Top row, left to right: Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Jones, John Cleese. Bottom row: Terry Gilliam
In 1969 Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin joined forces to write and act in the British television show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. After three successful season and a feature length film made up of sketches from the first two seasons they decided to make a more cohesive film, and thus Monty Python and the Holy Grail was created. Released in 1975 the film was directed by Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam. They all wrote material for the film, the screenplay is credited to Monty Python as a whole. The six members of Monty Python played most of the roles in this film, each playing from four to twelve characters. The film inspired the Tony Award-winning musical Spamalot written primarily by Eric Idle.
Roughly based on the legends of King Arthur the film follows Arthur, King of the Britons (Chapman) as he and his knights, including Sir Lancelot the Brave (Cleese), Sir Bedevere the Wise (Jones), Sir Galahad the Pure (Palin), and Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-As-Sir-Lancelot (Idle), search for the Holy Grail. Shortly after being given this quest by God, Arthur suggests they split up and search separately. After several separate adventures they eventually regroup and continue their quest together.
The premise of Holy Grail is not particularly humorous, plot is, in many ways, irrelevant to this quality of this film, it is merely a vehicle for the comedy which emerges within the scenes. One of the few movies to have opening credits that are just as entertaining as the movie itself, Holy Grail has one laughing before the actors appear on screen. Although the story may not begin with an audience knowledgeable in who made the film, they certainly know about tourism in Sweden, the majestic moose, and lamas. A highly irreverent film, nothing in is sacred and everything is subject to mockery. Nothing ever goes as expected and much of the humor is derived from constantly defying expectations. When two men appear, traveling to a castle, and clip-clopping is heard, one could logically assume the men to be riding horses, an easy mistake to make. To defeat a deadly foe a holy relic is called for, it isn’t something any other person in Medieval England would know about. A task is set by fearsome knights to improve the appearance of the forest. Three questions must be answered to cross a guarded bridge, neither the questions nor the answers are one might predict. There is never a dull moment in this film and one would be hard pressed to go many minutes without laughing.
The movies soundtrack emphasizes the grandeur of film. Swelling, dramatic music is common even when the shot it accompanies is nothing more than a small band of knights traveling across the countryside. The film was shot on location in Scotland, particularly around Doune Castle where most of the castle scenes where shot, which gave Monty Python a dramatic backdrop to shoot against. A number of shots are taken with a handheld camera giving the feel of being in the middle of the action. Battles, retreats, and shots while ‘riding’ often have the jolting motion one associates with natural movement as opposed to the smooth movement cameras usually have. This creates the illusion of being part of the action instead of simply watching it, as well as creating a degree of confusion by altering the way the audience engages with the world of the film.
The Legendary Black Beast of Aarrgh
In typical Monty Python fashion the film blends animation and live action to show a wider range of action than either would be capable of alone. Terry Gilliam’s animation serves to tie the scenes together, show the the passage of time, and create and portray characters that need not appear realistic. God and the opening of the heavens is animated. Similarly, the Legendary Black Beast of Aarrgh is animated, the knights only escape from this monster when the animator has a heart attack and the monster disappears.
The rules of time and space are bent to further the surreal reality adhered to in the film. A man who is shown far away may suddenly appear that distance. A character begins an action, intermission is shown on the screen and moments later we return to the character, who has just finished the action. Periodic narration and the occasional breaking of the fourth wall make sure the audience never truly forgets they are watching a movie. However the well established suspension of disbelief means that these moments never detract from the film.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail appeals to a particular sense of humor. If one finds this type of humor funny the film will most likely be immensely enjoyable and should absolutely be watched. However there are some people who prefer a different type of humor. Without the humor very little is left to the film and it may not be very entertaining. That being said, this is a fantastic movie and one quite worth watching.
3 thoughts on “Monty Python and the Holy Grail: A Very Silly Film”
Monty Python and the Holy Grail is one of my all time favorite movies and seeing this as one of the movies that was reviewed got me really excited. The actual story of the Holy Grail isn’t the interesting part of the movie but how the Monty Python troupe chooses to tell the story in their own comedic ways ,and you explain that well. I never put much thought into the actual camera work and soundtrack because I was too busy laughing at the film but the camera work does give the viewer the feeling of being in the action and also adds to the amateurish feel of the film coupled with the grand soundtrack that comes at the most simple and silliest of times which adds to the irreverence of the film that you were talking about which is the main source of comedy of which everything else stems from. When reading this review, I was reminded of how I felt when I watched this movie and shown new aspects of the film I didn’t really notice or care for at the time. It was a great review and I recommend the movie to anyone who hasn’t watched it yet!
I have never watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail, however, your review has sparked my interest the film. Your review stands out in the sense that it is very thorough, well rounded and considers every aspect of the film. I feel it gives a good base for someone to decide if they would like to watch the film.
I really like Monty Python and the Holy Grail. You did a good job looking at multiple aspects of this film. I found your review interesting to read, because I have never really considered these other aspects and how they affect the film.