Into the Wild is based on the true story of Christopher McCandless (Emile Hirsch), who after graduating from college decides to give away his life savings in favor of traveling to Alaska to live off the land. The film follows his travels and adventures of two years until he reaches his ultimate dream of living in the wilderness.

The movie is based on Jon Krakauer’s non-fiction book of the same name. He pieced together McCandless’ travels from his journal and extensive research. The script is co-written with director Sean Penn and there is a sense that the story meant a lot to both men. I should mention that the soundtrack is by Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam) who does well to capture the free spirit that McCandless undoubtedly displayed. There’s a real open road feel to the movie, ably added to by the soundtrack and movie scoring.

Emile Hirsch plays the free thinking McCandless brilliantly. When his character becomes Alexander Supertramp, the pseudonym he picks for his travels, Hirsch makes the same leap for freedom. It’s a very good piece of acting. The supporting cast is extraordinarily strong, being topped off with the superb Hal Holbrook (nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar) who plays a lonely old man whose life is touched by McCandless.

The way the film is shot by Penn underlines the way McCandless reacts to society. Scenes in the wilderness or on the road are wide and endless. Anytime McCandless is back in society there is a more boxed and trapped feel. The scenery of Alaska is stunning and embodies the beauty from life Hirsch’s character is seeking.

I have to admit I didn’t realize this film was based on a real life story until the very end. It all became incredibly poignant after seeing a picture of McCandless in Alaska. The sense of realism that Hirsch and Penn created had left me with mixed reactions to Hirsch’s character at different stages of his life - it ranged through annoyance, disbelief, inspiration, and anxiety. Once I knew he was based on a real man I couldn’t help wondering how his parents must have reacted to watching this movie. That’s how good a portrayal of McCandless I thought the movie produced.

I like to think Sean Penn has managed to capture the spirit of the man – certainly I can believe the character that was portrayed. I was left feeling that we had a glimpse into the life of a man searching for a freedom and beauty that we perhaps forget when we become embroiled in the everyday routine of our lives. Definitely worth watching.

I was never a big fan of Speed Racer growing up.  Looking back, I can probably connect that to the fact that I’ve never liked Anime.  Having said that, I’ve seen at least of couple of episodes and know the theme song by heart, which was enough to qualify me to see the big screen version of Speed Racer.

The Racer family revolves around racing.  Pops Racer designs and builds the cars.  Rex Racer, (Speed’s older brother), races them, and young Speed idolizes his older brother and is totally preoccupied with racing.   When Rex is killed in a cross country rally, the Racer family almost falls apart.  But they pull it together and Speed grows up and fills his brothers shoes as the racing Racer of the family.

When an evil racing sponsor offers the Racers the opportunity of a lifetime and Speed turns him down, we are introduced to the seedy underbelly of the racing world.  Races are fixed and racers are eliminated all in the name of big business.  The mysterious Racer X is waging a one-man war against the racing bosses and recruits Speed to help.  Which brings us to two thrilling race sequences - the earlier mentioned cross country rally that killed Speed’s brother and the Grand Prix.  Will the good guys defeat the racing profiteers?  Will Speed win the ultimate race?  You’ll have to see the movie to find out.

I was excited to be able to take my two boys, (ages 6 and 8), to see Speed Racer since it is rated PG, (unlike most of the summer fare which is PG-13), and they loved it.  My six-year-old wanted to see it again as we were leaving the theater.  Aside from some minor foul language, a middle finger, and some possibly scary situations for really young kids, the movie is a winner in the family feature genre.

Directed by the Wachowski brothers, (the Matrix), the film has a truly unique look and feel to it - one that may not work for all viewers, but I found it very cool to watch.  The racing scenes are thrilling, and you want to stand up and cheer for Speed in the final race.  The fight scenes are fun to watch, but you really need to suspend your disbelief before walking into the theater.

The ensemble cast helps make the movie work so well, with John Goodman and Susan Sarandon and Pops and Mrs. Racer.  Scott Porter (Friday Night Lights) plays Rex, LOST’s Matthew Fox is Racer X, Christina Ricci (Sleepy Hollow) plays Trixie and Emile Hirsch is Speed.  Comic relief is provided by Paulie Litt as Speed’s younger brother Spritle and his simian companion, Chim Chim.

Speed Racer has humor, drama, action and, of course lots of racing.  It’s a fun, family film that mom and dad should like just as much as the kids do, which is a rare thing, and it gets a solid B rating from me.