Wild Reese Witherspoon

Wild thing: Reese Witherspoon walks 1,100 miles to find herself

Wild Reese Witherspoon

We haven’t been this excited about a Reese Witherspoon film since Legally Blonde 2, although the protagonist she plays in her latest role couldn’t be further removed from Elle Woods.

Wild, based on a true story and best selling memoir by Cheryl Strayed (heh – she ‘strayed’ alright), is about a woman who has lost everything. Aged 26 and at an all-time low – grieving for her mother, with her marriage unravelling and heroin addiction – she decides to take a hike across the American Wilderness to try and heal herself. 1,100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, to be precise. Alone. With no prior experience. Oooft.

It’s a profound, emotional and inspirational film but for Witherspoon, Wild is a true passion project. She bought the rights herself to get the film made after reading Strayed’s book and being “transformed.”

The film opens with Witherspoon yanking a bloody toenail off her mangled foot, accidentally knocking one of her hiking boots down a sheer mountainside, and screaming obscenities across a valley. Pretty intense stuff. With her character battling through desert heat, record snowstorms and driving rain to make the trek from Mexico to Canada under the weight of a giant backpack, you can see why Witherspoon is being tipped for an Oscar.

Strayed says the hike was the best thing she ever did. “It literally forced me to put one foot in front of the other at a time when, emotionally, I didn’t think I could do that. You have to keep walking, no matter what. If you don’t, it’s a living death. You’re just standing in one place dying. So I love that the hike gave me that metaphor; a map of how to survive life, to keep moving, to go far.”

Wild is in UK cinemas from 16th January 2015.

 

  • Comments

  • avatar
    Sarah Jane

    How did I not know about this film?! Will be seeing this for sure – thanks for sharing and happy new year to you! 🙂

  • avatar
    Anon.

    I would like to go and see this; looks good!

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