''Viking'' (russian: Викинг) is a 2016 Russian historical film about medieval prince Vladimir the Great, Prince of Novgorod directed by

Andrei Kravchuk Andrei Yurievich Kravchuk (russian: Андре́й Ю́рьевич Кравчу́к; born 13 April 1962 in Leningrad) is a Russian television and film director and screenwriter best known for his films '' The Italian'' (2005) and '' Admiral'' ( ...

and co-produced by

Konstantin Ernst Konstantin Lvovich Ernst (russian: Константин Львович Эрнст; born 6 February 1961) is a Russian media manager, producer and TV host. He is currently the CEO of Channel One Russia. Biography Early years and education His ...

and Anatoliy Maksimov. The film stars Danila Kozlovsky,

Svetlana Khodchenkova Svetlana Viktorovna Khodchenkova (russian: Светла́на Ви́кторовна Хо́дченкова; born 21 January 1983) is a Russian film, television and theater actress. She is an Honored Artist of the Russian Federation (2018). Earl ...

, Maksim Sukhanov, Aleksandra Bortich, Igor Petrenko,

Andrey Smolyakov Andrey Igorevich Smolyakov (russian: Андре́й И́горевич Смоляко́в; born 24 November 1958) is a Soviet and Russian actor and director. He is known for '' Vysotskiy. Spasibo, chto zhivoy'' (2011), ''Stalingrad'', and '' Forb ...

Kirill Pletnyov Kirill Vladimirovich Pletnyov (russian: Кири́лл Влади́мирович Плетнёв; born December 30, 1979, Kharkiv, USSR) is a Russian theater and film actor, film director, screenwriter, producer. Winner of the Sochi Open Russian ...

Aleksandr Ustyugov Aleksandr Sergeevich Ustyugov (russian: Александр Сергеевич Устюгов; born 17 October 1976) is a Russian actor, film director and musician. He is best known for his role as a main character Roman Shilov for 60 episodes o ...

and Joakim Nätterqvist. The movie is inspired by historical accounts such as ''

Primary Chronicle The ''Tale of Bygone Years'' ( orv, Повѣсть времѧньныхъ лѣтъ, translit=Pověstĭ vremęnĭnyxŭ lětŭ; ; ; ; ), often known in English as the ''Rus' Primary Chronicle'', the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', or simply the ...

'' and Icelandic ''

Kings' sagas Kings' sagas ( is, konungasögur, nn, kongesoger, -sogor, nb, kongesagaer) are Old Norse sagas which principally tell of the lives of semi-legendary and legendary (mythological, fictional) Nordic kings, also known as saga kings. They were compo ...

''. ''Viking'' was released in Russia by Central Partnership on December 29, 2016, and the world premiere took place on January 6, 2017. Two versions were released: a 12+ (128 minutes) and a 18+ (133 minutes). With a budget of $20.8 million, ''Viking'' was the third most expensive Russian film (after two parts of Burnt by the Sun 2) by the time of its release. The movie was met with mixed reviews by Russian film critics. grossed $32.3 million in box office. It grossed $25 million at the box office in Russia and the

Commonwealth of Independent States The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. ...

, becoming the top-grossing Russian film to be released in 2016.

Plot

After the death of his father, Svyatoslav I, ruler of Kievan Rus, the young prince Vladimir ( Danila Kozlovsky) is forced into exile across the frozen sea in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

to escape his treacherous half-brother Yaropolk (

), who has murdered his other brother Oleg (

) and conquered the territory of Kievan Rus. The old warrior

Sveneld Sveneld (Old Norse: ''Sveinaldr'', Cyrillic: Свенельд) is a semi-legendary 10th-century Varangian warlord in the service of Svyatoslav I of Kiev and his family. Although he seems to have been the richest and the most influential Rus' leade ...

( Maksim Sukhanov) convinces Vladimir to assemble a force of

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

mercenaries A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any o ...

led by a Swedish chieftain ( Joakim Nätterqvist), hoping to reconquer Kiev from Yaropolk.

Cast

* Danila Kozlovsky as Vladimir the Great *

Yaropolk I of Kiev Yaropolk I Sviatoslavich (Old East Slavic: Ꙗрополкъ Свѧтославичъ, transliterated as ''Iaropolk Svyatoslavich''; Russian: ; Ukrainian: Ярополк I Святославич; 952 – 11 June 978) was a young and rather enig ...

Oleg of Drelinia Oleg was a Rurikid ruler of the Drevlians from 969 to his death in 977. He was the second son of Sviatoslav I of Kiev. Date of birth is not known, but is probably before 957. Sviatoslav split up his domains, and gave the Drevlyan lands to Oleg. O ...

Rogvolod Rogvolod (russian: Рогволод, translit=Rogvolod; be, Рагвалод, translit=Rahvałod; 920978) was the first chronicled prince of Polotsk (945–978). In the ''Russian Primary Chronicle'', he is known as , probably a slavicized versio ...

* Aleksandra Bortich as

Rogneda Rogneda of Polotsk (962–1002) is the Slavic name for Ragnheiðr, a Princess consort of Rus'. She was the daughter of Ragnvald (Slavic: Rogvolod) who came from Scandinavia and established himself at Polotsk in the mid-10th century. Life It ...

, princess of Polotsk, wife of Vladimir the Great *

as Irina, the

Byzantine Greek Medieval Greek (also known as Middle Greek, Byzantine Greek, or Romaic) is the stage of the Greek language between the end of classical antiquity in the 5th–6th centuries and the end of the Middle Ages, conventionally dated to the Ottoman co ...

wife of Yaropolk I of Kiev * Maksim Sukhanov as

voivode Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the me ...

of the Grand Duke Sviatoslav Igorevich * Rostislav Bershauer as Blud, voivode and

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Kievan Rus', Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Russian nobility, Russia, Boyars of Moldavia and Wallachia, Wallachia and ...

of Kiev * Nikolay Kozak as Lyut, the prince of Yaropolk's retinue * Igor Petrenko as Varyazhko, the prince of Yaropolk's retinue * Vladimir Epifantsev as Theodore, the prince of Yaropolk's retinue * Ivan Shmakov as John, Theodore's son (boy in Kiev) * Pawel Delag as Anastas * Aleksey Demidov as Samocha * Aleksandr Lobanov as

Putyata Putyata (Russian: Путята) was the first tysyatsky of Novgorod whose name is found in Slavonic chronicles. According to the Ioachim Chronicle, he was active during the reign of Vladimir the Great and forced the Novgorodians to accept Christia ...

John DeSantis John DeSantis, sometimes credited as John De Santis or John Desantis, (born November 13, 1973) is a Canadian actor, best known as Lurch on Fox Family's television of ''The New Addams Family''. His other work includes a principal role in Disney ...

as Berserk * Joakim Nätterqvist as Khevding * Harald Rosenstrøm as Einar * Aleksandr Armer as Ulvar * Oleg Dobrovan as Valgard * Ziedonis Lochmelis as Torvald * Daniil Soldatov, Vilen Babichev and Oleg Sizov as Viking chieftains

Production

Development

The film was produced by Konstantin Ernst and Anatoly Maksimov, best known for the Russian urban fantasy/

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

thrillers ''

Night Watch Night Watch or Nightwatch may refer to: Books * ''The Night Watch'', a 1977 memoir by Central Intelligence Agency officer David Atlee Phillips Novels * ''Night Watch'', a 1972 novel by American screenwriter Lucille Fletcher * ''Night Watch'', a 1 ...

'' and '' Day Watch''. A few scenes were filmed in 2013 to secure funding, a common way to secure finances for large movie productions in Russia. Most of the production was done in March–July 2015. The budget was on par with the Russian WWII epic ''

Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...

'', 1,250 million rubles (approximately US$20 million). The main historical consultants of the film were the historian and archaeologist Vladimir Petrukhin and the linguist Fyodor Uspenskiy. The costume designer traveled to several cities and countries, buying fabric and studying frescoes and museum in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

Novgorod Veliky Novgorod ( rus, links=no, Великий Новгород, t=Great Newtown, p=vʲɪˈlʲikʲɪj ˈnovɡərət), also known as just Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the ol ...

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, and

Minsk Minsk ( be, Мінск ; russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach and the now subterranean Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the admi ...

. The

Pecheneg language Pecheneg is an extinct Turkic language spoken by the Pechenegs in Eastern Europe (parts of Southern Ukraine, Southern Russia, Moldova, Romania and Hungary) in the 7th–12th centuries. However, names in this language (Beke, Wochun, Lechk, etc) a ...

, an extinct Turkic language once spoken in

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russ ...

(in what today is most of

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, parts of southern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...

, and

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

) in the 7th–12th centuries, was "re-invented" for the movie.

Casting

The cast is mostly Russian; however the film does features Swedish actor Joakim Nätterqvist, Canada's

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

ian actress Aleksandra Bortich. Nätterqvist told Sweden's

TV4 TV4 or TV 4 may refer to: * TV4 (Poland), a private Polish television station * TV4 (Sweden), a Swedish television network ** TV4 Group, owners of the Swedish television station * South African Broadcasting Corporation TV4, a channel operated by th ...

that on set he worked with a translator, a Norwegian actor who has lived (and educated) in Russia. Most of his dialog is in a very stripped-down amalgam of

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

and Norwegian, to simulate

old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

. Members of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...

’s famous ''Nomad Stunts'' were responsible for the battle scenes, including the pyrotechnics, explosions and rigging.

Filming locations

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

began in March 2015. The film was shot on several locations in the Russia-annexed territory of Crimea, including the city of

Bakhchisarai Bakhchysarai ( crh, Bağçasaray, italic=yes; russian: Бахчисара́й; ua, Бахчисара́й; tr, Bahçesaray) is a town in Crimea, a territory recognized by a majority of countries as part of Ukraine and annexed by Russia as the Re ...

, Bakhchysarai Raion,

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

. In the Taigan Water Reservoir, the town of

Belogorsk Belogorsk or Bilohirsk (russian: Белогорск; uk, Білогірськ) is the name of several inhabited localities in Russia and Ukraine. ;Urban localities *Belogorsk, Amur Oblast, a town in Amur Oblast; administratively incorporated as a ...

, Belogorskiy Raion,

. In the medieval Genoese fortress, the town of Sudak,

. In the village of Shkolnoe,

Simferopol Raion Simferopol Raion ( uk, Сімферопольський район, russian: Симферопольский район, crh, Aqmescit rayonı) is one of the 25 regions of the Crimean peninsula in Ukraine, currently illegally occupied by Russia. T ...

. In the zakaznik of Cape Fiolent near

Sevastopol Sevastopol (; uk, Севасто́поль, Sevastópolʹ, ; gkm, Σεβαστούπολις, Sevastoúpolis, ; crh, Акъя́р, Aqyár, ), sometimes written Sebastopol, is the largest city in Crimea, and a major port on the Black Sea ...

, Russia. Also, the shooting took place at the Glavkino studio. Later, the scenery of the film was used in the construction of the ''Viking Cinema Park'' in the village of

Perevalnoye Perevalny (russian: Перевальный; masculine), Perevalnaya (; feminine), or Perevalnoye (; neuter) is the name of several types of inhabited localities in Russia, rural localities in Russia. Modern localities *Perevalny, Stavropol Krai, a ...

. The construction of the facility began in October 2015 on the left bank of the Kizilkobinka mountain river at the beginning of the ascent to the Red Caves. Cinema Park opened in May 2016 As it was partially filmed in Russia-annexed territory of Crimea, this film was banned in some countries. Some scenes were filmed in

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

in mid-August 2015. The shooting took place in

Basilica of San Vitale The Basilica of San Vitale is a late antique church in Ravenna, Italy. The sixth-century church is an important surviving example of early Christian Byzantine art and architecture. It is one of eight structures in Ravenna inscribed on the UNESCO ...

and the

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia is a Late Antique Roman building in Ravenna, Italy, built between 425 and 450. It was added to the World Heritage List together with seven other structures in Ravenna in 1996. Despite its common name, the empress Ga ...

. This

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

an important example of early

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

architecture in Europe and was used for scenes set in Chersonesus.

Versions

The film was released in two versions, one family friendly version with an age restriction of 12+, and a complete version, with a rating of 18+. According to Radio P4 Stockholm, the movie was also planned eventually to be released as a TV-series, featuring hours of footage that did not make it into the cinematic release.

Music

The author of the music for the film is the Russian composer and producer Igor Matvienko. The soundtrack was created for two years. Previously, the composer studied music of 9-10 centuries, got acquainted with the era of Prince Vladimir. The Specialists from the

Gnessin State Musical College The Gnessin State Musical College (russian: link=no, Государственный музыкальный колледж имени Гнесиных) and Gnesins Russian Academy of Music (russian: Российская академия музык� ...

were involved in the recording, copies of ancient instruments of that time ( hurdy-gurdy,

gudok The gudok (, russian: гудок), gudochek (, russian: гудочек) is an ancient Eastern Slavic string musical instrument, played with a bow.

tambourine The tambourine is a musical instrument in the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zills". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though ...

s, gusli) were ordered. Tracks were recorded on these instruments, then the phonograms were mixed with a synthesizer. A special studio was equipped to record music. The producer Igor Polonsky, arrangers Artyom Vasiliev, Alexander Kamensky, Rafael Safin, the soloist of the Gorod 312 group Aya and many others took part in the work. The film's trailers (and part of the movie) was scored by Irish composer Dean Valentine. Valentine's music was recorded with the Orchestra Of Ireland. Valentine is best known for his original music for trailers including '' Captain America: Civil War'', Interstellar'' and ''

American Sniper ''American Sniper'' is a 2014 American biographical war drama film directed by Clint Eastwood and written by Jason Hall. It is loosely based on the memoir ''American Sniper'' (2012) by Chris Kyle, with Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice. The film fo ...

'', but he has also scored Irish documentaries and motion pictures such as ''

Tiger Raid ''Tiger Raid'' is a 2016 Irish-British drama film directed by Simon Dixon and written by Simon Dixon, Mick Donnellan and Gareth Coulam Evans. Plot Two Irish soldiers of fortune, Joe and Paddy, are working for a private security crew in the Midd ...

'', and
Close to Evil
'.

Release

UK based ''Red Arrow International'' will sell the movie internationally. A screening for potential buyers was arranged at the 2016

American Film Market The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held each year in early November. Historically, more than 7,000 people attend the eight-day annual event to network and to sell, finance and acquire films. Participants come from more than ...

. They received 200 inquiries from 45 territories to buy the movie. The Russian News Agency reported on January 19, 2017 that ‘Viking’ had been sold to more than 60 countries, including

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, and most of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

, even though it was partially filmed in a Russian-annexed territory of Crimea (mostly recognized as a part of Ukraine). Viking was released in

on 10,000 screens under a deal closed between Central Partnership and Chinese distributors Flame Node Entertainment and Beijing United Film Artists Co. The film was released in

on DVD and ''

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American Video on demand#Subscription models, subscription video on-demand Over-the-top media service, over-the-top Streaming media, streaming and Renting, rental service of Amazon (c ...

'' (SVOD service) on April 29. It will have its Swiss premier at the '' Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival'' on July 4. Viking was released in the

on September 18, 2017, and in France on 10 October 2017, at the ''Absurde Seance'' festival. In total, this film has been sold to over 80 territories, becoming one of Russia's biggest international sellers in 2017. The movie was released in the US via

in October 2018.

Marketing

The first official teaser trailer was shown during a closed pitch event with the management of the Russian Ministry of Culture and chairmen of

Cinema Foundation of Russia Russian Cinema Fund Analytics, known as Cinema Fund (Фонд Кино; Officially Federal Fund for Economic and social support of the Russian Cinematography, Федеральный фонд социальной и экономической по ...

. In September 2015, Central Partnership distribution studios announced the release date for the film as 22 December 2016. On 19 November 2015, Film Direction and Channel One Russia released the official trailer to the public. The film was presented on October 1, 2016, as part of

Comic-Con Russia Comic-Con Russia is a speculative fiction entertainment annual exhibition and fan convention of computer and video games, TV series and comic movies in Russia, organized by the committee of the Russian Game Developers Conference and Bubble Comi ...

2016, and a large sword fight was performed by the films' stuntmen, replicating a fight scene from the movie. Exclusive materials specially prepared for the convention were shown, including a "live" trailer - stunt show at the stand, which was built in the form of an old Russian outpost. Visitors to the event could participate in competitions on knowledge of Russian history, try on costumes of the characters of the film and take pictures with props. The set and the scenery used in the production were used to create Russia's first movie-based

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...

, which opened in May of 2016 near the village of

Reception

Despite the overwhelming marketing and advertisement campaign, the film received low reviews in the Russian press.Критиканство
Рецензии на фильм Викинг (2016), отзывы
/ref> Many critics in magazines like

Afisha ''Afisha'' ''( rus, link=no, Афиша — "Poster")'' was a Russian entertainment and lifestyle magazine published from April 1999 to December 2015 in Moscow, Saint Petersburg and 12 other Russia's major cities. In its peak years ''Afishas re ...

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

Russia and GQ Russia praised the movie's visuals, but derided the story and the biased portrayal of medieval Russians. The public criticised the film for strong Christian propaganda and significant derailment from historical facts, as well as bad camerawork and rather low production quality despite an enormous budget.

Box office

The film has grossed 1.48 billion rubles () in Russia and was the tenth highest-grossing film in the country in 2016. The film grossed 398 million rubles ($6.7 million) across four territories in the Jan. 5-8 weekend, which earned it a place in the top 10 movies of the international box office. In Russia, rental was started on December 29, 2016. The total box office grossing of the painting in Russia and the CIS amounted to 1,534,409,689 RUB, in other countries - less than 400,000 US dollars. According to film critic

Victor Matizen Victor Eduardovich Matizen (russian: Ви́ктор Эдуа́рдович Ма́тизен; born February 19, 1949, Leningrad, USSR) is a Soviet and Russian film critic, president of the Russian Guild of Film Critics (2003-2011), chairman of the ...

, this means a box-office failure of the film, since cinemas leave half of the fees to themselves, and the remaining amount does not cover the budget of the film.

References

External links

Official website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Viking 2016 films 2010s Russian-language films 2016 action drama films 2016 biographical drama films 2010s historical action films 2016 war drama films Films about Christianity Films about violence Russian epic films Biographical films about Russian royalty Cultural depictions of Vladimir the Great Films directed by Andrei Kravchuk Films set in the 10th century Films set in the 11th century Kievan Rus in fiction Russian biographical drama films Russian historical action films Russian action drama films 2010s action war films Russian war drama films Biographical action films Films set in Russia Films set in Belarus Films set in Ukraine Films set in the Byzantine Empire Films based on European myths and legends Films set in the Viking Age Historical epic films Works based on sagas War epic films Films shot in Crimea Films shot in Russia Fratricide in fiction Films about Orthodoxy