Tweet
Released by: Olive Films
Released on: May 26th, 2015.
Director: Terry Jones
Cast: Tim Robbins, Terry Jones, Eartha Kitt, Mickey Rooney, John Cleese
Year: 1989
Purchase From Amazon
The Movie:
Based on a fairy tale book which he himself wrote, Terry Jones' Erik The Viking is an amusing, kid-friendly film that incorporates a few Monty Python-esque moments of absurdity into its structure. However, for the most part the movie stands fairly far removed from the work that Jones did with The Flying Circus boys.
The story follows a Viking named, surprise-surprise, Erik (Tim Robbins). Early in the film he accidentally kills a girl who he had just started to develop a crush on. Since this incident, Erik has been pretty temperamental and has found himself in a bit of a funk. He realizes that he's tired of his life and figures that there has to be more out there than just raping and pillaging. As such, he goes looking for something more. He finds it in a quest given to him in which he must travel to the land of the gods in order to wake them from their slumber to bring back the sun... and the dead girl he liked so much, if she'll have anything to do with him at this point.
Sounds easy enough, right? Of course not! Erik and his rag-tag crew (including his grandfather, played by Mickey Rooney) run into problem after problem on their quest. If they're not having to deal with a dragon suffering from hay fever or strange singing natives then it's a warlord (John Cleese) who would love nothing more than to keep the world in the Dark Ages for all of eternity!
First things first, this is NOT a Monty Python film even if the marketing materials allude to that. This is a family film, a fairy tale, and those expecting the farcical and dirty humor that the Pythons were known for will be disappointed. That said, keeping expectations in check and viewing this as a family film, Erik The Viking isn't a bad movie at all. Cleese is laugh out loud funny as the craggy warlord and Mickey Rooney steals almost every scene that he's in. Robbins does a fine job of playing that morose lead character and it's hard not to laugh at Jones himself (who plays the King of Hy-Brasil where Erik begins his quest) when he appears in his ridiculous wig.
The set design, costumes and effects work are all appropriately soiled looking, everything appears to be fairly gritty and on that level the picture resembles Jaberwocky a little bit. But it all works, and there's certain primitive charm to the look of the film. Much of the enjoyment of the movie, however, comes not from the look or the story but from spotting the various character actors who pop up in the picture. Eartha Kitt, Freddie Jones, and quite a few other familiar faces all show up in the picture at one point or another, allowing viewers to play their own game of 'spot that recognizable actor.'
While Erik The Viking is far from a classic, it's a reasonably entertaining family film that plays as much more like a low-fi version of Pirates Of The Caribbean than a follow up to something like Monty Python And The Holy Grail. It's unlikely to set your world on fire but it does have its moments and it isn't as bad a movie as its many critics would have you believe. Not high praise, maybe, but it's a fun watch.
Note: The version of the movie contained on this disc runs 1:43:48 with approximately eleven seconds of that taken up by the Olive Films opening animation. The MGM logo appears on screen at the fourteen second mark. At 1:43:37 the Olive Films animation repeats itself. The packaging misstates the running times at 1:47 minutes.
Video/Audio/Extras:
Olive Films presents Erik The Viking on Blu-ray in its proper 1.85.1 theatrical widescreen aspect ratio in AVC encoded 1080p high definition. For the most part, the movie looks quite good on Blu-ray. Grain gets heavy in spots but that won't bother most. Detail is pretty solid throughout, close ups in particular, while black levels are strong and generally pretty inky. Nicely lit outdoor shots really look quite good. Skin tones look nice and natural, there are no signs of edge enhancement or noise reduction and although the disc is single layered compression artifacts are never a problem though some of the fog heavy scenes get a bit blotchy looking.
The only audio option for the feature is an English language DTS-HD 2.0 Stereo mix, there are no alternate language options offered nor are there any closed captioning or subtitles options provided (though the scenes with the Japanese slave driver character do have forced subs that appear on the screen). Clarity of the audio is fine. The levels are nicely balanced and there are problems with any hiss or distortion.
Aside from static menus and chapter selection, the disc includes the film's theatrical trailer as its only extra feature. Alternate releases on DVD have had a considerable amount of supplemental material provided, but none of that made it to this release.
The Final Word:
Erik The Viking isn't on par with the Monty Python classics but it's amusing enough while Olive's Blu-ray looks and sounds pretty decent but falls short in the extra features department. Production values and visuals are consistently interesting, Robbins makes for a fine lead and the supporting cast are game.
Click on the images below for full sized Blu-ray screen caps!
