★★★★
“Kon-Tiki” is a masterfully told story about the triumph of
the human spirit and the will to succeed at all costs. The film tells the story
of Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl (Pål Sverre Valheim Hagen). He is out to
prove, in the year 1946, that ancient Peruvians from the east settled the
Polynesian islands rather than Asians from the west as originally thought. No
one will publish his theory without any kind of definitive proof.
To prove his theory, he builds a balsawood raft using the
same techniques that would have been used by the ancient peoples 1,500 years
ago. He gathers a crew of five other men including Herman Watzinger (Anders
Baasmo Christiansen), a struggling engineer from Norway living in New York
City. With the help of the Peruvian government, the six set out on their raft
called the Kon-Tiki, named after the Incan sun god. Tiki made this 5,000 mile
journey, according to Heyerdahl, on a similar raft and discovered the islands
first.
“Kon-Tiki” is brilliantly told and showcases many raw emotions
from its performers. Hagen plays the part with such delicacy. He’s a man with great
ambition that he puts all his faith and trust into his theory. More than
anything, he wants his theory to be correct that he refuses to believe any of
the doubt that is brought before him. He even tries to convince his doubting
wife Liv (Agnes Kittelsen) but she won’t hear any of it; she’s concerned for
his life. But Hagen never shows the doubt in his performance. He plays
Heyerdahl to be a man of great confidence. When staring doubters in the face,
he stands tall and confident the entire time.
Co-directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg have crafted
a visually stunning film. They are a directing team that hasn’t done a whole
lot of work before, but rest assured they’ve earned the right to direct anything
else that comes their way (such as the fifth installment to the “Pirates of the
Caribbean” franchise in 2015 which they’ve just agreed to direct).
Capturing the type of imagery that they’ve done in “Kon-Tiki”
is no easy feat. There have been plenty of films set on the water that have
been very flat and boring in appearance. Watching this film is stunning. Every shot,
even those before the action moves to the water, is beautifully constructed. The
screen is constantly filled in rich, vibrant color.
The filmmakers have even been able to harness an enormous
amount of tension at the appropriate times. They’re very aware of all the
instances when the screenplay calls for moments of intensity. Written by Petter
Skavlan, the script is full of breathtaking moments that call for prefect
execution from the directors in order to make it come across the right way. You’ll
find yourself holding your breath for long periods of time while the intense
tension plays out on the screen. Not till its over will you remember your need
to breathe.
“Kon-Tiki” is a film a great emotional depth, tension and
triumph. There is little to dislike about this film. It is one of the most spectacular
films I’ve ever seen that’s set on the seas. Many films can come to mind that
were all set on the seas either by way of ship wreck or by adventure, but
comparing “Kon-Tiki” to any of them would be doing an enormous disservice to “Kon-Tiki”.
It is a truly original film that tells a story many of us don’t even realize
actually happened. To sit there and watch this story unfold, you can’t help but
wonder how on earth these men actually decided to do this. It’s almost unreal.
But there’s nothing unreal about this story; it actually happened. And it’s a beautiful
and breathtaking story to watch.
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