One of the five films nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar last year was Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg’s “Kon-Tiki.” It was the first Norwegian film to be nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe and it was actually filmed in both Norwegian and English. The latter version was released on two screens stateside two weeks ago and is platforming out slowly, moving into more markets today.
I actually liked the film, and really, it’s difficult to not be engaged by the story it tells. The tale of Thor Heyerdahl and his Kon-Tiki expedition is legendary, and the documentary his tiny crew shot aboard that modest vessel as they crossed the Pacific rightly won an Academy Award. Rønning and Sandberg’s film had a shot at the foreign language film Oscar last year because it was a favorite among a great many voters in the category.
The Weinstein Company has offered a 20-minute making-of feature on the film, which you can view at the top of this post. It’s a deep dive behind the scenes on the story with people like Matt Lauer featured as talking heads throughout. If you’re at all interested in Heyerdahl’s wild story, you should see “Kon-Tiki,” but you should also give this feature a look.
Take it away, Maria Menounos.