Jeremiah Johnson (1972)

Jeremiah Johnson, played by Robert Redford, is a man tired and weary of war. He is looking for something new that he can connect with on a spiritual journey to discover the goodness that life beholds. But he must take risk and be persistent in his desires. Setbacks come in both small packages and large. To overcome the hurdles in life Jeremiah must connect with man and nature on a plain of respect, which is earned in the tough Utah Mountains.

As Jeremiah's journey begins he finds out quickly the cost of failure as he almost dies from exposure and starvation. An old trapper, played by Will Greer, finds him and teaches him the ways of the mountains and how to survive. As Jeremiah starts to understand how to adapt he sees success in a different light, one that rewards ingenuity and respect for nature.

1972 is the end of the Viet Nam era. This was a long hard struggle for American's and ended in failure because of an impatient public and bumbling sorry government leaders. We found solace in isolation and a return to our roots. We tried to discover a new way of doing things and became morally bankrupt. We should have, like Jeremiah Johnson, given more respect for the ways of life and endured the hardships needed to capture life's goodness. Instead we tried drugs and alcohol as a means to enlighten our minds and walk the easy path to spiritual nirvana, but found failure instead.

This movie says a lot about our culture and was a road sign of the future that we missed. Maybe now we can in our old age redirect ourselves to seek respect and truth in the old ways of life. The ways of admiration from within using virtues such as honesty, respect for others, connecting with nature and finding a higher power to guide us through the remainder of life.

Sidney Pollack directs a truly remarkable film with great ease asking us to use patience and respect in how we view this film. He wants us to use its message to re-direct our lives for the better of all. He got our attention in the beautiful Utah wilderness. Showed us all the land offers for us to survive but yet we still seek riches and glory that are empty and provide nothing towards our life.

I recommend you watch this movie and think in terms of your life and what you could do to become more like Jeremiah Johnson.