Movie Review - A Walk in the Woods

A Walk in the Woods **½ (out of 5) (R) In this amiable dramedy, Robert Redford plays a respected, mostly-retired travel writer, living pleasantly in New England with a loving family. Some vague residual combination of wanderlust, pride and ennui inspires him to hike the Appalachian Trail for one final adventure before the ravages of aging take such options off his menu. Unlike a certain former South Carolina governor, his goal is the actual 2,200-mile trek, not a fanciful cover for other types of age-denying endeavor. Among the many old friends and colleagues he invites to join him, the only taker is a dissipated former travel companion (Nick Nolte) he hadn’t seen for 40 years... or missed.

Once they hit the trail, we get a leisurely package tour of their backstories, accented with how they handle the journey and interact with people and challenges along the way. Director Ken Kwapis (Belleville, IL native) wisely gives the old pros room to be all they can be, while making the pristine settings a vivid asset, both visually and thematically. Despite my devout aversion to prolonged exercise or any form of “roughing it” ever since infantry training drained all sense of pleasure from hiking or camping, Kwapis almost made this journey seem appealing.

The package adds up to a pleasant, if not riveting, way to spend a couple of hours in the seats enjoying how two fine actors take care of their business on the trail. Kristen Schaal, Mary Steenburgen and Nick Offerman stand out among the supporting players. The plot is blissfully free of excess, making the stars and their experience relatively relatable.

If there’s a nit to pick, it’s in script references to these guys growing up in Iowa as Cubs fans. While that may have followed the source novel, and played some marginal role in who they became, a director who grew up in Cardinal Country should have kept more empathy among local viewers by changing that piece of their shared history. (9/2/15)