The film adaptation of Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods was not really expected; the book is good but nothing about it said hit movie. Yet actor Robert Redford was determined to create the folksy depiction of two old men attempting to trek the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail.
With Redford portraying the main character, Bryson himself, and co-star Nick Nolte depicting his out of shape hiking partner, Katz. In the book, the characters are supposed to be middle-aged. However, in the movie the characters are in their seventies. This adds a different quality to the movie that is light-hearted and the source of some laughs.
When discovering the movie A Walk in the Woods, the name “Robert Redford” immediately draws the attention of the audience. A well known actor, Redford hasn’t been in many films recently, so when the trailers came out for this movie, many were intrigued to see what he had noticeably invested a lot of time into.
After a 10 year production period, the film was released. That’s a long time to have spent on a movie, so it was expected to have complexity to it such as great cinematography and an under-the-surface wit present in the script. Yet the movie didn’t have either. The cinematography is, to say the least, nothing out of the ordinary. It’s just like any other film made in two years. The dialogue mostly induces soft chuckles and a few solid laughs. I found myself laughing when Katz (Nolte) would stumble as they trekked through a trail labeled “only for experienced hikers” because they had no training what-so-ever. It was just a daring yet regrettable decision, which epitomizes the movie entirely.
Overall the movie was fun and light-hearted. I doubt it will be nominated for an Academy Award, but people will probably pay to watch it on pay-per-view. The plot is simple and easy to follow and there are a lot of laughing moments. I would watch it again, but not any time soon; there’s a lot of movies higher on my list.