Few people have the courage and sheer balls to rid themselves of everything they own and everything they're told is dear to them and just go out into the world and survive. In some bits, Christopher McCandless can come off as a spoiled child just looking to rebel from his parents and seek self-gratification, and in some bits Christopher can be an insightful man who really just wants to see what it's like to be a have not. And through this he discovers happiness and resourcefulness. Penn's film poses a little bit of everything in the grand tradition of films like "Five Easy Pieces," and "Harry and Tonto," in which our main character is simply another pariah in a life they simply can't belong to. And Christopher decides that he has to rid himself of the privilege, and elitism that he's had forced on him since childhood and brave life without anything to call his own. Penn's film is a near masterpiece that poses many conundrums and aching questions to the audience asking us to sit and think of what Christopher was to us.

Beyond a respective ensemble cast, Emile Hirsch truly gives an excellent performance as Chris who found himself coming across all sorts of odd balls and interesting people and picked up some interesting skills along the way. Whether or not much of this is sensationalized is beyond me, but "Into the Wild" shows Chris as an individual learning only what he needed, and grabbing only what he could to get by, and always avoided the home he considered a confining trap. This is most likely Emile Hirsch's finest role since he started acting, and as Chris he's a sympathetic tragic figure who will tug at heart strings, but also divide audiences. Along the way there are some respectively great performances from folks like Catherine Keener, Kristen Stewart, Jena Malone, and a wonderful climactic encounter with an older man Chris meets, played with incredible emotion by Hal Holbrook, whose performance is Oscar worthy.

The sad fact about "Into the Wild," is that Penn is apparently a fan. He's so much of a fan of the man's life that he paints Chris as a messiah of a sorts; beware of false prophets has always been a favorite saying of mine. To believe this man was so messianic because he rid himself of materials and even transcends the film's fourth wall really is a stretch. There are almost times where Penn asks "Was he Jesus Christ? Did he have a higher power that we weren't aware of?" Then there are moments when Penn begs us to wonder if Chris was more than a man, but really it's tough to swallow. Chris touches everyone, everyone loved him, and he was in touch with his faith.

I don't doubt Chris wasn't a great guy, but to believe he's so amazing that he could talk to god is quite stressing on Penn's part to bring us into his view of this farfetched notion. In one moment Chris even looks into the camera while confessing his love to an apple; it's a scene that instantly fell flat due to its utter self-indulgence. Along the way, there's that inevitable almost obvious irony in which Chris makes a point of burning his money, and yet months later is shown taking a job to earn money and must take jobs to survive once again placing importance on money when he casts it away. The weak link in the film is Vince Vaughn who plays himself yet again; he's a fast talking, quick moving minimum wage worker who really adds nothing to the film that isn't already there.

Penn’s film either paints Chris as a man with a messiah complex or as a messiah, I could never be sure. But "Into the Wild" is a great film in spite of it. While it does lag in some areas, it's truly an entertaining, utterly fascinating, and fantastic epic drama about a young man wondering what life is like without, after a life with too much.

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