- 10
...Penn goes way out on a limb -- and, amazingly, takes the audience with him -- to find the poetry in this true-life story...
—Alex Markerson E!
- 9
...spellbinding...
—Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
- 9
...deft...
—Scott Tobias Onion AV Club
- 9
...an intensely physical movie, yet it's never just physical. Every image (rivers, highways, icy mountains) tells its own story -- of a terrain that must be met, and then conquered.
—Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly
- 8
To these eyes, Into the Wild is an unusually soulful and poetic movie...
—Scott Foundas Village Voice
- 8
...a complete change of pace for the writer-director [Penn]. It's his warmest, most celebratory and most completely realized film and, though you might not guess it from the material, it is also arguably his most personal.
—Kenneth Turan Los Angeles Times
- 8
...though the film?s structure may be tragic, its spirit is anything but. It is infused with an expansive, almost giddy sense of possibility, and it communicates a pure, unaffected delight in open spaces, fresh air and bright sunshine.
—A. O. Scott New York Times
- 8
...an unforgettable cinematic experience, a singularly original film that takes us places few flicks go these days. It morphs into a mystic and mesmerizing journey of adventure and self-discovery, and it does what great movies are supposed to do?tap into our senses, effortlessly guiding us along its unpredictable and entirely fascinating path.
—Pete Hammond Maxim
- 8
...flawed but refreshingly intelligent...
—Ken Fox TV Guide
- 8
To these eyes, Into the Wild is an unusually soulful and poetic movie...
—Scott Foundas LA Weekly
- 8
...unmissable and unforgettable...
—Peter Travers Rolling Stone
- 7
...gorgeously photographed...
—Lou Lumenick New York Post
- 7
...by far the most wide-ranging and difficult production Penn has taken on as a director. And on that level, it's a protean piece of work.
—Glenn Kenny Premiere
- 7
...astute and brisk though not always as concise as one would hope.
—Chris Cabin filmcritic.com
- 7
...a long, strange trip in itself, with its own sense of storytelling direction. It's half-crock and half-sublime, which seems about right for its subject.
—Michael Phillips Chicago Tribune
- 7
What he [Penn] lacks is a sharper eye for the wooziness of romanticism, and that wooziness, despite some truly breathtaking moments, infuses Into the Wild.
—Peter Rainer Christian Science Monitor
- 6
...heartfelt but meandering...
—Leah Rozen People
- 5
...a seemingly endless slog at nearly 2 ½ hours. Penn may find McCandless' journey compelling, but why he feels that way never makes it into the movie.
—Pam Grady Reel
- 5
...exasperating...
—Nick Schager Slant Magazine