Into the Wild

‘Into the Wild’ film to debut in Alaska and South Dakota

Aberdeen screening is planned laterThe new Sean Penn-directed film, “Into the Wild,” based on the true story of a young man who spent time in Carthage before dying in Alaska, will have its world premiere in Alaska.The film's debut is scheduled for Monday in Fairbanks, Ak., the closest major city to the spot where Christopher McCandless, 24, died in an abandoned bus in 1992. The movie will be released across the United States on Sept. 21.

By Staff and wire reports

The new Sean Penn-directed film, “Into the Wild,” based on the true story of a young man who spent time in Carthage before dying in Alaska, will have its world premiere in Alaska.The film's debut is scheduled for Monday in Fairbanks, Ak., the closest major city to the spot where Christopher McCandless, 24, died in an abandoned bus in 1992. The movie will be released across the United States on Sept. 21.The movie, based on Jon Krakauer's book, was written and directed by Penn. He said the screening is a way of thanking Alaskans who worked on the movie while it was being filmed on location last summer.Some scenes were also filmed in the Carthage area, where McCandless worked at a South Dakota grain elevator before hitch-hiking to Alaska.The film follows McCandless as he sheds his possessions and attempts to live a simple wilderness life. He embarked on a poorly equipped trek, ended up taking shelter in the bus and eventually died.Later, a South Dakota screening is planned for the Capitol Theatre in Aberdeen in connection with the South Dakota Film Festival. Details on that screening are to be announced Wednesday.

My daughter and sister are attending the first screening at the Blue Loon in Fairbanks tonight. They are going to call and tell me all about it after the movie.