Erik le Viking

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.

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.

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.

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.

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).