---
title: "Erik the Viking: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/erik-the-viking/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/erik-the-viking"
critics_score: 42
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Erik the Viking (1989): what the critics said

Critics' score 42 from 7 reviews: 1 positive, 2 mixed, 4 negative.

Most critics take a dim view of Erik the Viking, with the comedy drawing the most persistent complaints. Praise is limited rather than shared across the reviews: Variety enjoys the premise and finds the Viking crew’s characters the chief attraction. Even the strongly negative Los Angeles Times review finds something to like in John Cleese’s restrained performance, though it notes how briefly he appears. There is little agreement that these strengths sustain the film.

The spread is wide, from an enjoyable comic adventure to a fantasy that offers neither laughs nor excitement. Empire locates the problem in a film caught between comedy adventure and the stranger, Pythonesque humour it never quite achieves. Other reservations concern flat fantasy sequences, poor direction and Tim Robbins’s peace-loving Viking. Two reviews lack accessible text, so their specific judgements cannot be established; the verifiable responses lean firmly negative.

## Variety — Variety Staff

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1988. 

The review finds the film enjoyable overall, with an amusing premise. It singles out the Viking crew’s wonderful characters as the film’s great strength.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1988/film/reviews/erik-the-viking-1200427999/)

## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 

The page appears to be RogerEbert.com’s review of the 1989 film, but its content is blocked. The critic’s verdict and any specific praise or complaint cannot be verified.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/erik-the-viking-1989)

## The New York Times — Janet Maslin

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 28 October 1989. 

The page could not be accessed, so the critic’s verdict is unavailable. No specific praise or complaint can be verified from the provided text.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/28/movies/review-film-a-viking-antihero-runs-amok-with-idealism.html)

## Radio Times — John Ferguson

Rating 2/5. 

Ferguson finds the Nordic spoof sadly wanting. He singles out Tim Robbins’s peace-loving Viking role as one the actor would probably prefer to forget.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-wqxtrx/erik-the-viking/)

## Empire — Lloyd Bradley

Fi1m's normalised score 25/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

Bradley finds the film caught between comedy adventure and the leftfield lunacy it never fully achieves. He complains that its Pythonesque formula runs out of steam when the off-the-cuff stupidity is too thin.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/erik-viking-review/)

## Time Out — WH

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 

The critic calls the film unfunny, poorly directed and unexciting. The review’s central complaint is that the post-Python comedy fails to deliver laughs.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/erik-the-viking)

## Los Angeles Times — CHRIS WILLMAN

Fi1m's normalised score 10/100 (inferred from the text). 1 November 1989. 

Willman finds the film’s comedy consistently lifeless and its fantasy sequences flat. He singles out John Cleese’s restrained performance as the picture’s best element, despite his brief appearance.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1989-11-01-ca-20-story.html)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/erik-the-viking.md