Into the Wild

You just graduated from college, abandoned all of your belongings, and donated your entire life savings to charity. Now you're going to Alaska to live in the wilderness. This is what Christopher McCandless decided to do following his graduation.

Based on a true story, Into the Wild follows Christopher on his journey to Alaska without any money or possessions. He gets rid of his real name and decides to rename himself Alexander Supertramp. He does this because he wants to get away from all civilization. He became frustrated with the people in his life. So he decided to submerge himself in wildlife. However, before he arrives in Alaska, he has to find a way to get there.

On his way to Alaska, Supertramp encounters a number of different people who all have different perspectives on life. All of these people play a part in changing Supertramp's life. Throughout most of the movie, I found it hard to like Supertramp. He is arrogant and somewhat of a know it all. He tries to lecture everyone on how everyone should live their lives--without boundaries.

Supertramp thought that everyone should live life to the fullest. Do whatever you want without worrying about how you are affecting other people. He thought that the way to find true happiness is to live independently without relying on any material items and losing yourself with nature.

Sure, we've all wanted to get away. There is something that sounds pleasant about getting away from everyone and everything in life. No stress and no expectations. Into the Wild is a life lesson on why depending on only yourself is not the best idea.

I watched this movie when I was living alone in my room last year. All three of my roommates had transferred by the end of the year and it was just me. I wasn't in the Alaskan wild like Alexander Supertramp, but I was living a life of solitude at the time. I wasn't talking to my family very much because, being a naive college student, I thought I had broken away. 

I finished this movie in my dorm room bed and cried a little. I'm going to make this clear--I am not a softie. I haven't cried in 10 months. This movie moved me more than any other movie I have seen. Maybe it's because it is based on a true story. Maybe it's because of the way I was treating my own life at the time. When people say there are movies that everyone must see, this should be included on that list. Not because it is extremely well done, but because of its message.

"The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun."
--Alexander Supertramp