Wild

Your life will most likely determine whether or not you like this film, whether or not it moves you.

I read the book and was not sure how they were going to make such an introspective novel into a movie but they did a pretty good job. My group of friends had mixed reactions, some of us were deeply moved (myself included) some where wondering why we were...

I felt the way her story was portrayed in flashbacks was very effective and about the only way to tell this story. It can never be as deep as the emotions in the book and it had to skim over a lot but still, for me and others I was with it was very powerful.

On a superficial side note... I wish she had looked dirtier. Her hair and clothes always looked too clean for what she was doing with very minimal hygiene.

A wonderful performance from Reese Witherspoon anchors this very good film about a troubled young woman who embarks on a miles-long hike as a sort of personal therapy to deal with the downward spiral of her life in the wake of her mother's (Laura Dern) death. Witherspoon reminds everyone what a good actress she is; I haven't been this impressed by her as an actress since "Election" way back in 1999 (and that includes her overrated Oscar-winning performance in "Walk the Line"). And it's nice to see Laura Dern again, who's popped up here and there over the past many years but has mostly been absent from the movie scene. The movie's editor deftly integrates flashbacks of Dern and Witherspoon together with the character's hike through the wild, and avoids the monotony that usually plagues films when structured this way.

One of the minor miracles of "Wild" is how subtly it explores not just the trials and dangers one would encounter in such a hike, but specifically how those trials and dangers are heightened, or at least are of a different nature, for a woman. Only once in the film is it overtly addressed, but before that scene late in the film, the director and Witherspoon have already conveyed without words how perilous such an adventure could be for a young woman, for whom every encounter with a strange man carries with it the possibility of sexual predation, even if it doesn't materialize (which, the film acknowledges, in most cases it doesn't). At the same time, the film restores one's faith a little bit in humanity, suggesting that most people are decent and kind and willing to help, no strings attached.

Witherspoon and Dern were both justly Oscar nominated for their performances, and the gorgeous Pacific West scenery deserved an award of its own.

Grade: A

No secret that I love one-man survival films (although this wasn't that type of "survival" film). Still, despite very good reviews, there was always a severe lack of hype and passion it seemed (certainly here). Maybe that's why I was so surprised. Usually this kind of heavy-edited, heavy- flashback-intercutting-with-main-story film alienates me emotionally for that reason. Too much back and forth. I had the same problem with 2007's Into The Wild, which so often prevented me from getting too involved with it. For some reason I didn't have that problem here. The actual story, as well as the dramatic ticks in the flashbacks and even in the present, aren't anything we haven't seen before dozens of times. However, the film really managed work despite that. The editing I found to enhance the film immensely, and the specific style of the intercutting with her memories managed to make the film more powerful.

I like Witherspoon just fine in Walk The Line, but it was all mostly surface-level. She was fun, but any lasting impact? Not at all. She's truly fantastic here, and she will get a very deserved nomination tomorrow. Now, everyone knows how much I'd been rooting for Laura Dern for a nomination. I hadn't seen it, but she's one of my favorite actresses. But so many reports of her role being super small, almost a cameo. Her role technically is super small, less than 10 minutes for sure, but the relationship between her and Witherspoon is the central relationship at the core here. Dern's presence is felt throughout to an incredible degree. And she really does have a meaty role for such short screen time. It reminds me of Jessica Chastain in The tree Of Life and also to Patricia Arquette in Boyhood, perfect depiction of that feeling of compassion and motherly love that is eternal. Dern is one of those actors that can move me with so little, so I don't think this was at all anything difficult for her, but either way, she manages to become such an undeniable, powerful part of the film. The editing is part of the reason that central relationship works, but the scenes Dern gets to convey her entire character are flawlessly acted and, so beautifully ethereal. I had feared for a while there that it would be such a small role she'd make no lasting impact, but of course she'd make an impact. It's Laura Dern after all.

I am the daughter of a mother who recently passed away from lung cancer. She never smoked, like the protagonist mother. I cried many times during this movie. It made me think a lot because like the lead character, i often ruminate over the past; i have a lot of flashbacks and memories of my mother keep replaying in my head., and the things she said to me will forever echo in my brain. In terms of the sex and the drug taking, i think Resse did very well in portraying the daughter who completely lost herself and the desire to live with the loss of her mother. I also grew up in a single household and my mother and I were always together, our identity are intertwined; it was us against the world. Losing our mother is like losing more than life itself, I am still finding myself lost and struggling to find meaning in life. It is a constant struggle to not give up and give into self destruction and I am very thankful that the protagonist captured this feeling very well.

Like the life of a lot of people, this movie is about the journey we take. Its not about the destination or achieving a particular purpose. It is deeply realistic, and i am glad it doesn't lecture or give a moral lesson on how we should be ,or a happy ending because we don't always get that in life. Life is ugly and it doesn't always end in happiness and things don't always happen for a reason good people do not always get a good ending and normal people can do bad things to themselves and to toh others due to pain brought on by unbearable grief. This movie inspires me to maybe run a marathon.

Walking, hiding and running are very meditative and its like a metaphor for life, no matter what happened, all we can do is keep walking.

This was a great movie and exactly what I needed! I know from now on to not listen to most of the reviews on here at all. They are the opposite of good!? This was along the lines of Into The Wild, not as good but not bad at all and worth watching. Well done! This could be called a chick flick for real women who want substance, Strength and encouragement from the female in the role. When the world gets to much and is sucking your life away- Get the heck out and walk, climb a mountain , ride a horse ! Push the boundaries of what you think you are capable of and learn! I cried , it was good. I didn't know anything about it until I watched it. I have been coming to IMDb to pick movies with good ratings and people giving good reviews. Only to be disappointed time and again. If you like the Idea of the film , you will likely enjoy it as much as I did.