Review: Wild
I'm going to walk all my problems away.
Cheryl (Reese Witherspoon) recently ruined her marriage to Paul (Thomas Sadoski) by cheating on him and doing heroin, among other things. Disappointed that she's not the woman her late mother, Bobbi (Laura Dern) wanted her to be, she sets out to hike the Pacific Crest Trail alone to clear her head.
You know what's a good way to make a decent film a little less decent? Annoying people sitting next to you. That's what I had to deal with here. I sat next to a woman who was whispering to her husband throughout the entire film about which man was going to try to rape Cheryl. According to her, whenever a man hands a woman a drink, it's spiked. She even said "see, there it goes!" a few times during the film when she thought said rape was going to happen. Spoiler alert, there is no rape in this film. Go home and watch the Lifetime channel for that.
Back to the actual movie, I kind of expected it to be fairly slow given the premise and the heavy use of flashbacks, but it was paced very well. Witherspoon gives her best performance since Walk The Line. Is it Oscar worthy? Not really, but it's still a good performance. She carries the film easily. Sadoski is wonderful in his short scenes as well. I really want to see more of that guy now that The Newsroom is ended.
Wild exceeded my somewhat lukewarm expectations and turned out to be very enjoyable. Even with Twat McRapey talking through the whole thing.
Recommended: Yes
Grade: B
Memorable Quote: "You just want to be the hero." - Cheryl (Reese Witherspoon)
"Twat McRapey" :P No seriously, wtf with people expecting that :/
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely seeing this one, it's from Dallas Buyers Club director, yes? I think he can make this story well, not boring. I'm not a big fan of Witherspoon but she looks decent here
It is by the same director! He's pretty wonderful.
DeleteIs this based on the memoir by Cheryl Strayed? My aunt loved that book, and it's been on my to-read list for years, but I never got around to it.
ReplyDeleteI am not generally a fan of Reese Witherspoon, but I liked her in Mud. It sounds like she did great work in this. I'll probably see it when it comes to DVD.
Yep! This is based on her memoir.
DeleteGee, i didn't like reese in walk the line at all. she was decent here, but the movie is so disjointed and hollow at times. i just couldn't get into it. but laura dern is the best in show. i wish there were more scenes with her. i also preferred the story in flashback mode than its present narrative.
ReplyDeleteLaura Dern was really sweet. I actually wanted more of Cheryl and Paul. I wanted to see more of Thomas Sadoski.
DeleteNice review, Brittany! Wild finally came to my city, so I'm really looking forward to seeing it soon. *crosses fingers*
ReplyDeleteIf that woman read the book she would've known there is only one terrifying, incident during Cheryl's hike that comes close to a rape experience - but it doesn't happen. Sad to think how many people might watch the movie and just wonder when a rape scene is going to take place rather than actually paying attention to the story....
No kidding. That scene is in the film too, but like you said, nothing happens. I just couldn't believe she kept predicting it through out the entire movie.
DeleteLOL at the chick sitting next to you. Hate those people. I want to see this, but I have to say I'm getting a little tired of these 'let's place one actor in the wilderness and get them an Oscar nod' type movies...
ReplyDeleteIt will be a little sad if Witherspoon gets an Oscar nomination for this one when Emile Hirsch didn't for Into The Wild. He gave a better performance.
DeleteI actually didn't like this one when I saw it at the TCFF, surrounded by a whole bunch of Cheryl's family & friends surely as she's from here. Hope they didn't read my review, ahah. I didn't care for the character nor Reese's performance and was bored out of my wits. Definitely NOT Oscar worthy IHMO. The PCF scenery was lovely though.
ReplyDeleteOh no! I don't really think Reese's performance is Oscar worthy either, but I thought it was good. I kind of feel like she'll get one since there was drugs and nudity involved and they seem to appreciate that risk.
DeleteHaha, I was only worried she might get raped when she got in that guy's truck. I agree Reese is good here, but not Oscar worthy.
ReplyDeleteYeah, this chick was worried every single time she met a dude.
DeleteGlad to hear it's good! I disregarded it because it seems so similar to Tracks, which was fantastic, and I thought nothing could parallel it, but the reviews have won me over. So sorry for the jerk who kept talking through the thing, I admire you for not throwing her with popcorn or a shoe or something.
ReplyDeleteI'm always so shy about confronting people in theaters, this was the first time I really did. I did contemplate punching someone in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button though. lol
DeleteI think I have Tracks saved in my Netflix queue.
LOL that woman. People can be so annoying. Idk when I'll get to see this, but I really want to because I've always liked Witherspoon but haven't seen anything interesting from her since Walk the Line. Well This Means War was fun, but that's all.
ReplyDeleteThis has been her most interesting thing in awhile. I liked her in Mud, but that was a very small role. She's better in things like this over the rom coms she usually does.
DeleteWhile this film wasn't terrible, I still found it to be a very slow burn. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if, during filming, Witherspoon thought to herself "You want...that Oscar..nomination!" as she was hiking. She was good in this, but I still think her best work is Election. Like Foxcatcher, the film as a whole felt like a giant checklist.
ReplyDeletelol Reese is the type of actress that WOULD tell herself that.
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