An entertaining movie that doesn't make a person think too hard

Rating: 8/10 (9 February 2007)

I enjoyed both the book and the movie immensely. It was one of those old fashioned swashbuckling tales that didn't take itself too seriously. Often people get so caught up in the details that they forget to just sit back and enjoy the movie.

The scene where he learns the language of the Northmen by listening, I will admit it was a stretch, but having the whole story told through dialogue in Greek would have really bogged down the story. In the book both Herger and Fadlan speak Latin, and Fadlan slowly picked up the Norse language.

The only real error visible that appeared in both the book and movie was Fadlan drinking alcohol. He tells the Vikings that he cannot drink fermentations of grape and wheat. The movie makes it seem that fermentations of honey are permitted. In fact Islamic religious doctrine bans drinking ANY intoxicant which includes drinks made from honey. This is written pretty explicitly in the Sunnah, which holds the sayings and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad.