Walking The Camino. Six ways to Santiago * * *

You could be forgiven for asking why I’m reviewing a film that was released nearly two years ago.  It’s because it’s only just been released in Australia.  Don’t know why, but it was slow getting here.  Maybe someone walked it here.
A quick background: The Camino Trail is a 500 mile walk in northern Spain that pilgrims used to undertake. It starts at St Jean Pied de Port and concludes at Santiago. It's never stopped being used.  Probably because people have never stopped searching for something meaningful in their lives.  We all know a walk round the block can help clear your head, imagine what an 800 kilometre walk could do for you. Quite a bit, according to the participants in this documentary, and to be honest I believe them.  Watching people on a self-indulgent exercise can be rather tedious. Like some of those awful docos of some wanker who wants to climb a mountain or sail across an ocean and believes the whole world should be interested and want to cheer him on and give a damn when he blubbers to the accompanying camera crew how hard it is.  (Yeah! Well how about I make a doco of me writing these reviews and I can whinge about how hard that is).
But this lot aren’t bad.  In fact they’re quite likable.  Probably because the doco maker asked if she could follow them, rather than them asking to be followed.  It focuses on six hikers and the people they meet. You’ve got young people, middle aged and older people all giving it a go.  One lady is pushing a stroller with an infant (impressive).  There’s a couple of older guys who are best mates.  A couple who each determined to walk it alone but became friends on day one and stayed that way. A young man who meets up with a terrific bunch of blokes full of generosity and humour. And many more individual tales.
So they modestly and honestly talk about what they’re doing and why - some don't’ even know why.  They’re hoping to find out when they get there. But as they say it’s the journey that counts, not the destination. And as one of the participants says “Whatever it is you hope to find at the end you need to carry it with you all the way through the journey”. (That’s not bad).  
They come to tiredness, weakness, blisters (of course).  The documentary shows us the albergues which are resting places for pilgrims.  Walkers can sleep there and get refreshments.  There is a lot of admirable caring, humanity, humility and decency to be seen. (Though you don’t have to Google for long to get a less romanticised insight into the Camino Trail).
In the end none seem to have had a real epiphany so much as a sense of jubilation that they did it: though who knows what each feels inside?  
But I wonder if walking all day is just an excuse to do nothing with the pretence that you are actually doing something important (motion suggests purpose). Just because you’re walking some trail that pilgrims used to walk hundreds of years ago that doesn’t make your walk signficant.  Or does it? The documentary certainly makes it alluring.  I’d like to do it.  But I said the same after viewing Wild (which I think is a better “walk” film) and I still haven't got round to that yet. One step at a time hey?