There's nothing remarkable about basing a film on a personal memoir, but the story-telling here and two stunning performances lift it above the pack.
WILD
Director: Jean-Marc Vallee
Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, Michael Huisman, W. Earl Brown
Rating: (R16)
Four stars (out of five)
Wild is based on Cheryl Strayed's book of the same name (the book carries the subtitle From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail) which detailed her hike from Mexico to Canada.
Witherspoon embraces the discomfort and captures the naivety of Strayed's endeavour, undertaken as it was in the absence of any outdoor skills.
Strayed (Witherspoon) undergoes a process not dissimilar to an intensive retreat, in which every step and sound triggers memories and issues in her life she can't dodge.
All that walking could have been tedious, so just when it feels like the slog will overwhelm the narrative, the film jumps to an evocative flashback.
We cut to Strayed's abusive childhood and the period in her young adult life when she dulled insecurities with a cocktail of narcotics and sex.
We meet Cheryl's mother Bobbi (Laura Dern in top form), an irrepressible optimist devoted to her children.
In real life, only 9 years might separate Dern and Witherspoon, but as mother and daughter struggling with a litany of emotional issues they are utterly convincing.
Balancing the bleakness are some moments of mirth.
When Strayed struggles to lift her pack or is interviewed for Hobo Times, she still comes across as a lot more likeable than Alexander Supertramp.
- Mark Orton
