ReNe: into the wild

Just watched the film Into the Wild, released 2007 and directed by Sean Penn. It was based on the 1996 book by Jon Krakauer about the travels and true story of Christopher McCandless. It's not terribly exciting and it has a bleak ending -- McCandless dies of starvation in the end -- but I found myself gradually drawn into the film.

Brief plot (Spoilers? What spoilers? It's not a thriller or mystery...)
McCandless was a top student and athlete. However, after graduation in June 1990, he decided to donate all $24,000 of his savings to a charity and hitchhiked all around the US, even kayaked down to Mexico, though his ultimate goal was always Alaska. He finally arrived in Fairbanks, Alaska in late April 1992, and lived in the wild until he died later in August the same year.

How many of us ever dreamt about doing what McCandless, or Alex as he called himself once he embarked on his final journey, did? It was an extremely ascetic decision, and it showed an extraordinary amount of conviction and courage. Or, it merely demonstrated his supreme naivety. I think it's a combination of both; he was smart and fit and had gone on similar adventures on a smaller scale before, but he could have been much better prepared.

I'm of two minds about McCandless' story. On one hand, I'm envious. To reach out and grab what you want, to do what you think is right, without worrying about things like the material race; that's something I have thought about. We're only given one short life on this planet, yet how many of us spend the best years of our lives working and worrying?

On the other hand, what he did, was overly confident and hubristic. As mentioned in this article, he has done similar adventures before and it was almost as if, since he survived previous adventures, he *could* do it again. (Rather than, what did I do wrong the last time and how can I avoid that the next time?) He did all that to discover himself, but well, having gone trekking before, I cannot imagine how he could simply go into Alaska for *months* with a 10-pound bag of rice for food. Apparently a lot of people have gone into Alaska with similar intentions of living out their ideals of 'living in the wild'. Negative reactions to his story (mostly from Alaskans and the park rangers) noted that it was simply stupid and selfish.

Still, is it so bad to be so idealistic, even to the point of callowness? Part of McCandless' actions stem from his wanderlust and restlessness; his travels were *for* himself. Is that so bad?

I'd say it was a good film, though it would not be to everyone's taste.

Stop the world, I want to get off.
-- Leo Bloom, The Producers