Everyone loves to travel, so it is unsurprising that films dedicated to this topic are popular with viewers. They often tell fictional stories where the main characters experience certain events and achieve their goals. However, there are also several travel movies, the plot of which is based on real-life situations. This old and new cinema arouses the most significant interest in viewers, forcing them to sit motionless in front of the screen until the very end.
“Into the Wild”
One of the best travel movies in cinema history was “Into the Wild”. It was released in 2007 and won several prestigious awards. In this film, directed by Sean Penn, viewers saw the real story of a young guy named Christopher, who had just graduated from university. Instead of building a career, he left his home, gave all his savings to charity, and traveled around America.
The main character visited a variety of places and eventually reached Alaska. There, Christopher found an abandoned bus in a remote place from civilization, where he lived for several months. He got food for himself using improvised means, drank water from the river, and tried to survive in the wild. As a result, the main character accidentally ate a poisonous plant and died within a few days. The bus in which Christopher lived is still in that very place. Thanks to the film, it has become a natural landmark of Alaska.
“True Spirit”
This Australian film by director Sarah Spillane was first shown in 2023. It was an adaptation of the autobiographical book by Jessica Watson, who described her adventures perfectly. The film shows the events of 2009. At that time, a teenage girl dared to go on a solo round-the-world voyage with a limited food supply, without a night vision device and other auxiliary equipment. It was designed for 200 days, during which Jessica had to go around the globe without calling at any ports.
During the journey, the film’s main character faces various external obstacles (a strong storm, complete calm, etc.) and internal problems. She periodically suffers from loneliness, and she is tormented by depression, but despite these problems, Jessica continues to move towards the end point of the route slowly. Ultimately, the round-the-world trip, which lasted 210 days, was a success, thanks to which the teenage girl became a real Australian celebrity. In real life, Jessica Watson continues to be a sailor. She periodically travels by sea and writes books.
“The Way Back”
In 2010, Australian director Peter Weir made a film called “The Way Back”. He assembled a great cast (James Sturgess, Ed Harris, Colin Farrell, and others) and created a fascinating travel film. The plot is based on the story of a Polish officer named Janusz. After the Soviet invasion of Poland (during World War II), he is captured, tortured, and forced to confess to espionage. Denying all charges, Janusz awaits trial and is sent to one of the Gulag camps for 20 years.
Once in Siberia, he immediately makes an escape plan. Having found like-minded people, Janusz thinks through all the details and eventually implements his plan. After this, the fugitives’ long journey begins. They walk more than 4,000 miles and eventually reach India. On their way, they meet many friends and enemies, try to survive in difficult weather conditions, and experience a constant shortage of water and food, but they do not even think about stopping. The reward for their efforts is the opportunity to return to their homeland.
“Everest”
This travel film by director Baltasar Kormakur has become one of the best in its genre. It stars famous actors like Jason Clarke, Josh Brolin, and Samuel Worthington, who only increased the audience’s interest. The film’s plot is based on the events of 1996 that took place in the Himalayas. At that time, a group of climbers decided to challenge Everest. They covered many kilometers from their home to Nepal and, a few days later, reached the foot of the legendary mountain. There, they spent a long time getting used to the local climate, learning to perform active actions in thin air, and training to provide medical assistance to each other.
As a result, the group began their ascent, which immediately went wrong. The inexperience of the climbers, challenging weather conditions, lack of coordination, and other problems led to the emergence of many dangerous situations. Despite this, all difficulties were overcome, and the main goal was achieved. However, a snowstorm awaited the climbers. It was so strong that the descent of the main characters from the mountain turned into absolute chaos. As a result, most of the group died. The bodies of some people were not found, so they remained on Everest forever. Also, some climbers received severe injuries and frostbite, which once again proved the insignificance of man compared to the elements.
“Wild”
In 2014, Canadian director Jean-Marc Vallee shot the film “Wild”. The leading roles were played by many famous actors, including Laura Witherspoon, Laura Dern, Thomas Sadoski, and Michiel Huisman. This film is based on the events of 1995. At this time, Cheryl Strayed begins her solo journey, the purpose of which is to know herself. The starting point of her route was the Mojave Desert. Slowly moving on foot, Cheryl thought a lot about her life and remembered all the sad and happy events. Gradually, she moved further and further from home and experienced specific difficulties (for example, when walking through a desert area, the girl quickly spent all her water reserves, so she spent the rest of the day searching for the desired liquid).
On her way, Cheryl met many people, most of whom agreed to help her solve various problems. Each meeting became a breath of fresh air for the girl, which helped her move on. In the end, after 94 days, Cheryl completed her journey. This event completely changed her and made her reconsider her views. In real life, soon after completing the journey shown in the film, Cheryl Strayed got married, gave birth to two children and became truly happy again.
There are many good travel movies, but the best are still those based on real events. Such films leave no one indifferent and make you sincerely worry about the fate of the main characters. Watching each film to the end gives viewers great pleasure and keeps them remembering the story for a long time.
Title: The best travel movies are based on actual events.
Description: The best travel movies are based on actual events. Features of modern and old travel movies. The best films have a plot based on actual events. A brief description of each film and a list of the actors who played.