Erik the Viking (1989)

Erik the Viking and his men travel across the sea to find Valhalla to ask the gods to end the Age of Ragnarok.

Director:

Terry Jones

Writer:

Terry Jones

Stars:

Tim Robbins, John Cleese, Mickey Rooney

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tim Robbins	...	Erik
Mickey Rooney	...	Erik's Grandfather
Eartha Kitt	...	Freya
Terry Jones	...	King Arnulf
Imogen Stubbs	...	Princess Aud
John Cleese	...	Halfdan the Black
Tsutomu Sekine	...	Slavemaster
Antony Sher	...	Loki
Gary Cady	...	Keitel Blacksmith
Charles McKeown	...	Sven's Dad
Tim McInnerny	...	Sven the Berserk
John Gordon Sinclair	...	Ivar the Boneless
Richard Ridings	...	Thorfinn Skullsplitter
Freddie Jones	...	Harald the Missionary
Samantha Bond	...	Helga

Storyline

Erik the Viking and his men travel across the sea to find Valhalla to ask the gods to end the Age of Ragnarok.

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Plot Keywords:

viking | character name in title | norse mythology | ragnarok | norse god | 

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Taglines:

Be there... or beheaded!

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Genres:

Comedy | Adventure | Fantasy

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

Roger Ebert gave this movie a "thumbs down", calling it "an utterly worthless exercise in waste and wretched excess, uninformed by the slightest spark of humor, wit or coherence".

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Goofs

As the ship is flung a great distance by the dragon, some of the Vikings fall out. This wouldn't happen, since they're following the same parabolic trajectory as the ship.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Helga: Have you done this sort of thing before?
Erik: Me? Of course. I've been looting and pillaging up and down the coast.
Helga: Looting and pillaging, eh?
Erik: Yes
Helga: What about the raping?
Erik: Shut up.
Helga: Well, it's obvious you haven't raped anyone in your life.

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Crazy Credits

This film is not based on the children's book "The Saga Of Erik The Viking" by Terry Jones (Although he hopes it will help the sales)

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was cut by 37 secs for a 12 certificate with edits to the opening rape of Helga. Video releases were upgraded to a 15 but featured a shorter print: 7 minutes were cut to tighten the movie. The current DVD (known as the "Director's Son's Cut") features both the video version and an even shorter (75 minute) print.

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Connections

Referenced in The Madness and Misadventures of Munchausen (2008)

User Reviews

Time to re-evaluate Terry Jones

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.

Details

Country:

UK Sweden

Language:

English Japanese

Release Date:

22 September 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Erik the Viking

Filming Locations:

Lee International Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$68,543, 24 September 1989

Gross USA:

$1,932,642

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,932,642

Company Credits

Production Co:

KB Erik the Viking, Prominent Features, Svensk Filmindustri (SF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

107 min 79 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1