Into the Wild (the book)

yield2me

Ok so I just finished reading Into the Wild. I saw the movie when it first came out so at that point I hadn't read the book, which made me real excited about reading it...but, now that I have read it I must say that the movie is way better. It is usually the other way around when it comes to movies adapted from books but this book really disappointed me. I thought the writing in it was awful and there are huge sections of the book where the author compares himself and other explorers to Chris, which would have been fine but he just goes on and on and on. The entire book read like one large article and not a book at all. Anyway, I'm curious if anybody else thought the movie was better?

PureandEasy

Nope, I thought the book was better.

The movie was good, but if I were Penn, I would have taken it in a different direction, but that's just me

yield2me

PureandEasy wrote:

Nope, I thought the book was better.

The movie was good, but if I were Penn, I would have taken it in a different direction, but that's just me

I don't know, I thought Penn did a great job in making you really feel the environment that Chris was in. There were several scenes where Chris would be in the desert and I felt warm and when he was in Alaska you could feel the cold of the place. I didn't get that from the book at all. I thought his writing was pretty void of emotion, description and connection with the reader. The book to me seemed like a long segment on the nightly news where they told you the facts and that was pretty much it.

PureandEasy

I always like the book better than the movie, no matter what

I find myself pulling the book out regularly and just reading portions of it

just flip through and start reading

and to be fair, the author does acknowledge in the beginning that he inserts stories from other outdoor adventures

but I understand what you mean

TooMuchBlood

The book is straight-up, feature-length investigative reporting but includes Krakauer's colorful story on his adventures. Penn's movie is a fresh take on the book, bringing McCandless to life through the traveler's eyes, not through those who met him. They complement each other like few books and films do. I give each an "A."

Kilgore_Trout

i think penn did a better job making a hero out of an egocentric kid... he kindof glamorized the whole thing a lil too much for me... if not for vedder and hirsch i probably wouldnt have like the movie at all... both the book and the movie had some pretty noticeable flaws

Hawkshore

With the exception of Krakauer's comparison between himself and Chris, I thought the movie and the book translated about as close to one another as I have ever encountered.

stargirl69

I loved the film,traumatic as it was,been a while since the a film (particularly the last 15 minutes or so) has stayed with me for days afterwards.But was deeply dissapointed in the book.I havn't even finished it yet I got really bored with all the other comparible stories even although there was a pre-warning.Dont think it was particularly well written.I love most of Sean Penn's work though and Eddie's soundtrack just made the film even more poignent.

NeverNamed068

The movie was better because of Ed's music.

Then again, you could always pop the soundtrack in and read the book...

Mrs.Vedder78

PureandEasy wrote:

Nope, I thought the book was better.

Agreed, I thought that book was better too, probably because of the detail in the story.

I loved the movie, but I like the book better.

writersu

I liked the movie better but I was determined to follow the book just the same although I saw the movie before I read the book.

I respected Sean Penn's work a lot more after I began reading the book though because I saw how much he needed to develop in order to put it on film.

The book is good but it was a hard read for me because of all of the factual information that is hard to follow if you are not familar with the subjects that are covered.

I liked the movie better also because I really think that Emile Hershe (did I spell that right? I am in too much of a hurry to check on that--sorry) did a great job as Christopher McCandless. He's a cutie...........

EasyE

I reread the book with the soundtrack playing in my mind. Vedder's album doubles as a book companion and movie soundtrack.

In reading the book again, I also more clearly recalled several Pearl Jam songs that match McCandless's story. "Off He Goes" is one example. "Driftin" is in there. "Nothingman." The list goes on.

I was in no way surprised to hear Vedder say he wrote the Into the Wild songs in a matter of weeks. In so many ways, he's been writing these songs for his whole career.

ONCE DEVIDED

Im usually a reader of the book then watch the movie. but did it backwards because I couldnt get the book till much later.
loved the movie and enjoyed the book, it gave me more insights into the story of Chis. The book I found was much like an article or essay really, but I enjoyed the author trying to explain chris's mindspace with his own or others experiences.

yield2me

stargirl69 wrote:

I loved the film,traumatic as it was,been a while since the a film (particularly the last 15 minutes or so) has stayed with me for days afterwards.But was deeply dissapointed in the book.I havn't even finished it yet I got really bored with all the other comparible stories even although there was a pre-warning.Dont think it was particularly well written.I love most of Sean Penn's work though and Eddie's soundtrack just made the film even more poignent.

Completely agree with everything you said...the film really stuck with me too. It was the first time in a long time that after seeing a movie, I found myself thinking about it for weeks after. Several of my friends have said it really staid with them after seeing it too.

MarvelousMan

C'mon...if you had read the book without any idea of what the story was all about when it first came out 15 years ago, you would have thought the book was much better. Or even reading the book shortly before seeing the movie. You would have been impacted just as much.

This was the very reason I started a thread before the movie release asking everyone here if they had actually read the book and if not, read it first. Im just hoping this book wont be forgotton becuase of the film.

I loved the movie...but was not as impressed as I thought I would be. For this...I will now read the book for the 9th time this weekend.

writersu

MarvelousMan wrote:

C'mon...if you had read the book without any idea of what the story was all about when it first came out 15 years ago, you would have thought the book was much better. Or even reading the book shortly before seeing the movie. You would have been impacted just as much.

This was the very reason I started a thread before the movie release asking everyone here if they had actually read the book and if not, read it first. Im just hoping this book wont be forgotton becuase of the film.

I loved the movie...but was not as impressed as I thought I would be. For this...I will now read the book for the 9th time this weekend.

sorry. I will read the directions first from now on.........

MarvelousMan

Good...we learn something everyday. Now go read.

Riot_Mac

I loved the book and thought the movie was just as good. One problem I had with the book was the stories about Krakauer. I thought those went on a little too long. One of my favorite books of all time. The movie is up there too, definitely the best I have seen in a long time.

writersu

MarvelousMan wrote:

Good...we learn something everyday. Now go read.

reading makes me tired...........(sob)......

but I am trying to muster up the desire to finally read one of my Virginia Woolf books that I bought after I saw "The Hours" and got interested in her.

but hell, I am NOT flighty..........