films of 2007, where the National Board of Review listed it as one of the top ten films of the year.

Couple that with two Academy Award Nominations (Best Supporting Actor and Best Film Editing), and individuals should be fairly confident that they are purchasing a solid movie. A post-Pearl Jam Eddie Vedder lends music to the film; where individuals may be curious how someone rooted in the grunge and post-grunge scenes could conceivably hope to capture the emotional intensity of an individual that is having an existential crisis. The reason why Vedder’s music fits so well in the film is because Vedder has had a soul searching of eir own, and has came forth with something that is much more folk-oriented and mature than eir previous contributions to music. The additional features on the second disc of this 2-disc special edition are obviously incomplete due to McCandless’s death, but do provide viewers with two hard-to-find extras.

These extras are the full theatrical trailer for “Into The Wild”, along with two featurettes – “The Story, The Characters” and “The Experience”. “The Story, The Characters” provides viewers with interviews with Sean Penn, Jon Krakauer, and other actors integral to the film, while “The Experience” delves into the intricacies of creating Into The Wild. These theee features are enough to merit the purchase of the special edition over the standard edition. While the story and film is hard-hitting either way, individuals will gain even more of an insight if they watch both of the featurettes. Into The Wild was one of the best films of 2007, and it should be the next DVD that individuals add to their collection. Give the film a go.

Rating: 7.5/10