I too love the movie. What got me about the real story is that if he had only walked a short distance down river, he could have crossed and made it out alive. But because he didn't know the area and didn't take a map-he had no clue. :(
very true! you know what else I thought was poignant? The 'no socks' thing in the movie. Chris got told to wear socks at work, and in the first part of the movie where its showing his parents in college, his Dad isnt wearing socks either...cool. the way that Penn connected all this imagery together throughout the movie was so powerful.
"....and was very surprised to see that he didnt actually have a recipe for anus-ankle soup." - Big Ed
Starving to death he died happy?
From reading the book you get the distinct impression that he did not have a death wish and would not have been very happy about starving to death. There were help notes left at the bus begging for someone to help him out.
I don't think Chris was a happy man starving to death.
sean penn didnt tell me that, so how would i know?
it was slow, boring and too long. the wife and i were watching it and i thought, it must finish soon, and i checked the time left on the dvd player and it said over an hour to go, we both almost died.
it's not often i'm just waiting for a movie to finish.
I thought it was overrated crap. I got half way through and had to stop it. The lead actor wasn't good enough to carry the film, imo. I might torture myself and try to watch the end this weekend.
I think I am going to go get a breakfast sandwich. Maybe a bacon, egg, and cheese on a bagel.
Good call, playa. I think I'm going to grab something similar, and then come back and listen to The Whigs on my office iPod and get some work done on this glorious Friday afternoon.
Good call, playa. I think I'm going to grab something similar, and then come back and listen to The Whigs on my office iPod and get some work done on this glorious Friday afternoon.
I DEFINITELY need to get an office iPod! I listen to music through Pandora radio on my computer.
"I don't believe in PJ fans but I believe there is something, not too sure what." - Thoughts_Arrive
Oh yes? Are you off to Alaska??
It really makes you question how much we really get out of our day to day living, and our possessions doesnt it?
Not off to Alaska, but I am leaving my job... without knowing the path ahead.
'We're learning songs for baby Jesus' birthday. His mum and dad were Merry and Joseph. He had a bed made of clay and the three kings bought him Gold, Frankenstein and Merv as presents.'
it was slow, boring and too long. the wife and i were watching it and i thought, it must finish soon, and i checked the time left on the dvd player and it said over an hour to go, we both almost died.
it's not often i'm just waiting for a movie to finish.
Either you or ZiggyStar ever try to watch Lawrence of Arabia? Just out of curiosity?
One of the best movies ever, imho.
And it makes ITW look like an old short film.
[though, to be fair, it does have one thing ITW didn't have: an intermission. ]
If I was to smile and I held out my hand
If I opened it now would you not understand?
it was slow, boring and too long. the wife and i were watching it and i thought, it must finish soon, and i checked the time left on the dvd player and it said over an hour to go, we both almost died.
it's not often i'm just waiting for a movie to finish.
its interesting in the difference of opinions!!
For me, I could have kept watching it, even if it went for 3 hours! I was really into the fact that FINALLY i was watching Into The Wild (we are a bit slow here in Aus) and couldnt wait to see where they put the songs, as I have the CD soundtrack, and was curious what kind of scene they would set each track to.
And Emile Hirsch was GREAT as the lead too, really convincing performance and emotions, alot of screen time for a hot guy...who somewhat resembles Ed...if I squint a tad
"....and was very surprised to see that he didnt actually have a recipe for anus-ankle soup." - Big Ed
I saw the movie over the weekend and i loved it. sean penn should have won an oscar and emile hirsh also.....eddies music was perfect for the movie.....i couldn't stop crying either and than became obsessed with anything i could read about Alex Supertramp on the internet.
I saw the movie over the weekend and i loved it. sean penn should have won an oscar and emile hirsh also.....eddies music was perfect for the movie.....i couldn't stop crying either and than became obsessed with anything i could read about Alex Supertramp on the internet.
i agree! and what a great name eh? Supertramp!
"....and was very surprised to see that he didnt actually have a recipe for anus-ankle soup." - Big Ed
I don't know what you people were crying for. I respect alex's quest for freedom but he seemed to be a smart guy. book smart at least, not too smart in the common sense department.
To go into deep alaska without a proper map, inadequate footwear(until a stranger took pity) inadequate food supplies, no real idea how to preserve the meat that you kill, so on and so on, it seems to me his death was inevitable.
I don't know what you people were crying for. I respect alex's quest for freedom but he seemed to be a smart guy. book smart at least, not too smart in the common sense department.
To go into deep alaska without a proper map, inadequate footwear(until a stranger took pity) inadequate food supplies, no real idea how to preserve the meat that you kill, so on and so on, it seems to me his death was inevitable.
I can only speak for myself .....i cried b/c i don't think he wanted to die...he wanted to leave and couldn't cross the river....i cried b/c i couln't understand why he left his life...i cried b/c it was sad abd i'm a crybaby anyway
Saw the movie, have but haven't gotten to reading the book yet. Its a great movie in that it is moving. I for one get frustrated that he didn't just walk along the river bank. Or build a raft. He was what 20 miles away from people?
Anyway, regardless of what I think of his end, the movie engaged me, which is the sign of art. Hats off to Sean Penn and crew.
I can only speak for myself .....i cried b/c i don't think he wanted to die...he wanted to leave and couldn't cross the river....i cried b/c i couln't understand why he left his life...i cried b/c it was sad abd i'm a crybaby anyway
fair enough, I'm just saying he didn't have to die if only he prepared a little better.
I don't know what you people were crying for. I respect alex's quest for freedom but he seemed to be a smart guy. book smart at least, not too smart in the common sense department.
To go into deep alaska without a proper map, inadequate footwear(until a stranger took pity) inadequate food supplies, no real idea how to preserve the meat that you kill, so on and so on, it seems to me his death was inevitable.
I agree with the people who posted after you in response to this questions you posed. But also, in regard to why I was moved to tears was because of the following reasons........
that in his heart, he had a yearning for things in his life that went beyond the obvious things that a lot of people might look at and not understand why he wasn't at peace with his own things that were there for his taking...
that his parents were so lost, so changed by his leaving and so damn human that I couldn't help but think about all of the things that happen in life because of other things that happen first...even the unpeasant......usually the most unpleasant.........
and because he had a pure heart that is not something you find most of the time lately........
and in regard to this boy being intelligent, yeah, of course from what we are told in his regard, we know he was, but this is such a deep thing because this yearning went past even knowledge, common sense or experience and more than that, (for me) the pure dream he has of this made me think of the beauty of youth.
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute on The Creek......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
um? what did he find? besides the fact he didnt realize the river would unfreeze and that he cant read the herbology book.
dont get me wrong i loved the film, but i dont see what he found. i thought he died happy.
I think, perhaps, the poster referring to the what he found too late, was the part when he writes, "happiness most real when shared". That was huge I thought and had he made it, I bet he would have made a huge difference in this world due to his passions.
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute on The Creek......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
To anyone else who has seen this, did anyone else get this?
I thought the overwhelming point of this was that although his intentions in doing this were in the interest of self-actualization, not only was he being self-absorbed in his pursuits to the detriment of his loved ones, but further his final realization was really that the most important thing in life is human relationships -- man was not meant to be an isolated beast, he is a social animal.
Therefore, i find it a bit peculiar that someone took away a sense of hapiness from the end of this, as if Chris had somehow "found peace" and "died happy doing what he loved" ... didn't they go to great length to detail that he spent his last days miserable and feeling misguided, and that his death was exrutiating and essentialy in vain?
I cried a lot when he died.......
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute on The Creek......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
I don't get this whole 'he walked into his own death, he should've prepared a little better' shit. Granted, I haven't got the book. But according to the film, he just ate the wrong fucking plant. He mis-identified a plant. He was doing fine before that. Poor guy.
'We're learning songs for baby Jesus' birthday. His mum and dad were Merry and Joseph. He had a bed made of clay and the three kings bought him Gold, Frankenstein and Merv as presents.'
I don't get this whole 'he walked into his own death, he should've prepared a little better' shit. Granted, I haven't got the book. But according to the film, he just ate the wrong fucking plant. He mis-identified a plant. He was doing fine before that. Poor guy.
yeah, I didn't get the "death wish" thing either.
I thought he did a good job most of the time.
but I have a theory on back seat driving that I am always reminded of.......
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute on The Creek......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
but I have a theory on back seat driving that I am always reminded of.......
Good call. I wonder if any of us would've done what he did for something we believed in.
'We're learning songs for baby Jesus' birthday. His mum and dad were Merry and Joseph. He had a bed made of clay and the three kings bought him Gold, Frankenstein and Merv as presents.'
Good call. I wonder if any of us would've done what he did for something we believed in.
yeah, and although I have spoke about this on another thread and don't want to bore others with my passionate take on this again, I just will say that he may have died a very unfulfilled person to die without having have attempted this dream for all we know..........
Baby, You Wouldn't Last a Minute on The Creek......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
yeah, and although I have spoke about this on another thread and don't want to bore others with my passionate take on this again, I just will say that he may have died a very unfulfilled person to die without having have attempted this dream for all we know..........
Well most people who stay stuck in the corporate machine do just that, don't they; die unfulfilled.
'We're learning songs for baby Jesus' birthday. His mum and dad were Merry and Joseph. He had a bed made of clay and the three kings bought him Gold, Frankenstein and Merv as presents.'
I don't get this whole 'he walked into his own death, he should've prepared a little better' shit. Granted, I haven't got the book. But according to the film, he just ate the wrong fucking plant. He mis-identified a plant. He was doing fine before that. Poor guy.
well it's a bit different in the book. they talk to alaskans about what you need to survive in alaska, equipment and experience wise, and many of them thought that they way that alex approached his time in alaska was as if he had no intentions of ever leaving, or surviving very long. And the only reason that he ate the plant was because he was basically on the verge of dying from starvation. had he been able to kill game or id better options for food he wouldnt have been forced to eat those plants. I agree with you though, I don't think he went there thinking he would die there... but at the same time when he went, I don't think he really cared if he did. Him realizing that he did in fact enjoy human company while out there is what truly makes it sad. That damn river... anyways read the book if you haven't!!!!!!!!!!!! in my opinion it's 10x better than this amazing movie.
Further back and forth a wave will break on me, today...
I don't get this whole 'he walked into his own death, he should've prepared a little better' shit. Granted, I haven't got the book. But according to the film, he just ate the wrong fucking plant. He mis-identified a plant. He was doing fine before that. Poor guy.
also.
there is some discussion now that he may not even have misidentified the whole wild potato\ sweet pea ... actually it seems almost certain. I have read this various places, but from wikipedia, here is a summary:
Biographer Jon Krakauer suggests two factors may have contributed to McCandless's death in August, 1992. First, he was running the risk of starvation due to increased activity, compared with the leanness of the game he was hunting. [4] However, Krakauer insists starvation was not, as McCandless' death certificate states, the primary cause of death. Initially, Krakauer claimed McCandless might have ingested toxic seeds (Hedysarum alpinum). However, extensive laboratory testing proves conclusively there was no alkaloid toxin present in McCandless' food supplies. In later editions of the book, therefore, Krakauer has speculated a fungus Rhizoctonia leguminicola could have grown on the seeds McCandless ate. However, there remains no evidence to support Krakauer's theory, and all forensic data suggests starvation.
Whatever the cause -- starvation, toxic plant, poisonous mold -- it does not detract from the trajedy inherent within this story.
I am not much impressed with all the detractors & critics of McCandless who argue the position that he was merely a fool and an inconsiderate snot for his preventable death. While he certainly was underprepared -- and i see how this is an affront to Alasaka natives -- what upholds his story as a tragedy remains the fact that Chris actually did come to recognize the importance of "happiness [...] shared". Dying utterly alone shortly after such a profound realization, certainly qualifies as "tragic", regardless on the self-imposed nature of the situation.
If I was to smile and I held out my hand
If I opened it now would you not understand?
Comments
it was slow, boring and too long. the wife and i were watching it and i thought, it must finish soon, and i checked the time left on the dvd player and it said over an hour to go, we both almost died.
it's not often i'm just waiting for a movie to finish.
I thought it was overrated crap. I got half way through and had to stop it. The lead actor wasn't good enough to carry the film, imo. I might torture myself and try to watch the end this weekend.
★ 2009 - Sydney, Brisbane, Auckland, Christchurch ★
★ 2011 - EV Newcastle, Melbourne 1, Melbourne 2 ★
Good call, playa. I think I'm going to grab something similar, and then come back and listen to The Whigs on my office iPod and get some work done on this glorious Friday afternoon.
I DEFINITELY need to get an office iPod! I listen to music through Pandora radio on my computer.
Not off to Alaska, but I am leaving my job... without knowing the path ahead.
- the great Sir Leo Harrison
Either you or ZiggyStar ever try to watch Lawrence of Arabia? Just out of curiosity?
One of the best movies ever, imho.
And it makes ITW look like an old short film.
[though, to be fair, it does have one thing ITW didn't have: an intermission.
If I opened it now would you not understand?
For me, I could have kept watching it, even if it went for 3 hours! I was really into the fact that FINALLY i was watching Into The Wild (we are a bit slow here in Aus) and couldnt wait to see where they put the songs, as I have the CD soundtrack, and was curious what kind of scene they would set each track to.
And Emile Hirsch was GREAT as the lead too, really convincing performance and emotions, alot of screen time for a hot guy...who somewhat resembles Ed...if I squint a tad
To go into deep alaska without a proper map, inadequate footwear(until a stranger took pity) inadequate food supplies, no real idea how to preserve the meat that you kill, so on and so on, it seems to me his death was inevitable.
Anyway, regardless of what I think of his end, the movie engaged me, which is the sign of art. Hats off to Sean Penn and crew.
fair enough, I'm just saying he didn't have to die if only he prepared a little better.
I agree with the people who posted after you in response to this questions you posed. But also, in regard to why I was moved to tears was because of the following reasons........
that in his heart, he had a yearning for things in his life that went beyond the obvious things that a lot of people might look at and not understand why he wasn't at peace with his own things that were there for his taking...
that his parents were so lost, so changed by his leaving and so damn human that I couldn't help but think about all of the things that happen in life because of other things that happen first...even the unpeasant......usually the most unpleasant.........
and because he had a pure heart that is not something you find most of the time lately........
and in regard to this boy being intelligent, yeah, of course from what we are told in his regard, we know he was, but this is such a deep thing because this yearning went past even knowledge, common sense or experience and more than that, (for me) the pure dream he has of this made me think of the beauty of youth.
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
I think, perhaps, the poster referring to the what he found too late, was the part when he writes, "happiness most real when shared". That was huge I thought and had he made it, I bet he would have made a huge difference in this world due to his passions.
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
I cried a lot when he died.......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
- the great Sir Leo Harrison
yeah, I didn't get the "death wish" thing either.
I thought he did a good job most of the time.
but I have a theory on back seat driving that I am always reminded of.......
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
Good call. I wonder if any of us would've done what he did for something we believed in.
- the great Sir Leo Harrison
yeah, and although I have spoke about this on another thread and don't want to bore others with my passionate take on this again, I just will say that he may have died a very unfulfilled person to die without having have attempted this dream for all we know..........
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
Well most people who stay stuck in the corporate machine do just that, don't they; die unfulfilled.
- the great Sir Leo Harrison
yeah, that's why it is so important to hold onto the things that make you really get fired up as you get older.
Together we will float like angels.........
In the moment that you left the room, the album started skipping, goodbye to beauty shared with the ones that you love.........
also.
there is some discussion now that he may not even have misidentified the whole wild potato\ sweet pea ... actually it seems almost certain. I have read this various places, but from wikipedia, here is a summary:
Whatever the cause -- starvation, toxic plant, poisonous mold -- it does not detract from the trajedy inherent within this story.
I am not much impressed with all the detractors & critics of McCandless who argue the position that he was merely a fool and an inconsiderate snot for his preventable death. While he certainly was underprepared -- and i see how this is an affront to Alasaka natives -- what upholds his story as a tragedy remains the fact that Chris actually did come to recognize the importance of "happiness [...] shared". Dying utterly alone shortly after such a profound realization, certainly qualifies as "tragic", regardless on the self-imposed nature of the situation.
If I opened it now would you not understand?