KON TIKI REVIEW

KON TIKI Directed by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg Written By Petter Skavlan and Allan Scott Stars: Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen It was an insane proposition: to drift on a raft from Peru in South America across the Pacific Ocean to Tahiti, in order to prove that ancient races populated Polynesia by travelling ocean currents. Thor Heyerdahl (Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen), a Norwegian Zoologist and Anthropologist, tries to sell this theory for many years but few in the mainstream academic accept its validity. Heyerdahl’s a driven individual and he decides to recruit some war buddies and academic associate’s and, in 1947, sets out from Peru on a raft constructed from rudimentary balsa wood and other materials that would’ve been available to the ancient peoples he’s following in the tracks of. They have no fall back plan, nothing but a radio as their saving grace should they need rescue. This tale is etched into Norwegian popular culture with Heyerdahl something of a national treasure but as a protagonist in this story; he is (by all reports, quite accurately) depicted as inscrutable and willing to sacrifice all to achieve a goal. The members of his rag tag crew are more relatable, many of them in it for the adventure and the life experience; one crew member Herman Watzinger (Anders Baasmo Christiansen) is a former Engineer and sometime refrigerator salesman and appears to be the only voice of reason in the face of Heyerdahl’s totalitarian obsession. As a story, Kon Tiki takes off at the mid-point, Co-Director’s Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s CG depictions of ocean creatures and wild storms as the men drift relentlessly are beautifully handled and the mounting dramatic intensity and high adventure make up for the perfunctory character introductions and odd plotting in the early stages. As a story of obsession and Heyerdahl’s inner life, it barely scratches the surface; as a boy’s own adventure and a salute to the crazy brave, it’s a terrific tale. JARROD WALKER