Kon-tiki 2012
- Director: Joachim Rönning, Espen Sandberg
- Based on the book, sort of, by Thor Heyderdahl
- Cast: Pål Sverre Hagen, Anders Baasmo Christiansson, Gustaf Skarsgård, Odd-Magnus Williamsson, Tobias Santelman, Jakob Oftebro, Agnes Kittelsen
- Personal “oh yeah him/her” reaction, i.e. have seen this actor in:
- Gustaf Skarsgår – 438 dagar
- Jakob Oftebro – Snowman
- Why? I’ve loved the whole idea since my dad bought the book in the 50s.
- Seen: 18th December 2021
Thor Heyderdahl, Norwegian anthropologist,
has a theory that fifteen hundred years ago Peruvians set out westward across
the Pacific Ocean on rafts built of balsam wood to populate the Polynesian
islands. Five thousand miles. Everyone laughs at him. Ridiculous! Impossible!
He decides to prove them wrong by doing
it himself. His wife and sons are not happy about it, but he’s obsessed. He
gets a crew together and off they go.
Storms. Sharks. Illness. Madness. Fear. Conflicts.
At times it’s so dramatic that I’m literally
biting my nails. I love that science is so exciting. And beautiful. And provable.
Maybe now I’ll finally read the book.
5* of 5.
You haven't read the book?! I'm shocked! An absolute classic in its field. I need to re-read it, together with finishing its scientific back-up, the massive (really massive!) "American Indians in the Pacific" (1952) which I've been reading on and off for years. Have you seen the original documentary by Heyerdahl? Primitive by modern standards, of course, but compelling stuff if the Kon-Tiki adventure interests you - and perhaps if Thor is a childhood hero of yours (he is one of my childhood heroes, may he remain so on re-reading). As for this 2012 version, the visuals aside, I wasn't impressed. Much depth, and no little amount of humour, was lost in the adaptation.
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