Into The Wild Movie Essay

As college professors, do you ever consider exploring the world? Christopher McCandless once stated, “The core of man's spirit comes from new experiences.” This quote resonates throughout the movie adaptation, Into the Wild. Based on a true story in the 1990’s, the film explores a man’s existence and the meaning of life. Although released in 2007, I discovered the movie three years ago through the internet. Instantly, it became my favorite movie. Into the Wild describes an eye-opening adventure, an influential message, and a story that I, and possibly others, can relate to. Into the Wild portrays Christopher McCandless, a recent college graduate, and his adventure throughout the American West. Christopher begins hiking in Lake Mead, Arizona. He then treks the Pacific Coast Trail where he meets a couple. A few months later he starts working as a contract harvester in South Dakota.

The outdoors fascinated me, and any adventure called my name. I form a connection to the film in a sense that I, like Christopher, have a passion to find myself and take risks. Adventure is out there, and I am going to seek it. The movie parallels Henry David Thoreau and his isolation in the wilderness. There is a distinct resemblance between McCandless and Thoreau. Movies with the same theme, such as Stand by Me, Cast Away, and Wild, also mirror similar ideas. Although some may disagree with McCandless’ decisions, I perceive them as accomplished dreams. Into the Wild details a young man’s odyssey and his battles with internal and external conflicts. Multifarious messages appear, but the one I take away most, is “Happiness only real when shared.” In other words, it means that what makes you happy isn’t entirely true until you inform people. Christopher wrote this quote in a book, shortly before he died. I hope others relate to the movie’s meaning, so they can also have a “Great Alaskan