Mary Tobin on Wild

I tend to enjoy films based on true stories, especially those heavily relying on the source material. Still, when I heard “Wild” meant to bring bestselling author Cheryl Strayed’s story of moving beyond a heroin addiction, destroyed marriage, and losing her mother to the big screen, I was apprehensive. I’m not sure if my unease was caused by the thought of seeing Reese Witherspoon as the recovering, dynamic protagonist, or if I was simply unexcited to see someone throw themselves into nature as a way to overcome their faults. Regardless of weighting, I wasn’t thrilled about either prospect, and that discontentedness carried through my viewing of the film. 

With absolutely no hiking experience, Cheryl Strayed (Reese Witherspoon) decided the only way to recover from her series of poor choices and painful life experiences was to hike more than a thousand miles on the Pacific Crest Trail on her own. Through intermittent flashbacks and voiceovers, we learn of her mother’s passing, her frequent infidelities that lead to her divorce, and her heroin addiction. 

"Wild" seemed to bring together a winning team: director Jean-Marc Vallée (“Dallas Buyers Club”), Academy Award-winner Reese Witherspoon (“Walk The Line”) and Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Nick Hornby (“An Education”). I loved “Dallas Buyers Club,” and while I’m used to seeing Reese Witherspoon in static romantic comedy roles, I have no qualms with the actress herself. Rather, many parts of the film just felt painfully heavy-handed. At a particularly vulnerable moment, Witherspoon comes across a boy, his grandmother, and their pack llama (yes). The boy is maybe 6-8 years old, and is incredibly articulate; he even offers to sing her a song that perfectly relates to her current situation... I sighed. Witherspoon never connected with me; she often felt too aware that she was supposed to convey a character dealing with her demons, rather than seeming like she actually was doing so. A minor, but annoying, detail: she supposedly hiked miles and miles each day in often incredibly hot weather—yet she never once put her hair up. It was always down and almost too-perfectly disheveled, yet never wet as if she’d been sweating, which she should have been even in colder weather.

The light of the film was a fantastic performance from Cheryl’s mother, Bobbi (Academy Award nominee Laura Dern), whose struggles with an abusive husband and overwhelming care-taking instincts paired with an endlessly positive attitude all made her feel incredibly tangible. Witherspoon, however, felt like she learned how to be a recovering addict from a novel she didn’t finish.

I really, really wanted to like this movie. It had so much potential: I love the director, I love true stories, I love satisfactory endings. But the heavy-handed nature and my initial unease, which was never quelled, prevented me from being captivated. If you enjoy nature films or want to hike the PCT, maybe you’ll learn a helpful thing or two about REI return policies. I just didn't find it worth my time.

Grade: C