As Grim brings Trausti's mother Edda, the chief of the area, they discover Eirikur attempting to steal the whale.
[2] In 1991, the Washington Post published a positive review of the film, critic Jeanne Cooper noting Hrafn Gunnlaugsson reaches gripping heights.
[3] New York Times wrote in their own review the same year that "In the world of Hrafn Gunnlaugsson's medieval adventure film, The Shadow of the Raven, emotions are as jagged and windblown as the spectacular Icelandic coastline where the movie was shot".
Critic Stephen Holden praised the performances of Tinna Gunnlaugsdóttir and Kristbjörg Kjeld, but panned Reine Brynolfsson as unconvincing.
Holden described Sune Mang's performance as "glowering exuberance", but was critical to some of dialog delivery of the cast members, calling it "grunting".