Cast: Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Michael Palin

Director: Terry Gilliam

Screenplay: The Monty Pythons

Running time: 1 hr 35 mins

Genre: Comedy


CRITIQUE:

Surreal, subversive, incredibly silly – that’s what makes Monty Python and the Holy Grail such a timeless comedy of brio. Humorists Monty Python showcases the British eccentric sense of humour in this send-up of the Arthurian legend, beginning with one of the funniest comedy openings of all-time, a marching King Arthur with a slave thumping coconut shells on his tail. From then on, it doesn’t let the audience gasp some air from riotous laughs. It viscerally mixes gut-wrenchingly hilarious jokes with visual style, cacophony of medieval jesting with happy-go-lucky editing, a certain cartoon sequence of a dragon chase (no budget for stone-age CGI!) and a quick cut due to the dying of the graphic artist is absolutely ridiculous but supremely snigger-worthy. Worth to note, this was made way before Hollywood released relentless parodies, mostly unamusing, and certainly, the Monty Python’s are the still the ones to watch. In Holy Grail, it can never get more absurd than a homicidal bunny, the knights who say “Ni!”, the filthy-mouthed French castle guard, and the fantastically decided finale. It could even, ingeniously, serve as a biting social satire about class divisions, the self-proclamation of historical royalty, and a shout to people with no sense of humour at all!


VERDICT:

Comic relief, pure genius, gold standard. Don’t take this seriously because you’ll never know what you’re missing so sorely – one of the most brilliant parodies of all-time.



RATING: A+