Too much of everything

So much average

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

I'm not anti-Monty Python or anything, I quite liked the Holy Grail for instance. But this was just precious, pedantic, pretentious. Some comedic themes are fun if you try to play along, but over the hour's mark this is just complacent and over-the-top, to a point where you really wish you could agree but just cannot find it in you. The whole meta-thing, how this is an essential comedy that works in a 2nd or 3rd degree and 'trolls' the viewer and should absolutely not be taken literally at all, etc... truth is there just isn't all that much to it, so you can write up the most complicated analysis of it you want, it just isn't nearly masterpiece level and reeks of shock and self-indulgent superiority. Some bits are funny, others barely, others are just boring as hell and immediately figured out, and some are disgusting and meaningless. Just, no.

Nearly all of this film is crude and unfunny. But the Mr Creosote sketch more than redeems it! An unimaginably huge and ghastly man, displaying the most appalling of manners in a genteel restaurant, is a landmark in creative humour. The other diners there, high class people of course, shown nobly putting up the best in English stiff upper lip stuff as he steadily pumps the place with puke, is cynicism at its best. It's a shame that even that moment is tainted with the heavy and unfunny humour of the rest of the film when one of the diners gratuitously declares that she is 'suffering from a rather heavy period' as she rises to leave. But In the end the stoicism that has been such an example reaches its limit as Mr Creosote finally explodes, drenching them all with the contents of his guts and possibly body parts. A tasteful episode I'd say. For me personally this is the funniest comedy sketch I have ever seen on film, something which probably says more about yours truly than I would ever care to state. Shot in Porchester Hall (also a swimming baths) in Paddington West London, I doubt whether that unoffending venue has ever been the same since.

In some ways MONTY PYHTON'S THE MEANING OF LIFE has dated badly since its original release in 1983. Many of its attitudes, especially towards sex and gender, are needlessly sexist, reminiscent of the days when Benny Hill dominated British television screens with his plethora of half-clad ladies. One could argue that the Pythons are making fun of such attitudes, but when one sketch includes a scene of a male fugitive (Michael Palin) being pursued by a bevy of topless totties, we do begin to wonder about the film's stance.Structurally speaking THE MEANING OF LIFE is a mess, a ragbag collection of sketches stitched together under an umbrella title, rather like one of the Pythons' television shows. There is even less plot-line than LIFE OF BRIAN or MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL; what we soon realize is that the film is not going to explore the meaning of life, but rather provide a showcase for the Pythons' idiosyncratic brand of humor. Some of the sketches are just plain puerile, reflecting the writers' experiences of the British public school (read private in the US) system. As an educator, John Cleese makes love to his wife in front of a class of bored male learners; once the joke has been established, the sketch soon wears thin. The staff take on the learners at rugby and use the occasion as an excuse to beat the learners up: we are left thinking "so what?"On the other hand the Pythons manage to land some telling satirical blows. They satirize a Health Service more concerned with impressing administrators than looking after patients; and deflate the often archaic brand of muscular Christianity that prevails at many of Britain's educational institutions. The scene involving Mr. Creosote (Terry Jones) is strong meat for anyone, but reminds us of how our penchant for rich food often leads us to over-eat. In a culture apparently dedicated to the celebrity chef, the thrust of this sketch is more pertinent now than it was over three decades ago.For Python addicts there are familiar milestones such as Eric Idle- themed songs, directly aimed to replicate the success of "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" in LIFE OF BRIAN. Terry Gilliam's animations continue to fascinate for their sheer surrealistic inventiveness, while it is fun to see the late lamented Graham Chapman in a variety of roles. All in all there is something in this film for everyone -- provided you look hard enough.

A fun filled sketch comedy that will have you giggling like a grade school kid again. The Meaning of Life is Monty Python's dry humored look at the world we live in and his comical take on the big questions that people have been asking throughout history. His answers to the big questions are quite funny.To enjoy this film, one should have an open mind, get dry and odd humor and have enough curiosity about life's big questions and ready to receive a comical answer. This is a good film to watch as a Sunday manatee and would make a great double feature with films like "History of the World: Part I", "Wholly Moses!" or even "Monty Python and the Holy Grail".8.5/10