A rare film that is very suitable for all ages: Kon-Tiki

When I was a kid everyone knew about Kon-Tiki, from Thor Heyerdahl's book, from the documentary, from the general knowledge of pop culture - he was one of teh few explorers of the 1950s, and his story - the daring journey by raft from Peru to Polynesia - was soon displaced by other adventurers such as the Mercury astronauts and, much later, Robert Ballard and the Titanic - but for a time Heyerdahl was a cultural icon. The new move Kon-Tiki brings him back for the 21st century - so strange to think that for young viewers this story will be as remote in time as Stanley and Livingston were to me. The movie, while breaking no new ground, is successful on its own terms: easy to follow and to enjoy, though the outcome is never in doubt there are many exciting scenes, especially once the crew is at last aboard the raft - and encountering a great storm, near-mutiny and perhaps suicide attempts, attacks by sharks and whales, as well as some beautiful sequences like the passage through a crowd of phosphorescent fish. The movie is very suitable for all ages and neither condescending to kids or pandering to adults - such a rarity these days - as well as quite upbeat, with a nice synopsis at the end of what became of each of the men on the raft (seeing real photos of them would have been a plus). Film is Norwegian but acted in English, in an obvious attempt to reach a wide audience and convey Heyerdahl's story to the world once again.