New York Times
"[T]hough the film's structure may be tragic, its spirit is anything but. It is infused with an expansive, almost giddy sense of possibility, and it communicates a pure, unaffected delight in open spaces, fresh air and bright sunshine." 09/21/2007 p.E1USA Today
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "[T]he film is a haunting and moving experience, highlighted by evocative original music by Eddie Vedder." 09/21/2007 p.12D Entertainment Weekly
"[W]ritten and directed with magnificent precision and imaginative grace....It's an intensely physical movie..." -- Grade: A- 09/28/2007 p.86 Rolling Stone
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "Penn, in tandem with the superb cinematographer Eric Gautier, captures the majesty and terror of the wilderness in ways that makes you catch your breath." 10/04/2007 p.85 Total Film
4 stars out of 5 -- "[A]n eco-road movie that refreshes and invigorates. Exquisitely shot, robustly acted and deeply felt, it's a potent ode to wanderlust and human pluck." 11/01/2007 p.58 Empire
4 stars out of 5 -- "Penn has evidently soaked up his Terrence Malick. But with its thoughtful pace and loose structure, his depiction of the McCandless odyssey also recalls Lynch's THE STRAIGHT STORY." 10/19/2007 p.70 Uncut
4 stars out of 5 -- "As the wide-eyed hero, Hirsch is excellent....This is Penn's big auteur statement on our times....It has more soul in its sprawl than any other film this year." 12/01/2007 p.133 Sight and Sound
"With its swooping hunger for landscape and new experience, it plunges headlong into the giddy, passionate convictions of its hero..." 12/01/2007 p.48-49 Rolling Stone
Ranked #3 in Rolling Stone's "10 Best Movies Of 2007" -- "This is personal filmmaking at its soaring best. Penn honors his subject and the courage it takes to push boundaries." 12/27/2007 p.120 Ultimate DVD
5 stars out of 5 -- "Director and book adapter Sean Penn has the greatest eye for composition of any successful actor turned film-maker since Clint Eastwood..." 04/01/2008 p.81 | 
