User reviews

'Erik' was quite cute and had some absolutely brilliant moments but overall wasn't as tight and consistently funny as I was hoping. There were quite a few sections that seemed to wander along pointlessly; what a pity!

Tim Robbins was fine in a cutesy, little boy way which is, I guess, what he was supposed to be. I couldn't help wishing he had a tad more substance. Cleese's role seemed generally uninspired with only brief moments of genius. It was fun, however, seeing Tim McInnerny pre-Blackadder-"Captain Darling" days and Antony Sher made an excellent "trickster" Loki.

It's possible that the print I rented from my local video shop was a bit more dingy than the original, but the stunning scenery (filmed in Norway, Malta and England) lost its effect.

Despite these negatives, it's certainly worth watching at least once, if only for those inspired moments of comedy it contains.

I have a hard time figuring out why Leonard Maltin qualified this movie as an "unwatchable satire." I've watched it about 3 or 4 times, so obviously it is watchable. Not only that, it is quite funny, with Terry Jones hilarious as King Arnulf of Hy-Brazil. I also thought Tim Robbins was quite good as the outcast Erik. The story, on the other hand, was pedestrian and not very engrossing, but I was laughing pretty hard most of the time so the story became just a background aspect of this very funny film anyways. John Cleese has a hilarious cameo as Halfdan the Black who runs a torture chamber in his spare time. Also, the Japanese slave driver is one of the highlights. Good entertainment. 8 out of 10 stars.

An average Monty Pythonesque movie set in Dark Ages about a Barbaric warrior, Erik : Tim Robbins, who grows dissastified with his Viking way of life at the era Ragnagok , then he decides to set out to encounter the mythical Aagsgard kingdom, by blowing three times a supernatural horn, and where Norse Gods inhabit. By the way he joins a misfit and motley crew :Tim McInnerny, Freddie Jones, Anthony Sher. .., embarking into an orgy of fighting, destructiveness and battles . Our hero attempts to execute a prophecy told by a cave-dewelling witch-seer-hag, Freya : Eartha Kitt, to arrive in Hy-Brasil : Atlantis, ruled by a nasty king, Terry Jones, who has a beautiful daughter : Imogen Stubbs falling for Erik, and towards the edge of world by blowing the Horn Resounding in a legendary island, to get awakening the Gods dewelling at a fantastic location and achieving them to release the sun that formerly has been swallowed by Fenrir the Wolf.

This weird movie is a blending of Monty Python farce with Simbad the Sailor but no much laughs and amusement . An indulgent delight in making fantasies come to life, including wonders, irreverence, sense of wonderful style, researched detail, and a lot of incidental pleasures. Here a Viking hero meets villians, Gods as Thor and Odin dwelling at Walhalla and strange adventures. The picture is filled with bizarre roles and rare nombres as Thorfinn, Sven the Bersek, the blacksmith Loki and the very evil indeed Haydon the Black played by John Cleese giving a dry delivery . Fashionable camera work by cinematographer Ian Wilson , splendidly photographed mainly in white and brown , as well as rousing, epic musical score by Neal Innes . This is the scattershot tale of how Erik, a real character, arriving in the edge of world, and he attempts to terminate the age of warfare by besting a dragon on the North Sea. The movie results to be mediocre, athough there are a few laughs and chuckles mainly provided by an invisible sheet who wears Tim Robbins and the dry delivery by villain Halfelam wryly played by the always great John Cleese. Too tall Tim Robbins plays a kind of lovelorn gentle and simple , dismayed by the daily drudgery of rampage, ravage, conquest, pilllage and rape. This Tim Robbins vehicle proves as ramshackle as a Viking hut, as unwieldly as a Viking sword. Support cast is good but frankly wasted. Acting range from hysterical to exaggerated. There intervene notorious secondaries as Mickey Rooney, Imogen Stubbs, John Cleese, Tim McInnerny, Freddie Jones, and brief interpretations from Jim Broadbent , Eartha Kitt, John Sinclair, and Terry Jones himself. And Samantha Bond, subsequetly MoneyPenny in James Bond saga. it contains decent production design and lavish scenaries, adding traditional as well as modern special effects.

The motion picture was middlingly directed by Terry Jones, one of the main members of Monty Phyton. This is a post-Python frolic inspired by his own Norse saga children's book. It is not very fun movie, nor well directed, not exciting but being entertaining enough . Jones wrote and directed various Monty Phytonesque films as The Holy Grail,The meaning of life, Life of Brian, Personal services and Mr Toad's wild ride. Rating 6/10. Passable and acceptable but a so-so film and it is inferior than other Monty Python movies.

In true Python alum fashion, this movie is rewatchable (despite what Maltin says) and a lot of fun each time you watch it. Tim Robbins does his usual good job in a light-hearted but sensitive role; and possibly the best line of the movie is John Cleese's reaction to Robbins when Robbins *believes* himself to be invisible, declaring: "Now you see me, now you don't!" Cleese's reaction has me laughing out loud every time.

Behind all the fun and games, though, Terry Jones has done some pretty darn clever commentary on belief systems and epistemology; the fact that you can only be affected by that particular brand of magic in which you believe is a strong idea which rings nicely throughout the movie. (The addition of the priest character drives the point home nicely.) Interesting ideas, which I'd bet are ignored by most people just out for a good time (which is okay too, since it's a funny movie).

Well, Erik essentially IS an anti-hero - all his filmed adventures start when he sets out to right that unfortunate mishap during the looting and raping raid. Great comedic performance from Tim Robbins, very believable Industrious Torturer Cleese, unforgettable Jones as the King of high Brazil and the lovely Imogen Stubbs - what else can you ask for?! What about a magic dish cloth, you say - well, we've got that too!

Not a great movie but very good & very watchable. I've seen it 3 times now over the last twelve years. Several very funny laughs and amusing throughout. I would recommend it to anyone who likes Tim Robbins or the Pythoner's

From Monty Python team member Terry Jones comes this mildly amusing spoof of Norse mythology, which he wrote and directed. Tim Robbins plays the title character, a young man who's brave enough to want to embark on an epic journey. He actually has the nerve to want to ask the gods to end the days of "Ragnarok" - basically, the end of the world. Several of his peers accompany him, and they have a variety of off the wall encounters as well as dangers to overcome.

It's true that if you only look at this as a comedy, you might have a fairly entertaining time. But there's more going on here than silliness, as Jones explores ideas of belief and denial, and how power can come to those who believe. His serious themes are unexpected, but welcome. In truth, this viewer never found the comedy that funny. He even thought it just felt off at times. The fact that it works to any degree at all is due largely to an eclectic cast, who play their material for everything that it's worth. You've got a remarkably sincere Robbins, Mickey Rooney (as his grandfather) and Eartha Kitt in cameos, and such distinguished British thespians as Jones himself (who plays King Arnulf), John Cleese (who's great as always, playing nasty bad guy Halfdan the Black), Antony Sher, Charles McKeown, Tim McInnerny, Freddie Jones, and Jim Broadbent. You also get the very lovely Imogen Stubbs (as Jones' princess daughter) and Samantha Bond.

Certainly a quality look is created for the movie, with lots of fine location work, atmosphere, and visuals. There's a rousing score by composer Neil Innes, and even an entertainingly shoddy looking "dragon".

The ending is rather abrupt, but up until then Jones does deliver some chuckles and food for thought.

Six out of 10.

I watched this movie twice - first about 15 years ago, second just yesterday. As much as I enjoyed most of Monty Python and post-Monty Python individual work by all members of the team, two major disappointments including this one. Second was Graham Chapman' Yellowbeard.

It is interesting, that Yellowbeard is disappointing in similar way - despite all the good actors and potentially good ideas behind the script, these movies never quite work. They almost do, they carry you from scene to scene with desire to see what happens next, but either nothing really interesting happens, or something wacky, undercooked and utterly unbelievable. So you vacillate, either to be bored to death or to get drunk or worse.

Unlike Graham Chapman movie, this one is not as chaotic and actors are working pretty much on the same level. Still, some scenes come across as childishly silly, while some others are unfunny as crude representations of rather sad reality. Each and every scene runs a little too long and overstays its welcome. I started with few giggles in the first half, and the last half was a bit of a torture to finish.

Much good stuff is getting wasted in rather shallow spoofing - fascinating historical material with Hy-Brasil, Norse mythology, customs and practices of the era, all of it does not quite reach the highs of Holy Grail. Wonderful idea about gods being children is presented in utterly underwhelming way too. It seems that most of the script and editing need just a little twist, slightly different angle to make it shine and perhaps editing needs to be a little more aggressive to cut out the overindulgent bits.

But alas.

As it is, It is neither good reconstruction of history, nor solid comedy - again, Monty Python' Holy Grail reaches unbelievable highs in both.

British comedian Terry Jones found fame and fortune as a member of the legendary comedy troupe known as Monty Python, where along his teammates revolutionized comedy with their sketch show "Flying Circus" during the 70s. While this is probably his most well-known activity, Jones is also a popular historian, specialized on the European Medieval period, who has published several books on this and other subjects of ancient history. In 1983, after the dissolution of Monthy Python, Jones published a children's book named "The Saga of Erik the Viking", where he explored this interest of him in the story of a young Viking. Years later, he wrote the screenplay for a movie version inspired in the children's book, although dealing more mature themes. "Erik the Viking" was the name of the movie and it is possibly the movie that best describes Jones' persona, as it mixes the style of Monthy Python comedy (although it is not a sketch-based movie) with Jones' special taste for ancient history.

The film is the story of Erik (Tim Robbins), a viking who after the murder of an innocent woman during one of his tribe's expedition, discovers that he is not really happy with the whole raping and pillaging customs of his people. Looking for advice, Erik asks the wise old woman Freya (Eartha Kitt) for a solution, and she tells him that since Fenris the Wolf has swallowed the sun, the age of violence, Ragnarok, has begun. Worried by this revelation, Erik decides to travel to the legendary land of Hy-Brasil, in order to find the Horn Resounding, the magic artifact that will take him to Asgard and awake the Gods. With this in mind, Erik prepares an expedition and sails to adventure; but Halfdan the Black (John Cleese) and Keitel Blacksmith (Gary Cady) are not so happy about finishing the lucrative business of war, so both decide to follow Erik in order to make him fail.

While the movie is not exactly an adaptation of Jones' children's book, his love for history is still all over the movie, as it's filled with countless references to Norse myths and Viking culture. Python's style of comedy is present in a subtler (although no less hilarious) way, and like in his previous work, Jones uses "Erik" to make fun of concepts as the social establishment, war, and religion. This last theme is represented in a very interesting way, with the concept of faith and beliefs playing a very important (and amusing) part of Erik's quest to awake the Gods. However, despite Jones' love for history, people expecting a true and realistic representation of a Norse Edda will be sorely disappointed, as Jones takes many liberties for the sake of comedy (and probably to make his movie easier to understand for people not familiar with Norse mythology).

In this his third "solo" effort as director (two of the Python films were co-directed with Terry Gilliam), Terry Jones shows the evolution of what was started in "Life of Brian", as while his movie is a story of epic proportions, he keeps the film focused on his characters and their many funny traits. This really works for the movie, as while Erik's crew is numerous, each one is highly detailed and Jones dedicates enough time to get to know everyone of them, developing them as characters and as a team, and making the audience care for them. This take is also beneficial as lessens the damage done by the poor special effects (due to low-budget) of some scenes, although to Jones' credit, the way he fuses realism with magic surrealism is also a brilliant move. The somewhat restrained way that Jones uses to approach to comedy this time (keeping it focused to the plot instead of using sketches) is also more in tone with "Life of Brian" than with the other Monty Python films.

Tim Robbins is perfectly cast as Erik, as his really becomes this good hearted, yet extremely naive adventurer, decided to stop the wars of the world. Robbins' career was at an early stage when he did this film, but already shows his talent and is very good with Jones' style of comedy. Monthy Python's John Cleese is fabulous as Halfdan the Black, and steals most of the scenes he is in. Overall the actors playing Erik's crew are really excellent and truly are a key factor in this success of the movie. Imogen Stubbs plays Aud, the princess of Hy-Brasil who tries to help Erik in this quest. Stubbs is effective for the role, although sadly the rest of the cast overshadows her without problem. Mickey Rooney and Terry Jones himself have small yet very funny roles too, and both make the most of their small scenes.

Personally, I think that the movie's biggest problem is actually Terry Jones' background with the Pythons, as this may make fans to expect something keeping the style of the troupe's previous films. While "Erik the Viking" does have it's fair share of Python's humor, it would be wrong to call it a Python movie. Other than the probably too high expectations it probably won't meet, the movie really doesn't have many flaws and it's an excellent satire that delivers the goods without false pretensions. True, it has some serious problems with special effects that could had been better with a bigger budget, but Jones makes the movie work with his mix of wit and charm, as well as his knowledge of medieval cultures.

"Erik the Viking" is definitely an unfairly underrated comedy that while never on the level of classic Monty Python's Flying Circus, it provides some fun intelligent comedy paired with an interesting story of action and adventure. It's flawed, but has a special charm that just makes the whole movie work without problem. As a satire it's really good, and despite its few historical inaccuracies, it's a nice piece of Viking action. Truly a movie that really deserves a viewing. 8/10

Poor comedy from Monty Python's Terry Jones. The plot's about a disillusioned Viking named Erik (Tim Robbins) who goes on a quest to the Land of Hy-Brasil to end Ragnarok. Starts off giving you a few chuckles here and there. Within half an hour the laughs are gone. Robbins is OK and actually does better than most of his British costars, who ham it up with a smug satisfaction that they are in a surefire comedy classic. The sets and effects are a mixed bag. Sometimes I was impressed, sometimes not. The story is loosely based on a children's book Jones wrote called "The Saga of Erik the Viking." If you get the chance you should read the book as it's much better than this film.

Terry Jones is probably the least appreciated member of Monty Python, but viewing `Erik the Viking' should change your opinion on that. The movie's world is bleak and bitter (reading about Norse religion will show you that the Vikings lived in a bleak and bitter world), but Tim Robbins' idealistic and earnest Erik is just sweet and hopeful enough to keep things interesting, rather than completely depressing. The casting is excellent. Particularly noteworthy are Jones himself as a king who quite literally only sees what he wants to see; Eartha Kitt as a very effective and chilling Norse goddess (yeah, it sounds weird, but it's perfectly done); and Antony Sher, whose Loki is equal parts weasel and villain. You'll be disappointed if you come in expecting over-the-top Pythonesque zany-ness, but to me, this movie felt like a maturation of that style. The satire is still there but it's more sober than frenetic. I only rated this movie an 8 because I don't watch it very often, but it's probably my favorite of all the Pythons' solo projects.

I guess I was expecting more of a pure comedy than a more of a serious note fantasy comedy when I first heard of 'Eric The Viking'. It certainly isn't a dead laughter, thought it has some bits that just make you to chuckle out loud.

The style of the film resembles a bit of Terry Gilliams Jabberwocky, even the style of humour is a quite same, but this shouldn't be any surprise considering the power behind the film, which of course is Terry Jones of 'Monty Python' fame. Out of other Pythonites John Cleese pops in to do a small role as a baddie of the film.

Eric (soft spoken Tim Robbins) is a viking, who questions his way of living: the pillaging, raping and killing. So he is set on a quest to enter Valhalla to wake the gods and end the age of Ragnarok, so that the sun might finally shine upon the frozen north and the people would stop killing each other. And of course on the way they stumble upon troubles and comedic situations.

All things considering the film has some pretty good puns and even some of the scenery and special effects managed to impress me quite a bit. The biggest problem of the film would be the script, as it did cut corners out of the story quite a bit. But at least all the main things get out explained pretty well, so the film doesn't leave any questions hanging too loose in the air.

This movie was a brainchild of the venerable Pythons (Monty python's flying circus, Yellowbeard, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian) and while only a couple of them are in it, it has their usual stamp of silliness and political incorrectness. The python troup has several history professors among it and thus their historical flicks, while silly, also usually manage to work some real history into the mix. Anyone familiar with the viking belief system and legends will really enjoy this movie for its correctness and attention to detail in that regard. While there are many amusing parts of the movie, I found the Christian priest that accompanyied them and couldn't see any of the viking gods (because that was not his belief system), perhaps the most amusing part of the whole movie.

Horrible beginning. It's sort of like a high school student watched Monty Python and then did a bad imitation. It's sort of like when you're watching that late night show on Saturday and most the skits are just a long run on joke, isn't this annoying. Isn't this funny just because it's so annoying and doesn't end and keeps going on. Great costumes. Great actors. It should be great because the actors are great. OK I'm just at the beginning. Let's see if it gets better. A theme emerged at the beginning which is that Erik has a heart which isn't right for a pillaging viking. The next thing puts him on a quest. 50 minutes in and it's the same type of sketch. Really annoying music and the joke is that the annoying music doesn't stop. This fight scene at 65 minutes is good. The scene ending at 80 minutes is good. Well played. I can't tell you if Tim Robbins gets to Zihuatanejo but I am invested in the characters now and I do like what happens. The ending is like Space Odyssey with a more clear, more Vikingesque meaning

Erik the Viking Horrible beginning. It's sort of like a high school student watched Monty Python and then did a bad imitation. It's sort of like when you're watching that late night show on Saturday and most the skits are just a long run on joke, isn't this annoying. Isn't this funny just because it's so annoying and doesn't end and keeps going on. Great costumes. Great actors. It should be great because the actors are great. OK I'm just at the beginning. Let's see if it gets better. A theme emerged at the beginning which is that Erik has a heart which isn't right for a pillaging viking. The next theme puts him on a quest. 50 minutes in and it's the same type of sketch. Really annoying music and the joke is that the annoying music doesn't stop. This fight scene at 65 minutes is good. The scene ending at 80 minutes is good. Well played. I can't tell you if Tim Robbins gets to Zihuatanejo but I am invested in the characters now and I do like what happens. The ending is like Space Odyssey with a more clear, more Vikingesque meaning.

Seen as a poor relation to true-Python movies (even forgotten), it tells the tale of a young adventurous Viking, Erik, who sets out on a quest to find Asgard. Along with a selection of other Norsk villagers, they sail into the unknown, encounter a sea monster and stumble across the idyllic 'Hy-Brazil', a land ruled by King Arnulf (Director, Terry Jones) who keeps insisting that in the face of adversity "It's alright. It's not happening".

The badness in this piece is care of Halfdan the Black (John Cleese) and delivered in typical Cleese fashion. Loki ((now) Sir Anthony Sher) plays to Halfdan as a crooked little stoolpigeon, only looking to improve his standing and possible gains.

Sadly, no other members of the original Python team played a part in this film as, rumour has it, after the death of Graham Chapman (in October of 1989), the remaining Pythons. Gilliam, Palin and Idle, decided not to appear.

Erik The Viking is a light comedy with occasional droplets of Python rain, gently falling about the story. Director, Terry Jones, relies on a pair of old-school character actors who number his and many Python films: John Scott Martin (Ingemund the Old) and Charles McKeown (Sven's Dad).

Jones allowed his cast to keep their mother-tongues: Tim Robbins (Erik) and Mickey Rooney (Erik's Grandfather) keep their American drawls and John Gordon Sinclair (Ivar), his broad Scottish accent. One of the best interactions is between Ivar and Thorofinn, discussing seasickness aboard their boat and a welcome diversion comes in the shape of 28yr old Imogen Stubbs (Princess Aud).

In the end, it's just a bit of fun and serves as a good 'hors d'oeuvre' to anyone who needs a gentle initiation into the world of Python.

This is really a tale of two movies -- the film suffers from a groaningly bad opening half hour which had me tempted to simply turn it off, but having nothing better to do, I stuck with it, and my perseverence was rewarded. The 45 minutes at the heart of the film is often hilarious, and reminiscent of Python at its best.

Right, so judging by the 5.7 score this film has, I realise I'm in a minority here... Well I'm sorry, but this is such a wonderful film! The story is great, the cast is fantastic, effects are good, soundtrack is lovely, and excluding the first fifteen minutes, which are crucial for the storyline, it is hilarious throughout! Unlike other Python films, this one is real, with no silly cartoon bits in the middle and a much more intelligent humour. Much better than The Holy Grail, that had a rubbish end to it.

Well done Terry, it's a great shame that not more viewers have come across Eric The Viking, or didn't like it as much (I have a feeling that many of them were expecting a typical Python film).

Erik the Viking (Tim Robbins) has been looting and pillaging. He's not so sure about the raping and that leaves him questioning his way of life. Freya sets him to search for the Horn Resounding. He recruits his restless warriors on a quest for the Rainbow Bridge to Valhalla. They battle a sea monster and the pursuing Halfdan the Black (John Cleese) to find the magical island of Hy-Brasil. There is Princess Aud (Imogen Stubbs) with her father King Arnulf (Terry Jones).

Terry Jones has injected plenty of Monty Python but the gang is not all there. It makes one pining for the gang to reunite. Robbins is fine but one keeps imagining others in the role. The opening rapey scene is a good introduction. There are some fun moments. All of them have echoes of previous works and it can never exceed them.

It's amazing to see several ex-Monty Pythoners, a big budget, Vikings and Tim Robbins all conspire to made a long, ponderous and dreadfully dull film. I wanted to like this movie so much but ended up hating it! This is really amazing that the results came off so badly. I mean, how can you make a comedic Viking epic dull and unfunny??!! There is so much possibility for fun and excitement but it all comes to nothing.

So what have you got in the movie? Amazing sets that must have cost a fortune, occasionally interesting moments (brief as they were), sterile and uninteresting characters and no sense that any editing or re-writing was done at any point. maybe it was funny to those involved with making it, but audiences were stupefied by it.

By the way, one review says this is "definitely a Python movie". Don't believe it. Despite the work of SOME ex-Python members, this film seems to have nothing to do with the brilliant show or their films. Don't make the mistake of thinking this film in any way is reminiscent of their work.