The search for identity is a prominent theme in all of cinema. The splendor of it all is how characters in films set out to attain said sense of self. Jean-Marc Vallee's latest film "Wild" might not present the most original of concepts initially, but the execution and tremendous performance by Reese Witherspoon deliver an unforgettable experience.

As the film opens the viewer sees a massive landscape with heavy breathing from a woman off-screen. The sounds give off a rather disquieting sense of an intense sexual experience, but moments later the viewer sees that Cheryl (Witherspoon) is actually in physical agony as her nail has been torn from her toe. She then loses her boot and reacts with fury and frustration by chucking her other shoe. In these opening moments, the viewer has a tremendous sense of who this woman is. She is abandoned and alone in the wilderness with no protection. Pain and sexual experience, as the viewer grows to learn, are actually connected in her life. Most importantly, what she does next is completely confounding to both the viewer and her.

The film then jump cuts through a number of quick flashes from her past before settling on the film's title. Then the story jumps back to the start of her quest to hike for 1,100 miles. As the story unravels, the viewer learns about Cheryl's past traumas, her present and her attempts to understand what could potentially lie in her future.

It all makes for a terrifically immersive experience, packed in a somewhat episodic journey. Unlike other such films in which a character attempts to become a stranger of society in order to eventually re-immerse himself/herself back into it, this film is actually filled with choice encounters that will ultimately free Cheryl from her emotional shackles. She might feel that she endangers herself through human contact, but as she learns, her effect can be a powerful one, especially when she least expects it.

Vallee cross-cuts between Cheryl's present and her past in a broad and somewhat chaotic manner. Cheryl's past is not displayed in any sort of chronology but simply through a stream of consciousness that arises from associations she makes with her environment. But the clarity of the events all builds up to the big picture of her past with many sequences taking on even more powerful meaning in their associations. Nowhere is this more present than when Cheryl encounters a horse out in the wilderness. Her reaction, and the memory it brings forth, is a true knockout.

Because he has so much liberty with stream of consciousness structure, he is not afraid to diversify even here. Voiceovers will occasionally pop-up at different intervals to narrate a past event. Sometimes music will lead into a montage without any major dialogue or voice over. At other times, the flashes are rather brief and unsettling, hinting at more to come. There are also plenty of tonal shifts throughout the film that add to the variety of life embedded in its world. Even such touches as using an expletive over one of the title cards to throw the viewer off are rather comic. Cheryl's attempts to pick up her massive kit of supplies are both funny and painful to watch at the same time. There are also some rather suspenseful moments filled with tremendous dread and danger. Sometimes Vallee continues on the dark path and at others he veers from it and turns the viewers' expectations on themselves.

This allows for a truly immersive and suspenseful journey for the viewer. And despite a touching and nuanced climax, the viewer actually leaves the film not feeling as renewed as its protagonist. There is some pandering and preaching in the final stretches of the film as it tries to tie up the entire experience with some sort of meaning. Unfortunately, there is no real need for a message and the attempts to tie it up with some scripted lesson actually cheapens the film and distances the viewer in these final instances.

Witherspoon delivers one of her best performances, if not her best performance, of the year as Cheryl. She exudes a frailty from the get-go and still somehow gives off a sense of fortitude. Her big catharsis at the film's climax is quite beautiful to behold. The rest of the film is layered with notable supporting roles, particularly from Laura Dern who plays Cheryl's ill-fated mother. While Cheryl is introverted throughout, Dern's Bobbi is full of joie-de-vivre and gives the film its emotional center.

"Wild" represents a bold piece of filmmaking from Vallee dominated by Witherspoon's fantastic turn. Many viewers may be turned off by the film's somewhat didactic finish but few will deny the transcendent qualities inherent in the experience.