Home Forums Miscellaneous Topics Movie, Book, and Music Review Movie--"A Walk in the Woods"

This is a fun movie.

A couple of old codgers who have a history (with one owing money to the other) hook up after many years and decide to hike the 2100+ mile Appalachian Trail. As you can imagine there are a few problems.
It's a pleasant movie, and ultimately rewarding as many of us older guys could probably relate to one or the other of the guys.

I've appreciated Nick Nolte's on screen presence ever since he was doing local tv commercials--back in the '60's. And also Robert Redford has been around for a year or two.

I'd rate it a C+ or B-. Not a waste of time and certainly a good one to see on video later. It won't appeal to everyone enough to pay to see it in a theater. It was worth the price for me. It is a budget film with a lot of good scenery. Of course having read the book based on an actual hike may have left me a little disappointed.

The author Bill Bryson, who wrote the book had zero hiking experience and decides to hike the trail in order to write the book. He is dumbfounded by the choices in hiking gear. The book covers this much better than the movie which just touches on the subject.

He talks a buddy, equally inept, into going and it is truly a misadventure at first. But as they get farther down the trail they gain experience and become pretty adept at the skills needed.

There were a couple of things that bothered me. They both had trekking poles lashed to the packs, but never once used them. Even after 2 months of hiking both pairs of boots looked brand new.

In real life they hiked 1/2 way through the Smoky Mt NP from GA. Then hitched into Gatlinburg and while looking at a map of the AT in a hiking store decided there was simply no way to do the whole trail with their skills. They rented a car and skipped several hundred miles. In the movie they debate renting a car and decide not to.

I forget exactly how far Bryson actually hiked before stopping. He did pick back up the next season and hiked sections of the trail over the next few years completing most, but not all of the trail before writing the book. Other than the way they dealt with the car rental the movie is fairly accurate based on my memories.

Living in N GA about an hours drive from Springer MT it was good to see local shots where I'd hiked. The views at Amicalola Fall State Park near where the trail starts were very good. The Mountain Crossings store shown in the movie is the 1st resupply point and the shot of the boots in the trees was cool. Lots of hikers decide they picked the wrong boots and buy new there. Throwing the old, or worn out boots into the trees.

I did enjoy the movie despite the issues noted earlier. The book was a great read and very funny.