Sometimes a movie leaves you spell bound, sometimes they arouse in you a feeling that rings true with your soul, sometimes they enthuse you to do something, and sometimes just make you happy. Into the wild does them all. The visuals, direction and acting is flawless. Narrative fantastic. Though the movie tends to oscillate more and more between the present moment and past, you still are gripped until the end. And for those who love wild and philosophy, this is just the right blend for you. Eddie Vedder's songs flow in the movie at every occasion. My personal favourite is 'Long Nights' that suits Chris's temperament just fine.
What Chris did, is what all of us dream to do someday, but breaking away, to live a life away from the family and friends, luxuries that money can buy, all the daily things familiar to you, all the mundane responsibilities and commitments that tie you down is nearly impossible. We all want to backpack, a run away into wilderness amidst the sparkling stream water , chirping birds and dewy grass, but nature is not just beautiful, it can be unmerciful, which Chris found out at his life's stake.
Some of the quotes that I love are:
Happiness is real only when shared
The sea's only gifts are harsh blows, and occasionally the chance to feel strong. Now I don't know much about the sea, but I do know that that's the way it is here. And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong but to feel strong. To measure yourself at least once. To find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions. Facing the blind death stone alone, with nothing to help you but your hands and your own head.
— Bear Meat by Primo Levi
The core of mans' spirit comes from new experiences.
There is a pleasure in the pathless woods;
There is a rapture on the lonely shore;
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but Nature more...
- Lord Byron
"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man's living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun."
— Chris McCandless
"If we admit that human life can be ruled by reason, then all possibility of life is destroyed."
— Chris McCandless
"Rather than Love, than Money, than Fame, give me Truth."
— Henry David Thoreau