Guest Post: Just for fun, I’ve asked my oldest son Mateo for one of his essays this semester. He’s brilliant and quite capable of writing superb literature. He has a command of language that many dead English poets were striving to attain. I’m quite sure King Arthur himself would have given Mateo a royal commission as a bard.
And yet . . .
Mateo’s only offering is a write-up on Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I had hoped for a stunning analysis of how this film is a critique of many aspects of British aristocracy. However, let me just start by saying that:
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Rev. Jared V. Ingle, Crystal Ingle, JCIngle, or Ingle5. They should not be utilized in any real-world decision-making process regarding whether or not to watch the movie. Assumptions made within the movie review are not reflective of the position of any Jared & Co. entity.
Now we have the disclaimer joke out of the way. So enjoy this assignment for Mateo’s Film Studies class this semester.
My Favorite Film:
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
I remember the fateful September night I was introduced to Monty Python and the Holy Grail like it was yesterday. My dad, who always brings home old westerns or dramas from the library after work, had picked up yet another old movie. I never really enjoyed the movies he brought home, so you can imagine I was a bit skeptical when he told me that this was the greatest comedy of all time.
I have never laughed so hard at a movie before or since that night.
JVI | Teo West Side cameraman | 11.04.18
The moment where I realized it might actually be good was the opening scene, not with King Arthur pretending to ride a horse while his squire is clopping coconuts together, but the conversation between the two guards at the castle, debating whether or not a swallow could carry a coconut. The pure brilliance of the stupidity of that dialogue struck me, and I knew then that this was not just any other washed-up old movie.
Now, in my dad’s family, the Ingle’s have a different sort of humor. My grandpa, uncles, and my dad could go back and forth for hours just making up jokes or trying to make each other laugh. So I had heard of Monty Python and the Holy Grail before, because even though it sounds ridiculous, it was actually passed down through my grandpa to my dad and his brothers. This movie was a literal legend in the Ingle family that before September 2017 I had yet to see.
So why is this my favorite movie?
Quite honestly, it’s because I share the humor that my grandfather and his sons have. Many people will probably not see the appeal to this movie like we do, because it’s pretty much a pointless hour and a half. The plot line is terrible, each of the actors play more than one character, and the supposedly climactic battle scene at the end is stopped before it even starts by the police, and everyone is arrested. It’s a comedy, and that’s it. Comedy is what this movie is all about, the absurd humor and crazy antics. It’s as if there was no script, that everyone in the movie just made up whatever they wanted as it went along!
One of my favorite aspects of the film is that the story is not the only funny side of this movie.
The soundtrack is hilarious too!
The same music is played throughout the whole movie, and somehow, the amazing minds at Monty Python created an overture that is not only epic, but ridiculous sounding as well. Not only that, but they even manage to make fun of intermission music, by playing a silly tune on a piano for eight seconds.
The craziest scene for me the first time I watched the movie was the musical number at Camelot. That part was when I died laughing. It was so random, because as the knights were dancing and singing they were wreaking havoc! They overturned tables and brought down rafters, and there was even a small cutscene that showed a prisoner in the dungeon clapping along, which made me fall on the floor because I couldn’t breathe!
Why in the world do I find this stuff hilarious? Really, what’s so funny about a bunch of middle-aged men trying to make a spin-off of King Arthur that doesn’t even have anything to do with his actual story?
Two words: Satiric genius.
The British comedy group Monty Python takes everything about the legend of King Arthur and makes fun of it. They ridicule how hopeless Arthur’s quest is, and how he never even finds the Grail. They take the adventures of him and his knights and twist them into whatever they want. The whole movie is just a stupid, yet quite hysterical mockery of the age-old story of King Arthur’s search with the Knights of the Round Table.
Ironically, no matter how unintelligent this movie may seem, I find it genius as I have never seen a movie like it. It’s genius, not because it’s pointless, but because it is so unique (in an idiotic way) that you will always remember it. Every time you hear something about King Arthur or are reading about him, you will think of this movie. Every time you see a black cat, or are reading about the Salem witch trials, you will think of this movie.
Monty Python burns the images of what you see into your head, and no matter how hard you try you’ll never forget them.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail blends slapstick, cheesy, and dry humor into a messy muddle that ends up making no sense except to the people that understand there is no point. To some, this movie is insanity and leaves them crying because it’s so pathetic. To the others, it’s insanely funny and leaves them crying because they are laughing so hard. I am lucky to be one of the few that appreciate Monty Python’s artistry. From the weighing of the witch and the duck, to the French knights launching cows over castle walls, to the animator’s death saving the heroes from doom, the film took me on an unforgettable comedic journey, securing itself as my favorite movie of all time . . . so far.
Amazon: Monty Python and the Holy Grail
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