Wild

This review may contain spoilers!

The incredible feminist life changing story that made me actually like Reese Witherspoon. I would give Wild an 8.5/10.

The way this story is told through irregular flashbacks and an amazing present day adventure is perfect; the right way to show a character's grief and triumph in a personal struggle. This film maintains a perfect pace while alternating it's tone in a really refreshing manner throughout the film. The music was very serene and in a way atmospheric and reflective; this use of music matched the rest of the film in just the right way. The journey within the film was shown through some brilliant cinematography; the landscape through the lead's eyes was portrayed excellently.

Laura Dern, who played Bobbi, was an incredibly powerful and wise role; her optimism and and perspective on life was a refreshing parallel to other characters within the film. Thomas Sadoski, who played Paul, really felt like this reluctant friend within Wild; he gave a very genuine performance. W. Earl Brown, who played Frank, was quite a gruff and comedic character; he lightened the mood of the film considerably and set the pace for that from there on out. Kevin Rankin, who played Greg, was a really impressive pillar of support for the lead; a very light spirited role and a well performed one.

Yet this film was dominated by Reese Witherspoon, who played Cheryl. Witherspoon isn't usually the first on my list of favourite actors but she owned this film entirely. You watch this film for the fire and spirit she puts into Cheryl; it's incredibly hard to separate her from the character. She gives such a strong genuine performance that you feel for her in every situation that she is put in. She's incredibly deserving of her best actress nomination.

The editing within this film didn't help the sometimes slower narrative; even when action picked up you didn't feel quite like it had.

Keene McRae, who played Leif, was quite a wooden actor; his portrayal of grief wasn't very convincing at all.