Review of A Walk in the Woods (2015) by Wayne K — 21 Jul 2018

A Walk In The Woods was a film I had mixed feelings about before I'd even seen a single frame of it. The book on which it's based is possibly my favourite travel book of all time. Packed full of Bill Bryson's trademark dry wit, unique observations and deep fascination about the world around him, it was an absolute joy to read from start to finish.

With Robert Redford & Nick Nolte in the lead roles, both of whom are roughly 30 years older than their literature counterparts, they fail to capture the contentious bond between Bryson and Katz, despite both actors giving very amiable and likable performances.

The book was brimming with funny conversations, but at only 2 hours long many of them have been omitted from the film, and the ones which are left in I found myself laughing at simply because I remembered them from the book.

Character moments come out of nowhere, and the film gives you little sense of the distance the 2 men covered or the true scale of the Appalachian Trail. I could nit-pick lots of other things, such as Emma's Thompson's character, Bryson's wife, having the wrong first name, and the 2 men visibly losing no weight over their trek (Redford is too slim to play Bryson at the beginning of the hike).

It is very well paced, never dragging at any time, and I wouldn't even call it a bad film. It had the unenviable task of converting a book both hilarious and insightful into a feature film, but there's simply too much material to condense.

Read the book the first chance you get. The film does contain many of its best bits, but it lacks the true warmth, discovery and dry humour of the story it was based on. A noble attempt, but a hit and miss product.