Into the Wild film is on TV on Thursday 9pm on film4. (2007) Sean Penn's drama is based on the tragic true story of Chris McCandless (Emile Hirsch) who went to live in the Alaskan wilderness, seeking to re-engage with nature.
Into the Wild
- Thread starter TinkyPete
- Start date
-
Hey Guest, Early bird pricing on the Summer Moot (29th July - 10th August) available until April 6th, we'd love you to come. PLEASE CLICK HERE to early bird price and get more information.
you all know why! 
Chris McCandless, refused advice, no real training, no or poor equipment etc and he died that said, he may well have had mental health issues or was the idiot I suspect he really was.
He was young, naive , impressionable and there but for the grace of God could have been me, or I suspect many others on forums such as this. I'm loathe to call him an idiot.
Its a great shame in my view, had he been able to sit back a little and learn from someone who could show what he really needed to know, he could have found all the adventure he needed in life and still be around to tell the story .
Its a terrific film .
Its a great shame in my view, had he been able to sit back a little and learn from someone who could show what he really needed to know, he could have found all the adventure he needed in life and still be around to tell the story .
Its a terrific film .
i disagree, if he had never followed his dreams and lissened too much to advice he would just be sitting a home twiddleing his thums, probably in a monotonous job like many people.
yes he did get out of his depth but you have got to give him credit for what he did and for how long. people make mistakes all the time, whats to say if he had led a normall life he may not have died in a car crash or because of an illness.
pete
yes he did get out of his depth but you have got to give him credit for what he did and for how long. people make mistakes all the time, whats to say if he had led a normall life he may not have died in a car crash or because of an illness.
pete
The author of the book the film is based on thought the same as you, and wrote an article in a magazine saying just that. After researching deeper he wrote the book to redress his original comments. I suggest you have a read.
I've read the book and seen the Film.
How much is the truth we'll never know, but if they are half right he was just following his dreams and got it wrong.
He was no idiot and did things that a lot of people would love to do, but fear of the unknown stops them doing it ...
How much is the truth we'll never know, but if they are half right he was just following his dreams and got it wrong.
He was no idiot and did things that a lot of people would love to do, but fear of the unknown stops them doing it ...
I watched the film the other day and I think you have maybe missed it's point. Chris McCandless would probably to most of us have seemed like some sort an idiot, I think, though that the film-maker wanted to get across that it was Chris' concious choice to be reckless. He did what he wanted to do without waiting for permission and for all the right equipment and training to be in place before beginning. Death was always a possibility for him and I think he understood that. I think if he had made it, we would probably be putting his book on our Christmas lists by now.
I envy his lack of caution and avoidance of the ties of a conventional life. Had I met him I would have probably told him to get a haircut and a job!
Z
To be fair he was teaching himself "on the hoof" in the wilderness so he was learning from his day to day experience plus what he was studying in the books to keep himself alive. He died because he made a mistake, any one of us could have done the same thing.
Seconded... dispite the tragic ending (its already been mentioned) its a trully superb film.
Dispite his errors, he lived more than i dare-say most of us ever will.
Watch it if you can.
al.
The book is superb and really gets you into the how's and why's of chris' travels.
its an interesting story and off hand you would dismiss him as a bit of a nut, but if you look further there's really far more under the surface then first impressions.
its an interesting story and off hand you would dismiss him as a bit of a nut, but if you look further there's really far more under the surface then first impressions.
what i learned from watching the film,
Before eating anything found growing wild, check at least three reference books for correct identification, then check again, then wait, then check again, oh and leaving your hat on a river bank will make the river bigger when you try to get it back,
Before eating anything found growing wild, check at least three reference books for correct identification, then check again, then wait, then check again, oh and leaving your hat on a river bank will make the river bigger when you try to get it back,
I would like to point you to this article. It would appear that the accounts of the cause of Chris' death in both book and film are factually incorrect. I found the alternative a bit more sobering.
Z
ooh interesting read there zingmo, i did wonder about the poisoned plant thing myself, i just figured it was starvation due to the weight loss and the diary entry, i never really paid much mind to the poisoning thing.
shame about the moose he shot tho, that could have kept him alive a fair while longer had he been able to manage it properly.
shame about the moose he shot tho, that could have kept him alive a fair while longer had he been able to manage it properly.
At about the time Chris Mcandles died I was fresh out of university, no idea which direction to take my life and seriously considering just packing a rucksack and going walkabout. No bigger or better plan than that. As it turned out I found employment fairly soon after and have continued to earn a crust ever since, fitting the adventure part of my life into my annual leave. I've been able to mature and manage risk a lot better as a result but still find my way to far flung places and get all the excitement I need out of life .
I sympathise and identify with Mcandles a lot, I really could have found myself where he was mentally and physically. I think what he actually achieved is forgotten by many because of the fact he ultimately failed. How and why isn't that important to me. Did he eat a misidentified plant, did he just fail to plan sufficiently? Truth is we will never know for sure. I do feel that when we depart this mortal coil what will matter is not so much how long we lived but how we chose to live. He lived exactly as he chose to . How many of us can say that? I certainly can't.
I wish he'd been fortunate to come across the person who could have steered him enough to keep the guy alive , who he would allow to teach him but he clearly had an issue with father figures. We admire the likes of Guy Grieve and others who go out to live on their own for an Alaskan winter, possibly because he got back alive and was able to learn from his experiences. Had Mcandles got back ok , maybe he'd have made it a long term way of life. Maybe he'd have become a lawyer who goes into the woods at weekends, summited everest , written books , been admired by the likes of us?
I sympathise and identify with Mcandles a lot, I really could have found myself where he was mentally and physically. I think what he actually achieved is forgotten by many because of the fact he ultimately failed. How and why isn't that important to me. Did he eat a misidentified plant, did he just fail to plan sufficiently? Truth is we will never know for sure. I do feel that when we depart this mortal coil what will matter is not so much how long we lived but how we chose to live. He lived exactly as he chose to . How many of us can say that? I certainly can't.
I wish he'd been fortunate to come across the person who could have steered him enough to keep the guy alive , who he would allow to teach him but he clearly had an issue with father figures. We admire the likes of Guy Grieve and others who go out to live on their own for an Alaskan winter, possibly because he got back alive and was able to learn from his experiences. Had Mcandles got back ok , maybe he'd have made it a long term way of life. Maybe he'd have become a lawyer who goes into the woods at weekends, summited everest , written books , been admired by the likes of us?
Similar threads
