Review of Life of Brian (1979) by Jake W — 25 Jul 2011

Monty Python's fan base (which I am very much a part of) seems to have finally spread the word of The Python to an extent to which its reputation is deserving of the talent of the men behind it. Too long I have found that people's knowledge of Monty Python consisted of either the Parrot Sketch or a few of the more popular sequences within The Holy Grail. People are finally looking into the intricacies of what makes Monty Python so damn funny, and in their analysis they are expanding their horizons to other works by Monty Python, including Life of Brian, a film which is today widely considered, if not the most gut-bustingly hilarious film they made, at least the most intelligent, satirical, and clever of the Monty Python productions. As such, I find this to be the Monty Python film that has ripened the most with old age; Holy Grail makes a better first impression, and it is a masterpiece to this day and remains one of my favorite films, but Life of Brian is the film that I find I learn something new about each time I see it.

Much controversy has been made about Life of Brian, especially when it initially came out over 30 years ago, regarding its views on Christianity. While I won't say that the film doesn't take a negative viewpoint of what Christianity has become, it doesn't in any way scrutinize Jesus or any of the most basic viewpoints of the Christian doctrine. Instead, it is a satire of how people use religion and how people convert to a religion and follow its guidelines in the silliest and most superficial ways. I am not a Christian, and thus none of the potential controversy affects my viewpoint of the film, but I do know Christians who do appreciate and even love Life of Brian, for its brilliant satire of what is wrong about religion. The key here is that it isn't necessarily implying the religion is wrong; it is simply stating that there are certainly flawed parts of it, which, honestly, anyone who is open-minded should see the logic and truth in.

Taking place around the time of Jesus' existence on Earth, Life of Brian concerns, well, Brian. Brian is a man who was born at a time and place very near Jesus' own birth, and, in his 30s, due to fate or simple bad luck or whatever you would like, he has become somewhat of a reluctant messiah for the numerous people around him. Despite not wanting the job, he can't seem to shake his followers, and he has to learn to deal with them, as well as the Romans, The People's Front of Judea (and the Judean People's Front), as well as many other individuals who he comes into contact with.

Everything is skewered in Life of Brian; it takes no prisoners in its assault on just how silly many aspects of the blind-belief often associated with many people's views of religion are. Early on in the film, a sermon by Jesus is misinterpreted as "Blessed are the cheese-makers" which prompts someone to state that it must be interpreted as any manufacturer of dairy products because simply cheese-makers would be too specific and would indicate a lack of understanding the symbolism in their messiah's words. A stoning ritual (complete with a few men dressed as women dressed as men, which is a riff on the typical Monty Python staple of the men dressing up to play the women) is filled with people who display a desire to stone someone simply because they derive a thrill from stoning people. Later in the film, followers of Brian interpret him having lost his sandal to mean that they should all walk around with one sandal off or spend their time gathering the sandals of others for their messiah. Perhaps most humorously though, the People's Front of Judea and the Judean People's Front (two organizations which seemingly have very similar goals and apparently methods as well) absolutely hate each other for no apparent reason, and, regardless of that, the People's Front of Judea doesn't seem to be able to accomplish much more than forming committees to talk about accomplishing things. Some of the humor is more juvenile in nature, such as a Roman leader with a fairly silly name, but it is all distinctly Pythonesque and should please anyone who considers themselves a fan of their previous work.

On the acting front, not much has changed since Holy Grail and Flying Circus; just as their skill at writing remains as sharp as ever here, their comedic timing is as brilliant as expected here as well. Each of the six consistently displays how they each are a master at presenting their lines and conveying the humor in just about anything. They all certainly perform differently to an extent, and each member has his own way of bringing the dialogue to life, but the differences are more subtle than when compared to their very distinct writing styles. Graham Chapman, in case you were wondering, plays Brian, having long been considered the best straight actor amongst the crew. I can't necessarily affirm or deny that here, although I will say that much of the humor does come from his reaction to the general lunacy around him, and thus his performance is a necessary component to the film's comedic value. In actuality, Life of Brian continues to show how oftentimes the funniest thing is simply a reaction shot, and no one has ever exploited the reaction shot more fully than these six have.

Life of Brian is hands-down my favorite comedy due to its extremely sharp, biting satire that improves with each viewing. It may not be as consistently hilarious as some of their other work (although the gap isn't a large one, which is saying something), but it is quintessentially the best example of Monty Python at their most subversive and satirical, and, for that, I consider it the definitive Monty Python experience. This is a comedy that rewards re-watching, which is another impressive feat because comedies are usually not as impressive with repeat viewings. Here, however, the jokes never become old, being both riotously brilliant the first time around and absolutely knock-out funny each successive time.

Rating: 10/10.