Monty Python, a legendary British comedy troupe, usually divides people into two very distinct camps. Some consider them comedic geniuses and literally worship all their incarnations – all episodes of the BBC show, songs, books and movies. Others simply can't digest their rather strange, dark and twisted sense of humour and, accordingly, can't fathom what was so special about them. The author of this review belongs somewhere in the middle. I first encountered Monty Python in the late 1980s, when former Yugoslav television aired the BBC show. Initially, I was somewhat disappointed – some gags were truly funny while some were hard to understand. Later, when I watched the entire show for the second time, I learnt to appreciate their humour a little more, but I still don't see them as undisputed kings of comedy. That notion is strengthened by my experiences with Monty Python films that turned out to be disappointments. The only exception is Life of Brian, directed in 1979 by Terry Jones. Before watching, I had the entire film spoiled thanks to my friend who happened to be the most enthusiastic Monty Python fan. However, the resulting lack of surprises didn't prevent huge outbursts of laughter when I watched Life of Brian for the first time.
Interestingly enough, Life of Brian is a relatively obscure chapter in recent film histories. This could be explained by the fact that it tackles a subject which is rather sensitive for too many people around the world – religion, or to be precise, the fundamentals of the Christian religion. The movie's protagonist is Brian of Nazareth (played by Graham Chapman), an ordinary man from Judea who just happened to be born a few blocks away from Jesus. He doesn't like the fact that he is the bastard son of a Roman centurion, and his hatred of Romans leads him to join the People's Front of Judea, a group of rather idle revolutionaries. Their attempts to overthrow the Roman yoke are mostly unsuccessful, and in the process, Brian not only attracts the attention of the authorities, but also of the masses that see a long-awaited Messiah in him.
For me, Life of Brian is the best Monty Python film because, unlike all the rest, the Monty Python jokes are held together by a more or less coherent plot. But that doesn't mean that the film is conventional in any other sense. For example, all members of the Monty Python team play different characters, yet in doing so they give each character something unique, so even those viewers who are unfamiliar with Monty Python's unconventionality won't notice it. It is hard to single out the best among that multitude of characters and incredible performances, but Graham Chapman as Brian is probably the best answer. His performance is especially touching when we take into account that the actor died a few years after the film's completion. Other good performances also stand out – like Terry Jones as Brian's mother Mandy, John Cleese as revolutionary leader Redge, Michael Palin as Pilate, Michael Palin as the Ex-Leper, and Eric Idle as Stan who wants to be called Loretta. Even Terry Gilliam, the least recognisable member of the team, has an impressive role as the Jailer, and the other actors are fine too, including Sue Jones-Davies as Judith, the only real woman among the revolutionaries.
Jokes in this film aren't just verbal but also visual. The film is directed by Terry Jones, whose later record wasn't that impressive (Erik the Viking). But the barren and simple settings of Tunisia provide a quite adequate setting for the whole story, and Jones does a fine job. Gilliam's animation is used only in the opening titles, so it is not too distracting. The Monty Python team also used the greater creative freedom of a feature film, and provided this film with sufficient quantities of four-letter words, blood and gore. Graham Chapman entered movie history as the main participant in the most spectacular film scene that involves full frontal male nudity.
Some Christians, naturally, didn't like this film. It was considered blasphemous, theatres showing it became favourite targets of picketing activists, and Norway banned it. Those who see this film as an attack on Christianity and Judaism may have some point, although the film's authors defended their work as satire not on religion itself, but on the way religion is presented to the masses. Some jokes in this film are hard to understand without familiarity with biblical movies; members of the Monty Python team probably noticed that people in such movies hardly talk or behave in the way normal people would. Jesus (who appears in a cameo role played by Kenneth Colley) is mostly left out of the picture, and the film concentrates on his contemporaries, but some parallels with biblical events are impossible to ignore (miracles, crucifixion etc.). The movie could be viewed as an attack not on religion itself, but on its most absurd and dangerous forms, like blind faith and the fanaticism that accompanies it. The criticism of fundamentalism and traditionalism on the right is nicely contrasted with the way this film takes stabs at radicalism on the left side of the political spectrum. The People's Front of Judea and their rivals in the Judean political underground could be viewed as the author's commentary on various extreme left-wing groups drowned in self-destructive factionalism and even more irrational acts of terrorism that marked the 1970s. Some humour in this film is less ambitious, like the farcical and surreal scene of a UFO abduction, which could be seen as the authors' comment on Star Wars craziness. But even in such jokes, the humour is great, although some, like the one involving wall graffiti, require the benefits of a classical education. Some jokes, on the other hand, aren't very funny or effective.
But, despite those flaws, Life of Brian remains one of the best underappreciated films made in the last hundred years. Time would silence its critics, and new generations would watch it, laugh, and think about its messages. Probably the best homage to Life of Brian happened in 1982, during the Falklands War. Just like the film's protagonist, the surviving crew of HMS Sheffield, a sinking British warship, found comfort and encouragement in the ending song and its immortal lyrics "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life".
RATING: 8/10 (+++)
(Note: The text in its original form was posted in Usenet newsgroup rec.arts.movies.reviews on January 14th 2000)
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Movie URL: https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/583-life-of-brian Critic: AAA
