Contains Spoilers
Kon-Tiki is basically an adventure film. Well involves 6 men sailing a raft from Peru to Polynesia. Which is bluntly quite an adventure. In fact that is the chief merit of the movie watching these men face storm, sun and all the rages of the ocean on a long ocean voyage. At that level this is a wonderful movie. It does not lack in excitement and engages the viewer, who identifies with our brave and intrepid sailors.
The idea that this voyage was meant to help prove fares less well. First the voyage didn't quite make it all the way but got wreaked on a reef. Secondly despite what some of the other reviews have said Thor Heyerdahl's hypothesis has been effectively proved wrong. Linguistic and genetic studies reveal that the Polynesians did indeed come from East Asia, as the fact that they speak an Austroasiatic language would indicate anyway. Since Thor's voyage 60 years+ have gone by and his idea now has little if any viability. Thor Heyerdahl pooh-poohed the navigational skills of the Polynesians and did not believe that they could have colonized Polynesia by sailing against prevailing winds and currents. Well it appears that is exactly what was done.
Still all in all an exciting sailing yarn and worth watching.
Kon-Tiki is basically an adventure film. Well involves 6 men sailing a raft from Peru to Polynesia. Which is bluntly quite an adventure. In fact that is the chief merit of the movie watching these men face storm, sun and all the rages of the ocean on a long ocean voyage. At that level this is a wonderful movie. It does not lack in excitement and engages the viewer, who identifies with our brave and intrepid sailors.
The idea that this voyage was meant to help prove fares less well. First the voyage didn't quite make it all the way but got wreaked on a reef. Secondly despite what some of the other reviews have said Thor Heyerdahl's hypothesis has been effectively proved wrong. Linguistic and genetic studies reveal that the Polynesians did indeed come from East Asia, as the fact that they speak an Austroasiatic language would indicate anyway. Since Thor's voyage 60 years+ have gone by and his idea now has little if any viability. Thor Heyerdahl pooh-poohed the navigational skills of the Polynesians and did not believe that they could have colonized Polynesia by sailing against prevailing winds and currents. Well it appears that is exactly what was done.
Still all in all an exciting sailing yarn and worth watching.