Brains and jokes.

Rating: 10/10 (19 April 2002)

First a word of warning for those that have not had the pleasure of seeing this fantastic film. It needs quite a bit of historical/religious and political knowledge. But give it a chance, it has something for everyone.
The thing that I love about Monthy Python in general is that they manage to make fantastic comedy that still makes great social commentary. I would even claim that the most effective way to comment on social events is to joke about it. Just think about what Charlie Chaplin did with Hitler!
I must admit that a lot of the stuff that Monthy Python did has aged very badly, especially the TV-series. And let´s face it, the TV-series didn´t make much sense outside of Britain from the start either since most of the jokes are built around a contemporary Britain of the 70´s. I was a toddler at the time of the TV-series so it makes even less sense to me. BUT, this is NOT true of Life of Brian and the other Python films, with the exception of The Meaning of Life.
In Life of Brian the Pythons manage to comment on everything that makes us tick. That is also why it is so great, you laugh about stuff that in reality is plain cruel. It covers everything from Witch hunts to the death penalty. And most importantly, Bible-nuts, political opportunist and every type of follow-the-leader types should not watch this film. You might face the risk of seeing yourself ridiculed.
But since I am writing this in the time of the second Intifata I would also dare to make the statement that you can actually see a glimpse of what is happening on the West bank. The stupidity and brutality of the governing power and the destructive banality of the "freedom fighters".

I love it.