Into the Wild

Die Beziehung zu der Hauptfigur entwickelt sich nach und nach, durch die Enthüllung ihres ehemaligen Lebens in der dysfunktionalen Familie. Am Anfang kann die Beziehung kalt sein, vor allem wegen der übertriebenen radikalen Outsider-Ansichten und der Ablehnung der Konsumrealität. Diese kalte Einstellung gegenüber Chris habe ich aber als Zuschauer allmählich überwunden… Und am Ende habe ich geweint. Ein weiser und psychologisch ausgefeilter Film, der stolz darauf ist, dass er im Bereich der existenziellen Fragen engagiert ist. Und außerdem ist er schön. Sean Penn ist eine echte Persönlichkeit. Seine Gefühlsdarstellung von Los Angeles halte ich für die zweitbeste Szene des Films (die beste Szene ist das Ende mit dem großartigen Schnitt). (29.04.2008)

Eine solche Langeweile habe ich nicht erwartet. Die Verwandlung des Haupthelden war beeindruckend und die Musik, die ihn auf seiner Reise begleitet hat, war schön. Aber was nützt es, wenn ich ihm keinen einzigen tiefen Gedanken geglaubt habe, die in meinen Ohren nur wie leere Phrasen geklungen haben, und wenn ich mich schon nach einer Stunde sehr unangenehm gelangweilt habe. Das war seltsam, weil ich melancholische Filme mit einem ähnlich langsamen Tempo und einer nachdenklichen Stimmung eigentlich mag. Dieser wird aber sicherlich nicht dazugehören. (05.09.2015)

“The freedom and simple beauty is too good to pass up.” A dream come true for every viewer with the soul of an adventurer and traveller. I had long since grown out of radical rebellion against the system (after all, even Christopher did not despise the achievements of civilization – an abandoned bus, where he stretched out on a dusty mattress with gusto), but due to his family circumstances, I understood his motivation and somewhat envied his unrestrained travel. Sean Penn filmed it very well, with beautiful cinematography, breathtaking scenery and the likeable hippies Christopher met on his journey. And there aren't many musicians whose songs would fit better than Pearl Jam’s frontman Eddie Vedder, also a free-thinker, so I had no problem believing the lyrics. The criticism of the light construction of the screenplay vanished at the very end, when it was revealed that the story was based on the diary of a real character. An almost out of the blue great performance by Emil Hirsch. (07.03.2008)

An absolutely divine film in perhaps all possible and even impossible details. After all, how many times has anyone thought about their life and considered escaping into nature and living in a completely non-consumerist way, like in a preserve? This film is about a boy who gave it its fullest and opened the door for other people. Until then, Sean Penn was basically a great, but a bit strange actor for me. Now I have to say that he is also a genius filmmaker, because what he did with the actors cannot be described with words. I could feel the emotions from everyone, and the music really added a lot to that. Finally, after a long time, a film where the running time was not a problem for me, quite the opposite. I liked that even though the film could have been practically without dialogues, there is still something going on in it and there are still different people and different characters that the boy who ventured into nature meets. A film that evoked so many joyful, sad, positive, but also negative emotions in me like no other in a long time. (04.01.2013)

I understand that this story about a young guy embarking on his dream adventure (without thinking about the effect that will have on his family and the people he meets along the way) can have a strong impact and even inspire some people, but it didn’t affect me at all. Into the Wild is not the type of film that can captivate me immediately (or that could emotionally exhaust me), and whether it will leave me with something else, time will tell. Emile Hirsch handles de role well, but I couldn’t relate to the character due to his very nature, which prevented me from experiencing the film to the fullest. The strongest part for me wasn’t the ending, it was the cameo of Hal Holbrook, whom I found more sincere and believable than Chris’s pilgrimage. The songs that can be heard throughout the film are very fitting and generate a specific atmosphere. Edit: So, I thought about it overnight and I have to add the fourth star. (29.07.2008)