Into the Wild - Trailer

One of my favorite books is now a movie directed by Sean Penn. I look forward to watching it and am curious as to if it can match the haunting strength of the book that sticks with me still. I read so many books that though they affect me during and soon after the reading - the plots/themes/emotions - it soon fades with the pages turning of new books. That said, Krakauer's books don't have that affect on me. They stay with me. The true story of Into the Wild is fierce and is something I relate to. Chris McCandless's life, I feel, could be my own. Of course it can't be, it won't, but under different circumstances, different decisions made, yes, I think I could have followed in his footsteps, those tragic footsteps.

All of us, I would imagine, at one time or another, want to be free of responsibilities and strike out on our own in hopes of making a better life or, at least, find what our lives mean to ourselves and its relation to those around us. McCandless did that and I can't help but feel a little jealous of that strength of character he had to strike out into the great unknown, to be who he wanted to be, to feel life at its richest and most profound. Of course, he hurt many people (including himself) for doing such a thing - his family, friends, but he lived his life the way he wanted it led and I can't fault him for that. He found out what was around the next turn in the road, found out what was awaiting him around the next bend in the river, discovered what was over the next ridge in the snow dappled forest.