10 Must-Watch Raft Movies

Description: Two young cousins are shipwrecked and must survive on a deserted island. They use a raft to explore their surroundings, which plays a significant role in their story of growing up and falling in love.

Fact: The film was controversial for its depiction of teenage sexuality, leading to multiple versions being released.

Description: This film recounts the famous mutiny on the HMS Bounty. After the mutiny, the crew uses a raft to escape to Tahiti, highlighting the raft's role in their escape plan.

Fact: The film was shot on location in Tahiti, providing a visually stunning backdrop to the historical drama.

Description: A family rafting trip turns into a nightmare when they encounter armed robbers. The raft becomes both their means of escape and a battleground.

Fact: Meryl Streep performed many of her own stunts, including white-water rafting, to add authenticity to her role.

Description: While not primarily about a raft, the film features a scene where characters use a raft to cross a river, only to be hunted by man-eating lions.

Fact: The film is based on the true story of the Tsavo maneaters, two lions that killed workers during the construction of the Uganda Railway.

Description: After a plane crash, three men must survive in the Alaskan wilderness. They construct a raft to cross a river, which becomes a critical part of their survival strategy.

Fact: The film features a famous line by Anthony Hopkins, "What one man can do, another can do," which has become a meme for survival situations.

Description: This film captures the harrowing tale of the Andrea Gail, a commercial fishing vessel caught in the "perfect storm" of 1991. While not exclusively about a raft, the crew's desperate attempt to survive using makeshift rafts and lifeboats is central to the plot.

Fact: The film was based on a real event, and the special effects team recreated the storm using a combination of practical effects and CGI, making it one of the most realistic storm sequences in cinema.

Description: A young Indian boy named Pi finds himself stranded on a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger after a shipwreck. This film beautifully explores themes of faith, survival, and the human spirit through the lens of a raft journey.

Fact: The film used a mix of real animals, animatronics, and CGI to bring the tiger, Richard Parker, to life, with the latter being a significant technical achievement.

Description: This film dramatizes Thor Heyerdahl's 1947 expedition where he and his crew sailed from Peru to Polynesia on a balsa wood raft to prove his theory about the Polynesian migration.

Fact: The original Kon-Tiki expedition was documented in a book and a documentary, both of which won Oscars.

Description: Based on a true story, this film recounts the Coast Guard's daring rescue of the crew from the SS Pendleton, which split in half during a storm. The survivors use a makeshift raft to stay afloat until help arrives.

Fact: The film was shot in Chatham, Massachusetts, where the actual event took place, adding authenticity to the setting.

Description: A documentary that revisits the 1973 experiment where a diverse group of people lived on a raft in the Pacific Ocean to study human behavior under extreme conditions.

Fact: The original experiment was conducted by Mexican anthropologist Santiago Genovés, who aimed to study peace and conflict.