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The movie starts with the 'inter-media res' - an antique technique (e.g. Iliad & Odyssey) used with the aim of connecting viewer with the hero and his quest. It begins with the turning point in Christopher's life - entering Alaska's wilderness. Chris calls this last adventure - The Great Alaskan Odyssey.
...because of his quest and this beginning, Sean Penn relates Christopher to other characters from American literature who have rejected the society and headed into the unknown (in this case into the wild) such as Huckleberry Finn (Mark Twain), Ishmael (Melville’s Moby-Dick) and Nick Adams (Ernest Hemingway).