Monty Python and the Holy Grail

1975 Comedy

From its opening multi-language titles (that sure looks like Swedish) to the closing arrest of the entire Dark Ages cast by modern-day bobbies, Monty Python and the Holy Grail helped to define "irreverence" and became an instant cult classic. This time the Pythonites savage the legend of King Arthur, juxtaposing some excellently selected exterior locations with an unending stream of anachronistic one-liners, non sequiturs, and slapstick set pieces. The Knights of the Round Table set off in search of the Holy Grail on foot, as their lackeys make clippety-clop sounds with coconut shells. A plague-ridden community, ringing with the cry of "bring out your dead," offers its hale and hearty citizens to the body piles. A wedding of convenience is attacked by Arthur's minions while the pasty-faced groom continually attempts to burst into song. The good guys are nearly thwarted by the dreaded, tree-shaped "Knights Who Say Ni!" A feisty enemy warrior, bloodily shorn of his arms and legs in the thick of battle, threatens to bite off his opponent's kneecap. A French military officer shouts such taunts as "I fart in your general direction" and "I wave my private parts at your aunties." Rabbits are a particular obsession of the writers this time around, ranging from the huge Trojan Rabbit to the "killer bunny" that decapitates one of the knights. Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin collaborated on the script and assumed most of the onscreen roles, while Gilliam and Jones served as co-directors. more..

Director: Terry Gilliam

Starring: Graham Chapman, John Cleese,Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Neil Innes

Reviews

  • Nobody ever placed brilliance in the service of silliness quite the way the Python gang did. Monty Python and the Holy Grail is stuffed with both.

    Jay Carr - The Boston Globe

    11 May 2013

  • An incredibly silly film of great humor, brilliant design and epic insanity.

    Michael Wilmington - The Chicago Tribune

    11 May 2013

  • Has a sense of humor that is intellectual, even academic, at heart.

    Kevin Thomas - Los Angeles Times

    11 May 2013

  • Silly, sophomoric, and slapped together, but would you want it any other way?

    - Chicago Reader

    11 May 2013

  • Basically an excuse for set pieces, some amusing, others overdone.

    - Variety

    11 May 2013

Awards

  • Best Audio Commentary

    DVD Exclusive Awards (2001)

     
  • Best Dramatic Presentation

    Hugo Awards (1976)