Erik the Viking gathers warriors from his village and sets out on a dangerous journey to Valhalla, to ask the gods to end the Age of Ragnorok and allow his people to see sunlight again. A Pythonesque satire of Viking life.
An utterly worthless exercise in waste and wretched excess, uninformed by the slightest spark of humor, wit or coherence.
– Roger Ebert,
Chicago Sun-Times,
1 Jan 2000
fresh:
"Erik the Viking," a Wagnerian slapstick fantasy, has the feel of a grown-up bedtime comedy, a gross, sillier "Princess Bride."
– Rita Kempley,
Washington Post,
1 Jan 2000
fresh:
Doesn't measure up to the best of the Python films, but it consistently entertains through the occasional gags that do not work and dialogue that is sometimes obscured by sound effects.
– Vincent Canby,
New York Times,
20 May 2003
fresh:
The idea of telling the story of a Viking warrior who thought there must be more to life than rape and pillage is an amusing one, and for the most part Erik the Viking is an enjoyable film.
– Variety Staff,
Variety,
26 Mar 2009
rotten:
A stillborn comedy in which minutes sometimes mysteriously go by between even attempted gags, and in which virtually no comic scene works up to any kind of viable punch line or payoff.