Call of the wild

Saw the VCD a few months before with a 275 piso price tag on it. Had been planning to get myself a copy of the Sean Penn directorial job since I’ve read the indulgent article in Time magazine. In light of all my unsuccessful attempts to find a used copy of Jon Krakauer’s book. So, I was really tempted to buy the 275 piso-disc. But my unflinching bargain shopper’s instinct reasoned out that the price will still probably go down. 

Especially when the record store owners realize that not too many people will be interested in watching a whole movie about this typical American kid who after finishing college willingly abandoned a comfortable life, donated all of his savings to charity, headed out into the wilderness, and turned up dead somewhere in the Alaskan landscape. So last night, I visited my favorite lunch time record nook in this mall across the office and saw copies of Into the Wild VCD selling for 75 piso. 

Quite a long movie at 148 minutes. But a really good viewing experience. One is simply awed by the raw passion for the wild and new experiences that Emile Hirsch was able to portray as Christopher McCandless. Had a hard time though digesting some knotty lines from Penn’s script. The landscape shots were amazing and appeared to be bleeding out of the screen (not sure if it was intentional, or if there’s something wrong with my VCD copy – but I think the effect is further magnified by shots where people and their contrivances seem to fall out of frame). 

Eddie Vedder’s soundtrack brings to the fore all the pain, anguish and fear from the characters, and seems to work out its own process of transcending these emotions within the film. Memorable line from the movie: “Happiness is unreal if not shared”. McCandless has lived to the fullest one vital aspect of our existence: that of the “supertramp”, the solitary search for meaning and some of the basic truths about ourselves.