14 of the Best Wilderness Movies

The Great Outdoors: 1988 (PG)

A Chicago man and his family go camping with his obnoxious brother-in-law.

The Call of the Wild: 1997 (PG)

Jack London’s classic story from 1903 about Buck, a dog kidnapped from his home in California and taken to the Yukon where he is mistreated until a prospector discovers him and relates to his situation. Although the two are bonded, Buck yearns to run free with the wild dogs in the wilderness.

Wild: 2014 (R)

A chronicle of one woman’s one thousand one hundred mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent personal tragedy.

Into the Wild: 2007 (R)

After graduating from Emory University, top student and athlete Christopher McCandless abandons his possessions, gives his entire $24,000 savings account to charity and hitchhikes to Alaska to live in the wilderness. Along the way, Christopher encounters a series of characters that shape his life.

White Fang: 1991 (PG)

Jack London’s classic adventure story about the friendship developed between a Yukon gold hunter and the mixed dog-wolf he rescues from the hands of a man who mistreats him.

Everest: 2015 (PG-13)

The story of New Zealand’s Robert “Rob” Edwin Hall, who on May 10, 1996, together with Scott Fischer, teamed up on a joint expedition to ascend Mount Everest.

Swiss Family Robinson: 1960 (G)

A Swiss family must survive being shipwrecked on a deserted island.

Alaska: 1996 (PG)

While searching for their missing father in the mountains of Alaska, two siblings come across a baby polar bear on the run from a pair of poachers.

Legends of the Fall: 1994 (R)

In the early 1900s, three brothers and their father living in the remote wilderness of Montana are affected by betrayal, history, love, nature, and war.

A River Runs Through It: 1992 (PG)

Two sons of a stern minister – one reserved, one rebellious – grow up in rural 1920s Montana while devoted to fly fishing.

Old Yeller: 1957

A teenage boy grows to love a stray yellow dog while helping his mother and younger brother run their Texas homestead while their father is away on a cattle drive. First thought to be good-for-nothing mutt, Old Yeller is soon beloved by all.

Where the Red Fern Grows: 1974 (G)

Where the Red Fern Grows is a heartwarming and adventurous tale for all ages about a young boy and his quest for his own red-bone hound hunting dogs.

Far From Home: The Adventure of Yellow Dog: 1995 (PG)

Angus McCormick adopts a stray dog and names him Yellow. Several days later, while traveling along the coast of British Columbia with his father, John, he and Yellow become stranded when turbulent waters capsize their boat. John and his wife, Katherine, relentlessly badger rescue teams. Angus, schooled by John in wilderness survival skills, and assisted by intelligent Yellow, tries to attract rescuers.