But among all the people I've heard out on whether Into The Wild is a great film or a terrible one, a fairly common pattern has emerged: An awful lot of the people who absolutely hated the film had previously read–and in many cases loved–the book. And I suspect that the difference between Krakauer's approach and Penn's is a large part of what sparks all the vehemence.
I think it comes down to this, for the most part: Krakauer's book is an examination of McCandless' life and death. Penn's movie is an enthusiastic celebration of it.
I will be citing all the distinctions now:
* According to Krakauer’s research Chris worked twice under Wayne’s supervision, whereas Penn decided to collaborate the two trips to South Dakota into just one trip. Penn did this to diminish the film’s run-time by merging the principal events of both the trips. * In the film the story line never takes a path which is not travelled upon by Chris, he is portrayed as a hero who is easy going and is literate enough to summon Thoreau’s and Tolstoy’s words to suit any occasion. On the contrary in the book he is described as an abrasive and inconsiderate kid ranting against authority when confronted. Also the author gives his personnel opinion on Chris and quotes many adventures from his life too. * Tracy is barely mentioned in the book – she is some teenager who has a crush on Chris. In the movie there is more detail and depth to her character which involves their walk to the Salvation Mountain, an attempted seduction and a performance.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
The life of Christopher Johnson McCandless has been a source of both inspiration and controversy throughout North America. His trek into the Alaskan wilderness, which led to his eventual demise, left him remembered as heroic and reckless, a brilliant artist and an irresponsible egotist; but regardless of what one’s opinion is on Chris McCandless, there is no denying that he is interesting and has inspired a variety of works in the media, including author Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, which was adapted into a film in 2007. Though both the novel and film follow the same storyline, the two have their inevitable differences.…
- 596 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Have you ever read a book, then watched the movie on it and wanted to throw the book at the director’s face and tell them to actually read the book? This is what happened when I read a novel titled Where The Rivers Flow North by Howard Frank Mosher, and then watched the movie on it. In 1927, in Kingdom County, Vermont, a large dam is to be built; however, Noel Lord, a logger and cedar-oil harvester, won't give up his lifetime lease on the land. The dam company increases its offer of cash, but Noel refuses time after time. He asks for a trade; the white pines for his lease. Noel, meanwhile, talks with his wife, Bangor, about them moving to Oregon and buying a saw mill. She wants him to take the company's money; but he’s stubborn. His stubbornness is what ultimately leads them to their death, causing them both to be victims. Yet in the movie, only one of them meets with their untimely death. Between the book and the movie, three major differences were Noel’s death scene, Bangor’s death, the showing of the panther and Noel becoming a legend and story to tell just like his ancestors. I’m not satisfied with these differences because they don’t portray the book accurately. These key differences can really impact ones thoughts on both the book and the movie and the way one feels about how the director and producers of the movie chose to represent the book.…
- 1007 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The Differences and Similarities between the Book “Hatchet” and its Movie “A Cry in the Wild”…
- 537 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
The characterisation of Chris in this novel is successful as an in depth portrayal of conflicting feelings and emotions is given that readers will relate to. Chris herself labels the conflicting sides of her the 'Scottish Chris' and the 'English Chris'. The Scottish Chris loves the farm life and the land and reflects the more emotional, innate side of her character given to her by her mother. The other part of her, the intellectual, or English Chris, is encouraged by her father, loving books and learning and hating the crudeness and ignorance that is the farming life.…
- 2533 Words
- 9 Pages
Powerful Essays -
It was scary and dark a cold wasteland. - It effects the story because, it show all the lives that chris affected. Chapter three: Travelling is a way to escape and get away from the everyday struggles of life.…
- 472 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
For instance, in the movie it portrays that there are three goat herders, one is a man and two are boys. In the book it is different, “But unlike the movie, only one of them was a boy, not two”(Similarities & Differences). The people the portrayed the goat herders is a small difference, but the number of Taliban the the four SEALs fought off has been a very big controversy. In the book the number of Taliban is a lot bigger than the ones in the movie, “In the Lone Survivor movie, the SEALs are ambushed by approximately 50 Taliban fighters. However, the book asserts that the Taliban fighters consisted of between ‘80 and 200 armed men’” (Similarities & Differences). Overall, Lone Survivor is a great movie and Berg did a great job from transitioning the book onto the the big screen even though there are…
- 556 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
On the contrary, in the movie everyone arrives by a ski lift to a cold, snowy mountain. Many of the indictments are changed between the two works. In the book, General Macarthur put his wife’s new lover in the frontline of battle, but in the book General Mandrake sends 5 men to their death. Miss Emily Brent scolds a woman into suicide in the book, while in the movie Miss Burgan kills her husband. Vera Claythorne let’s a young child drown in the book, and in the movie Ann Clide said to be responsible for the death of her sister’s fiance. Philip Lombard from the book killed a whole tribe by depriving them of provisions, while in the movie he is said to of killed the mother of his unborn child.…
- 552 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
discrepancies between the two. First I'll address the overall flow of the movie, in other…
- 1801 Words
- 8 Pages
Better Essays -
The book “Into The Wild” tells the story of Chris McCandless and his journey and interactions with various people. Jon Krakauer the author wrote this book to show people what really happened so they could decide their own opinion of Chris McCandless and his story, instead of judging him on what the media said or critics or whoever. I personally think Chris was a nice smart person but didn’t make good decisions. One example of his bad decisions and the most prevalent one was is his decision to go live off the land with little or no supplies, Chris only brought the clothes on his back and other limited supplies such as cheap boots and a light coat. Another example is his refusal to accept help from people, had he actually took most of the things people offered him he would most likely survived and made it out in one piece living off the land. Those were just a few examples of his stubbornness and bad choices.…
- 466 Words
- 14 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In the book into the wild by John Krakauer, Chris Mcandles aka (Alex super tramp) is a very good example of a modern day transcendentalist because Chris was very insightful; he had self reliance and was able to live off the land. Christopher Johnson McCandless was an American adventurer. He ventured into the Alaskan wilderness in April 1992 with barely any food and equipment, hoping to live for a time in solitude. Almost four months later, McCandless's starved remains were found in a bus.…
- 510 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
“Am I better off dead, Am I better off a quitter” (The Script). The meanings behind these lyrics are very powerful and explain Chris’s journey almost perfectly. In Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, Chris’s takes on a challenge that is potentially fatal and he has the courage to continue on with it. Chris’s journey is a series of risks he is willing to take to achieve his goal. He has to make life threatening decisions that he could have backed out on at any given time. Some see Chris as a psycho for embarking on this journey alone and burning or abandoning everything of worth, where as others see Chris as a hero for taking risks and having the courage to separate himself from society to make a point.…
- 957 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
The similarities of christian and chris are that they both ask for help on what to say to Roxanne, christian in the play asks Cyrano if he could talk to Roxane for him because he is very nervous when he talks to women, in the movie it is shown that bales and chris are workers and friends, but chris runs off and vomits every time he see’s Roxanne in either the bar where he runs off with sandy the bartender or Dixie’s diner( Raguneau bakery in the play).…
- 513 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
In one of the rare instances that Sean Penn directs a film, he sets out to deliver a view-changing experience and does just that. The philosophical views and the conflict of moral fibres between the protagonist and his family and friends, are the basis of Into the Wild - a recount of the true story of Christopher McCandless - and certainly sparked an interest in me, as I began to question my own perspective on life.…
- 879 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
In the novel "Into the Wild," written by Jon Krakauer, Chris McCandless, the main protagonist, part of a an upper-middle class family embarks on a spiritual journey into the wild,literally, without the basic so-called luxuries and problems he faces in his old life. Although some may view this journey as a naive teenager rebelling against norms, it is so much more than that if you look deeper into Chris' morals and personality. Chris meets people, animals, and scenery that reinvent his mind and perspective each day. The struggles and triumphs he goes through better his state of mind and revoke the reason to which why he left in the first place.…
- 1109 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
Throughout the film, music heightens the emotions the viewer feels as s/he discovers the truth about the community with Lincoln and Jordan. The fear, the shock, and the horror are all tangible emotions felt with each new atrocity. Though some stunts are a bit far-fetched, the active storyline keeps the viewer engaged and wondering what fresh horrors the next twist will hold. This work has a clear connection to Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. Both works exhibit the artificial production of humans, predisposed to the life for which they are designed, as well as the use of hypnopaedia to condition the residents of the communities in the way the will benefit their superiors. Additionally, the authorities in both works fear unorthodox thinking because, as shown in Michael Bay’s The Island, one unorthodox individual’s thoughts have the power to crumble the societies that they…
- 608 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays