nytimes: review of Wild

[tiptoe]

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/03/mo...therspoon.html

Wild gets a good review, and I loved the concluding blurb:
“Wild” is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). Sex, swearing, drug use, blisters.

[Sevsa]

Read it this morning and also liked the addition of "blisters" as a reason for its R rating. Don't know if the reviewer is a hiker but he certainly gave me a smile with my coffee.

[Connie]

It is a powerful review:

Walking With Solitude, and Her Baggage
‘Wild’ Stars Reese Witherspoon

By A. O. SCOTT
DECEMBER 2, 2014

...even as it passes through some classically Augustinian moral territory. Before setting out on her trek, the author had been using heroin and cheating on her husband. She insists, however, that her goal is not redemption but self-acceptance, not a catalog of regrets but a clear view and welcoming embrace of experience in all its forms.

and,

No More Ms. Nice Gal
Reese Witherspoon Goes Against Type in ‘Wild’

By CARA BUCKLEY
OCTOBER 29, 2014

“We save ourselves,” Ms. Witherspoon said. “Every woman knows it. Every man knows it. You look up. Nobody’s coming to the rescue. It’s a universal story. But it’s revolutionary in the way that a woman is allowed to tell it.”


There are only "good reviews".

I kept following linked stories, and, downloaded film apps to find out where I might see "Wild".

[The Solemates]

book was terrible. she uses her mothers death and her desire to hike as an excuse for abandoning her family. will not support the movie.

[Just Bill]

Never read the book, not much interest.
Doubt I will see it on the big screen, but I rarely do that anyway.
I'm sure at some point it will be a Netflix or Redbox watch.

Admit it- we'll all end up watching it because at some point we'll be bored enough that interest in the outdoors will result in watching it. If nothing else the scenery will do it, even if you watch it on mute.

I'd pay full theater price to watch the Jennifer Pharr Davis movie, but as there isn't one, guess we'll settle for this.

[tiptoe]

There are lots of ways to control hiking fever in the dead of winter. One is to go hiking, of course, but for those of us who struggle with camping in chilly temps, there is always trip planning, dehydrating, the fine-tuning of gear, reading, and, yes, watching trail movies, most of which are unsatisfying in the way they portray the backpacking experience. But as Just Bill says, we will all get some little crumbs of pleasure from the scenery. I don't know if the reviewer is a hiker (http://www.nytimes.com/ref/movies/bio_scott.html), but he doesn't really need to be. He just needs to give readers a good idea of the aims of the movie and an evaluation of how well it succeeds. I will probably see this movie at some point.

[Coffee]

After watching the trailer I'm afraid that I may feel the same way about the movie as I did regarding the few chapters of the book I got through. Not to say it won't speak to some people but I'm not hiking the PCT with that background and mindset and cannot relate to it.

[RangerZ]

I'd pay full theater price to watch the Jennifer Pharr Davis movie, but as there isn't one, guess we'll settle for this.

That would be a "short", like in the old days of movies.

[Furlough]

I read the book. It was okay not best read I've read, but certainly nowhere near the worst read either. I do not go to many movies these, just not worth the price. I'll catch this when it makes it to TV.

[QHShowoman]

book was terrible. she uses her mothers death and her desire to hike as an excuse for abandoning her family. will not support the movie.

Strayed had no family of her own when she went to hike the PCT. Her mother had recently died of cancer; she was recently divorced from her husband and was recovering from drug addiction. The only family she had at the time was an adult brother and sister, who left Strayed to care for their dying mother on her own, as a 22 year old.

[Dogwood]

I welcome when a long distance backpacking trip becomes a vehicle for some to get clearer their direction in life, come to terms with themselves, and to possibly change some aspects of their lives. In short backpacking can be a way for people to find themselves. While this is true it is also a tired cliche of why a great many regularly backpack, backpack long distances, or for longer durations. There is a common misconception among many non backpackers non regular long distance hikers non backcountry outdoors people or for those who don't absorb themselves into Nature that people who backpack, especially for extended periods, are somehow running away from something that their lives are somehow fundamentally flawed somehow broken that they are going through a "transitional period." This movie will enforce that misconception.

[QHShowoman]

I saw this movie last week, as a sneak preview. I liked it more than I thought I would and felt that it was as true to the book as a 2 hour movie can be.

But, the movie was as much about hiking as it wasn't, if that makes sense. It isn't a documentary on the PCT nor a hiking how-to; it's a story of Strayed's journey to overcome her personal demons and deal with grief and loss as she hiked the PCT.

The parts of her book that I wished had made it into the movie were her encounters with Trail Angels she met along the way.

Reese Witherspoon did a great job playing Strayed and gave her a depth of character that doesn't necessarily come through when you read the book or hear Strayed speak in person (she spoke at conference I went to a couple of years ago). In fact, I think I might like Witherspoon's version of Strayed better than I like the real Strayed.

I think both hikers and non-hikers alike will enjoy the movie and it's not one that you need to "read the book" before seeing.

[Dogwood]

I would like to see a backpacking movie based on the lives of Jennifer Pharr Davis, Nimblewill Nomad, or possibly Andrew Skurka and not just focused on the ending results- the records, miles hiked, etc - but in context of the evolution of their character, integrity, and values through overcoming adversity.

[Dogwood]

Thanks for the run down QHShowoman particularly as you've read the book. Off topic, but how did you come about that name?

[imscotty]

I have not read the book, but I cannot wait to see this movie. This story seems to be about self reflection and personal growth, something to celebrate in an age when so many seem to be just sleepwalking through life.

It will be interesting to see what this movie does for the PCT. My prediction... the next two years will see a flood of newbies unprepared for the realities of a PCT hike. PCT completion rates may go down, but so what. Even a few days of hiking is good for the soul.

[Sailing_Faith]

Thanis, I am driving across the country again soon... California to NC (and FL, and back to CA!). I will get the book on tape and listen as I drive and hope to see the movie soon!

[2015 Lady Thru-Hiker]

I have read accounts of other people hikes to get an idea of what I should expect and prepare for. But I actually try not to read too many of these types of books though because I want this to be my journey through my eyes not someone else's, if that makes any sense to anyone else.

[QHShowoman]

Thanks for the run down QHShowoman particularly as you've read the book. Off topic, but how did you come about that name?

QH is for "quarter horse"

I used to ride and show quarter horses. Nothing fancy, just local stuff.

[Traveler]

I have not read the book, but I cannot wait to see this movie. This story seems to be about self reflection and personal growth, something to celebrate in an age when so many seem to be just sleepwalking through life.

It will be interesting to see what this movie does for the PCT. My prediction... the next two years will see a flood of newbies unprepared for the realities of a PCT hike. PCT completion rates may go down, but so what. Even a few days of hiking is good for the soul.

I doubt there will be any real measurable increase in hikers overall from this or the Bryson movie, perhaps a few will wander out. I would wager large backcountry equipment retailers (Cabella's Dicks, LL Bean, REI, EMS, etc.) have far more impact on the numbers of people who venture out to sample "the good life".

As for more people on the trail, I think its a good thing to have more advocates in this particular activity. We need trail maintainers, project support, advocacy help/leadership, and new people to become seasoned old people and pass on that information. We can only have those things if we have new people sit around the campfire.

[takethisbread]

I would like to see a backpacking movie based on the lives of Jennifer Pharr Davis, Nimblewill Nomad, or possibly Andrew Skurka and not just focused on the ending results- the records, miles hiked, etc - but in context of the evolution of their character, integrity, and values through overcoming adversity.

I would love movies on the subject, but not on the exceptional, as a movie about Andrew skurka would bore me to tears, I think wild and walk in the woods were successful is because the ordinary folks can see themselves in these scenarios. I hated wild , but that was mostly to do with I'm not a woman and I found the book melodramatic . Walk was a great book, but the guy is not a hiker , never mind a thruhiker.


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