Into the Wild: The Book or the Movie?

Some books out there leave such a lasting impression on you that no matter how many years it’s been since you’ve read them, they creep into your mind at unexpected times. You’re reminded about its dynamic characters, a description of something beautiful or horrifying, a particularly witty line, or even just the way it made you feel. These are the books that we often come back to again, to try and recapture that feeling we had when reading them, almost like trying to relive a favourite moment from your past. Some of those such books for me have been J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance, D.B.C. Pierre’s Vernon God Little, and Bryce Courtenay’s epic coming-of-age tale, The Power of One.

What makes John Krakeur’s Into the Wild so much more memorable than most novels is that we’re hearing a true story, one that is about a young man named Christopher McCandless who thought he could live off the grid in the wilderness of Alaska and paid the ultimate price for it. Krakeur’s fascination with McCandless is clear throughout from the way he narrates and manages to find details and instances from the young man’s life that bring a poignancy to his ultimately tragic demise.

McCandless came from an affluent family in the suburbs of Washington, DC and was a good student and a keen athlete. He continued this trajectory right up until he graduated–with honours–from a good university when he suddenly donated all his money, ditched his car, burned all his stuff and set his sights on the roads, hitchhiking around the country and meeting people along the way. He finally made it to Alaska and, on foot, ventured in the wilderness, never to be seen again.

Krakeur makes it seem as if we are a passenger in McCandless’ bizarre journey as he recounts in great detail the stops and happenings of the twenty-four-year-old whose adventure into the Alaskan wild lasted roughly four months before succumbing to starvation. While it’s easy to see how some might see McCandless’ exploits as both reckless or irresponsible, it seems clear that Krakeur regards McCandless as more of a romantic figure, someone who dared to eschew society’s rules and roles and was determined to do it his own way. Despite taking place roughly thirty years ago, McCandless’ story still maintains a relevance that will resonate with readers long into the future.

In 2007, actor and director Sean Penn wrote and directed a feature-length film adapted from Krakeur’s seminal book. The movie starred Emile Hirsch (Alpha Dog, Killer Joe) as McCandless along with a stellar cast that included Vince Vaughn (Old School, Wedding Crashers), William Hurt (A History of Violence, Broadcast News), Catherine Keener (Being John Malkovich, The 40-Year-Old Virgin), and Kristen Stewart (Twilight, Adventureland). Critics loved it, audiences loved it, and I personally thought it was a great visual representation of McCandless short life that was faithful in tone and spirit to Krakeur’s original work but with Penn’s own artistic touch.

Much the same as how Krakeur detailed McCandless’ life with reverence and respect, Penn appears to have a similar preoccupation in exploring McCandless’ journey by taking an approach of beauty, perhaps showing that what McCandless did took courage and conviction, and was not the careless act it may seem to be at first glance. No doubt, some will still find the depiction of McCandless as a romantic antihero not one worthy of admiration, but rather one that should be dissected for its life lesson of what not to do. However, I feel that Penn was able to weave in a poetry to McCandless’ story that creates a positive life lesson, one that shows how sticking to your vision is something worth praise, even if it does result in what could be seen as an unnecessary death.

In comparing the film to the book, the film is able to show us what the book invariably can not: the landscapes, the openness of Alaska, the loneliness of the space, the beauty, and even the void. But perhaps it is the book that is best able to help us feel what McCandless was experiencing: the frustrations he had with a conventional life, the lack of choice he had despite certain freedoms, and the way it all seemed to be set up for him to succeed having come from a wealthy background where money was to be no object. Regardless of what each medium has to offer, it is McCandless and his powerful story that sits center stage and it is with him that we take this journey.

If I have to pick between the movie and the film, I’d have to go with the book. In this case, it’s not only because I came to the book first, but also because of the impact the book has on you when first picking it up. As a reader, you are at once captivated by McCandless’ approach to life and the way he is able to travel through it to the beat of his own drum. It’s cliche to say this, but once I picked it up I couldn’t put it down, and that is always the mark of a good read, Even though most of us may not have the desire to go as far off the grid as he did, leaving behind our loved ones, our possessions and our money, in this current world of technology where we are constantly plugged in, it’s not hard to relate to McCandless’ feeling of not belonging, of isolation, and of not wanting to be a part of a society whose rules and customs you may not agree with.

Final verdict: the book.

I’d highly recommend picking up a copy of this book, which you can do by clicking here. And, of course, have a look at the trailer for Penn’s magnificent film below.