Erik the Viking (1989)

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

The acting in this movie is really good.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

For people thinking, "Oh John Cleese and Terry Gilliam, it must be a Python movie" then make it a point to slam the film. I've always thought this film was under-appreciated and over-hated. Gilliam does his normally brilliant job of examining belief systems and skewering them. The other 1/2 of people that hate this film have never seen Norse mythology or Viking history so don't appreciate how much work Gilliam put into having a historically accurate portrayal of Vikings in terms of the dress, the actions of the whole (not the primary characters).If you are looking for a gentle start into the world of Monty Python, this is a good start before diving headlong into Holy Grail or Life of Brian.

This movie has one third of the Monty Python troupe and about only a micron of the laughs.Eric the Viking after killing a woman in a raid, decides he's going to go to Valhala and awaken the gods to end the age of Ragnorak. Accompanying him is a group of misfits including a wanna-be berserker, a Christian Missionary who is incapable of converting anyone and a blacksmith who wants to keep Ragnorak going because it's good for the blacksmith trade.John Cleese plays a bad guy who is pretty much just playing JOhn Cleese.The thing is, unlike Monty Python, these guys just can't make it funny.The movie had okay special effects for a 1980's film, but special effects and comedy really don't mix.

The time is Ragnarok. Clouds block out the sun and the world has been plunged into an eternal winter. People fight, kill, and rape, simply because it is a jolly good thing to do. Then comes Eric, who accidentally kills the woman that he has fallen in love with and comes to realise that there must be more than this, so he takes the men of his village on a trek to find the gods and ask them to end Ragnarok.This is a cool little comedy movie done in the Monty Python style, though not exclusively Python, since only Terry Jones and John Cleese are in it. Even though, the bizarre comedy of Monty Python comes out of it, along with its mockery of the human attitude.I guess one thing is the antagonist, Hadron the Black, who wants to stop Eric simply because to him Ragnarok is pretty good for business. There is also Loki, who is the tempter trying to get the Blacksmith and Hadron to stop Eric's expedition because if he succeeds, it will be the end of the blacksmithing business. But it is not the Blacksmith that wants it, but rather the evil and nasty Loki.The nation of High Brazillia is quite interesting, especially when it is being destroyed. The story about this place is that it has been blessed by the gods, but if any blood is to be spilt on the ground then the land will sink beneath the waves. Such a thing happens (due to Loki's interference) and the island starts to sink, but in the face of disaster, the citizens of High Brazillia remain ignorant to it, and sink beneath the waves. It is the attitude of: if we ignore it then it will go away. It is hilarious in this film, but in a way we are laughing at ourselves, because in essence we solve our problems by trying to ignore it, as that is the easy way to deal with it. Ignore it and it might go away, but unfortunately that never happens.The other interesting thing is that the gods of Midgard are portrayed at children. In essence that is what they really are for anybody reading classical Greek literature will understand that the god's really do behave like this. I guess it is simply saying that all that we worship in the end is simply childish (though the Christian missionary is paid out quite a bit as well).In the end this is a jolly funny movie and most enjoyable to watch. Personally I would say that it is one of the classics from the eighties. And remember, you can't sit Sven next to Sven's dad: they'll argue all the time.

"Eric the Viking" is an awful mess of a film. It is a not very funny, loud, disjointed and style starved film that has nothing going for it.It in no way resembles a "Monty Python" film or sketch. Most of the actors (including Tim Robbins and Mickey Rooney)act as if they thought they had been cast in another "...Holy Grail". Needless to say, the acting is awful.I came away from this movie learning one thing. Terry Jones was far less talented a director than Terry Gilliam. Gilliam's films have a style and quality to them that is both interesting and unique. "Eric the Viking" is flat, dull and you won't want to stick around to watch the whole thing. I didn't.2 out of 10