This weekend we watched the 2014 film wild, the true story of one woman’s undertaking of a 1100 mile hike following the break up of her marriage and death of her mother
Following the death of her mother, Cheryl played by Reese Witherspoon went out of control, sleeping around, drinking and getting a drug addiction which led down to the breakdown of her marriage but having broken her self destruct cycle, she challengers herself to the challenging Pacific Crest trail walk to prove to herself she can achieve something
From the director of the excellent Dallas Buyers Club, Jean Marc Vallee, and what on paper sounds an inspirational story of self discovery and soul searching, I have to say I found this film very disappointing
I have loved Reese in other films (especially Cruel Intentions for me opposite my favourite Vampire Slayer Sarah Michelle Gellar and Pepper loves her as Chihuahua loving Elle in the Legally Blonde films) and she can do drama, Walk the Line as a case in point, but she is somewhat limited in this, as this is essentially a 2 hour film about hiking with flashbacks of Cheryl’s past
It may have been better to show all the troubled times first then go for an inspiring final third of the walk but that of course is just my opinion, you can not deny to walk 1100 miles in 3 months is an incredible achievement but as a film for me it just felt it was missing something to make it more compelling. I am however sure it is a fantastic book but that of course doesn’t always mean it’ll be a fantastic film
The film at just under 2 hours to tell the story certainly does not drag, so its certainly not boring but it doesn’t feel like the Oscar nominated story we are led to believe, the flashbacks certainly imply a much stronger story than the scenes of walking, not one for you if you can’t stand site of blisters or sores. Cheryl comes across a range of male characters from stalkers, pervs, potential serial kilers andjust wanting to help but none are ever in the film too long, this is Cheryl’s hike and its challenges from snowfall to snakes
I, of course may be in the minority here, Reese was nominated for a best actress role at the Oscars, as did Laura Dern in the supporting role as Cheryl’s late mother but for me it was a good watch but it made me want to read the book more than watch the film again!
Have you seen Wild? What did you think, we’d love to know
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