Tiki Movies

Tiki Movies

Tiki Movies

One of the earliest movies to feature a tiki theme was Hei Tiki, shot in 1935. A classic movie still popular among tiki aficionados, Hei Tiki features a mysterious neck pendant said to be a love charm. The hei tiki originates with the Maori of New Zealand, and is believed to be related to the tiki statues found in Polynesia.

Another well-known movie from this era is "Kon-Tiki." This Norwegian documentary traces the Kon-Tiki expedition of Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl. In 1947, he journeyed from South America to Polynesia on a wooden raft to prove the theory that the islands could have been populated from the east, rather than from the west, as had been assumed. The movie received an Academy Award in 1951. To the present day, it is the only feature film from Norway to win an Academy Award.

Perhaps the most well-known movie to come out of the tiki craze is "Blue Hawaii." Set in Hawaii, this musical film featured Elvis Presley. His most successful film, the plot featured a soldier returning to Hawaii, mirroring the experiences of thousands of young men who returned home following World War II with souveniers of the Pacific that would spark the tiki craze. The soundtrack to the movie topped the charts in its own right, with Hawaiian-influenced tunes like "Rock-a-Hula Baby" and "Ku-u-ipo" featuring the ukulele and other traditional Hawaiian sounds.

By the 1961 debut of "Blue Hawaii", the tiki fad was in full swing on the mainland. Shot on location, mainly in Waikiki, this movie dramatically increased the popularity of the island paradise of Hawaii. Both "Blue Hawaii" and his later Hawaiian movie "Girl Happy" also feature scenes in tiki bars.

"Blue Hawaii" wasn't the only tiki movie of the decade. 1963's "Under the Yum-Yum Tree" featured Jack Lemmon as a bachelor whose apartment was filled with iconic tiki sculptures and Africana. His swanky bachelor pad is a classic example of tiki decorating from the 1950s and 1960s, or the height of the tiki craze.

Many movies coming out of this era featured scenes in tiki bars, which started popping up all over the country in the 1930s, and remained wildly popular well into the 1960s. The original "Oceans 11," for example, features a scene with a tiki mask, and one of the characters asks "Remember those rum drinks we used to have at the Trader's?" in reference to the Trader Vic's chain of tiki restaurants. As for newer films featuring tiki, take a look at "Goodfellas," released in 1990. This movie features a scene with Joe Pesci in a tiki bar named The Bamboo Lounge. Unfortunately, a few scenes later the tiki lounge is torched.

Whether you are a tiki aficionado or want to get a little inspiration for decorating your own tiki lounge, these popular tiki-themed movies are worth a watch! Grab a few friends, make some mai tais, and enjoy a tiki movie night.

Royal Tiki has a wide range of Tiki, hand-carved on Hawaii. Also check for Tiki bar decor specials

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