Into the Wild (2007)

After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.

Director:

Sean Penn

Writers:

Sean Penn (screenplay), Jon Krakauer (book)

Stars:

Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, Catherine Keener

Top 250 #161 | Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 18 wins & 43 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Emile Hirsch	...	Chris McCandless
Marcia Gay Harden	...	Billie McCandless
William Hurt	...	Walt McCandless
Jena Malone	...	Carine McCandless / Additional Narrator
Brian H. Dierker	...	Rainey (as Brian Dierker)
Catherine Keener	...	Jan Burres
Vince Vaughn	...	Wayne Westerberg
Kristen Stewart	...	Tracy Tatro
Hal Holbrook	...	Ron Franz
Jim Gallien	...	Himself
James O'Neill	...	Graduation Reader (as James J. O'Neill)
Malinda McCollum	...	Waitress
Paul Knauls	...	Building Manager
Zach Galifianakis	...	Kevin
Craig Mutsch	...	Wayne's Crew #1

Storyline

Based on a true story. After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandoned his possessions, gave his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhiked to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters who shape his life.

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Plot Keywords:

wilderness | alaska | charity | emory university | river rapids | 

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Taglines:

Your large adventure on Alaska

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Genres:

Adventure | Biography | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [jp]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Danish

Release Date:

21 September 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Hacia rutas salvajes

Filming Locations:

Anchorage, Alaska, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£196,994 (UK) (9 November 2007)

Gross:

$18,352,454 (USA) (21 March 2008)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Vantage, Art Linson Productions, Into the Wild

Technical Specs

Runtime:

148 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Daveigh Chase, Amber Heard and Evan Rachel Wood auditioned for the role of Tracy but lost to Kristen Stewart.

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Goofs

The Park Ranger's uniform in the Grand Canyon kayak scene is incorrect. The uniform colors of green and gray are for a National Park Service ranger. The patch on his arm appears to be for the National Park Service, but is the incorrect patch for the service. Also the badge he wears is the badge of the U.S. Forest Service.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Christopher McCandless: Mom! Mom! Help me.

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Crazy Credits

The opening title is shown as part of Chris's journal's writings.

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Connections

Featured in Getaway: Episode #17.9 (2008)
Clips shown during the announcement of the winner of a competition from the previous week.

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Soundtracks

"Picking Berries"
Written & Performed by Gustavo Santaolalla

User Reviews

Justice done.

The sensitivity with which Krakauer captured the essence of McCandless and his adventure is extended aptly to the movie format by Sean Penn. Even if one might not be able to appreciate the purpose for Alex's journey, I don't think anyone would be able to deny that Into the Wild is a sensitive and poignant cinematic experience. There are scenes in this movie that one will never be able to forget, particularly the ending sequence. This movie will easily pull its audience into a philosophical debate for the truth about who was right and wrong isn't easy to distinguish. Sean Penn certainly doesn't try to answer those questions, questions that McCandless' life left for his family and the rest of us. Penn does well to tread a delicate objective but not indifferent line. Certainly the best movie of this year and one of the best ever made. The story, the story itself is great.