Into the Wild on Blu-ray Disc Review
By Brandon A. DuHamel
The Film
Into the Wild is Sean Penn's adaptation of author John Krakauer's best-selling novel chronicling the true story of Chris McCandless (Emile Hirsch), a college graduate who "dropped out" of society to embark on a journey across the country that would eventually lead him to the Alaskan wilderness and his ultimate fate.
Penn's film is quiet and contemplative, showing true reverence for nature and the mythic U.S. ideal of rugged individualism. Following McCandless' journey, during which he adopted the name "Alex Supertramp," Penn opts for long, meditative scenes; those true-to-life moments that Hollywood rarely takes the time to slow down and capture. This two-and-a-half-hour long film is not for those with short attention spans. There is great attention paid to detail; Penn takes the long way around getting to the point. It can sometimes feel a bit too slow, too conscious of its own agenda.
The strong points of
Into the Wild, surprisingly enough, are not McCandless' self-exploration -- although Hirsch does put in a rather strong performance, especially at the end when he finally realizes his fate. No, the strength of
Into the Wild lies in the quaint performances from the supporting cast members, like Vince Vaughn as Wayne Westerberg, a South Dakota farmer that McCandless works with for a while and earns enough pay to finance most of his journey. Also making
Into the Wild a worthy watch is the superb cinematography of Eric Gautier, capturing the landscape of North America and the gloominess at the root of McCandless' listless wanderings.
I don't believe
Into the Wild is absolutely worthy of the endless praise it has received. Sean Penn and John Krakauer together seemed to have missed one crucial point about Chris McCandless' journey, and that is his foolhardy efforts at rebelling against what he saw as the middle-class suppression of his family led to him paying the ultimate sacrifice. Penn glorified the journey, much like those who read
On the Road, but miss the the self-destruction in it.
For an alternate take on this film see our theatrical review of
Into The Wild.
The Picture
Into the Wild's palette is purposely subdued with a tinge of blue and grey in the many outdoor scenes and an overemphasis of warm, earth tones, ironically, in the indoor scenes. It is not a film that has a look that will dazzle, but it accomplishes what it was meant to do, and that is achieve an air of thoughtfulness and gloom. The 1080p/24 VC-1 transfer does well at capturing the film's subtle shadings and the veneer of grain, especially in the scenes of McCandless working the fields in South Dakota or in the Alaskan wilderness, which look like moody nature documentaries. Grain haters may find fault with the presentation, but that is not a byproduct of the transfer itself. The sharpness and detail present in this transfer from Paramount is spectacular, from facial hair to flakes of snow in foreground and background shots, it’s all there and easily perceptible.
Into the Wild does suffer slightly from its less-than-natural color palette, in that flesh tones have a tendency to look a bit waxy, but black levels are deep and there are no compression issues to sully the image.
The Sound
Offering English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 and English, French, and Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1 audio options, the
Into the Wild audio mix is as subtle and mildly mixed as the film itself. The TrueHD mix has a warm, full sound that that captures the moodiness of the production. Dialogue is heavily weighted to the center channel, but it is natural and clear. The folksy acoustic songs of Eddie Vedder that feature prominently in the film are well recorded and balanced appropriately. They help to capture the film's ominous and somber atmosphere. When necessary, the surround channels, mostly filled with slight ambience, and the LFE channel awaken a bit, such as during the scene where McCandless paddles down the rapids. It is not a showcase mix by far, but it is a thoughtful and balanced mix well suited to the material.
The Extras
The supplements are slim on this release, limited to two behind-the-scenes featurettes and a theatrical trailer, meaning there is not much added value at all for this Blu-ray version of
Into the Wild.
The extras available on this release are:
- Into the Wild: The Story, The Characters (4:3/standard definition) -- Director Sean Penn and the book's author Jon Krakauer discuss the novel and film's real-life subject Chris McCandless.
- Into the Wild: The Experience (4:3/windowboxed/standard definition) -- Actor Emile Hirsch and the film crew discuss their experience filming on location in Alaska.
- Theatrical Trailer (2.35:1/high definition/Dolby Digital 5.1)
Final Thoughts
Into the Wild is strong filmmaking, filled with wonderful scenery with a compelling story, but it feels just a bit too long and misses the point. I'm sure many will find inspiration in McCandless' story, but I question whether inspiration is the real lesson that should be taken away from this tragedy. The Blu-ray release is a top-notch transfer with suitable sound, but I'd recommend it as a rental first.
Where to Buy
Product Details
- Actors: Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, Hal Holbrook, William Hurt, Catherine Keener, Vince Vaughn
- Audio/Languages: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1, English, French, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
- Subtitles: English,English SDH, French, Portuguese, Spanish
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rating: R
- Studio: Paramount
- Blu-ray Disc Release Date: December 16, 2008
- Run Time: 148 minutes
- List Price: $29.99
- Extras:
- Into the Wild: The Story, The Characters
- Into the Wild: The Experience
- Theatrical Trailer HD
