Sure it is about trying but what are either of these men trying to prove? Bill and his wife attend a funeral but it really never seems to be about defying death. The problem is that we never truly get under the skin of these two men and therefor never really see the point of this trek through the forest. As in Wild, this journey is intended to be a metaphor as well as a literal one. At 73 and 77, Nolte and Redford are still making movies and good for them.Īs much as I admire their longevity, A Walk in the Woods, that Patrick aptly called, '.a more lighthearted geezer version of Wild.' is merely passable entertainment. Watching these two old veterans work reminds me that life does not end at a certain age but when we decide to let it end. I love seeing older movie stars on screen. Nick Nolte, Kristen Schaal and Robert Redford in A Walk in the Woods Mary Steenburgen is completely wasted as a possible love interest for Redford's character that goes nowhere.Įven though it follows a familiar path, A Walk in the Woods still manages to provide a pleasant enough stroll with two veteran actors going for one last cinematic adventure. Nick Offerman has one scene as a guy who sells them their hiking equipment and Kristen Schaal steals her scenes as an extremely annoying fellow hiker they encounter along the way. The supporting cast includes Emma Thompson as Redford's wife, who doesn't want him to hike the trail. But that's not really the point of the movie, which is simply that trying is enough. Redford has obviously kept himself in better shape but neither one looks like he stands a snowball's chance in Hell of making it to the end of the more than 2,0000 mile long trail. Nick Nolte and Robert Redford were 73 and 77, respectively, when they filmed this movie. Picture a more lighthearted geezer version of Wild and you have A Walk in the Woods. Along the way they experience a few mildly comic adventures that includes an encounter with a bear or two and getting trapped overnight on a ledge. Redford and Nolte play two old guys who decide to hike the entire length of the Appalachian Trail - from Georgia to Maine. After Newman's death in 2008 the project was put on hold and was finally made in 2015 with Nick Nolte in the part originally intended for Newman. Robert Redford and Nick Nolte go for A Walk in the Woods.īased on the 1998 book of the same name by travel writer Bill Bryson, A Walk in the Woods was originally envisioned as one last team-up between Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

A walk in the woods book summary