monty python and the holy grail Tagged Articles at Cinematical

When I was growing up, my parents really didn't go in much for children's entertainment. Sure, if the TV was free I could get my fix of Jem, but otherwise, I was just going to have to watch whatever my parents felt like watching -- and my Dad loved -- and I mean loved -- Monty Python. So while most kids were glued to Saturday Morning Cartoons, I was in front of the boob tube watching a crappy video copy of Monty Python and The Holy Grail -- but here's the weird thing, I loved it.

Since 1975, devotees and self-pronounced geeks have been quoting the film into the ground. Annoying? Maybe, but how can you not love lines like, "Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government"? Grail was technically Python's first "proper" film that wasn't comprised of their sketch comedy format, and it was no easy task getting it into theaters. Python had money problems, the weather was hardly cooperating, and Graham Chapman was in the midst of incredibly difficult detox -- none of which would make for a very happy set, but, you would never know by what's on the screen.

Python's retelling of one of the most classic figures in English history has remained with me over the years, and while my favorite moments may have changed, it's as funny as when I first sat down to watch it with the folks. So maybe at the age of 8, I was convinced the rabbit gag was the funniest thing ever, but here I am in my 30's and now the anarcho-syndicalist peasants have moved up the list. But the important thing is that nothing will ever diminish my respect for one of the greatest comedies ever made.

Holy Grail Trivia:

• The original script had Arthur and his knights finding the Holy Grail at Harrods.

• Pink Floyd were such big fans of Monty Python's Flying Circus, they used funds from The Dark Side of the Moon to help Python with the financing.

• The inspiration for the killer rabbit (Run Away!!) came from an actual panel in the Cathedral of Notre Dame. In a series of images depicting the faults of man, cowardice is shown with a knight running away from a rabbit.

It's official: more actors need to die. Debra Winger figuratively kicking the bucket in Terms of Endearment, or Jimmy Durante literally kicking the bucket in It's A Mad Mad Mad Mad World ... Harold Sakata reaching for his unfortunately uninsulated derby in Goldfinger, Bugs Bunny grabbing for Oscar gold after being mortally wounded by Elmer Fudd in Tex Avery's short "The Wild Hare" ("It's gettin' dark, Doc ... gasp, choke"). One of my favorites: James Mason making it until daybreak during an entire movie-long death scene in Odd Man Out, or the death by, eh, inspiration in Hot Fuzz.

The list goes on at Gawker.com, where a poll got a lot of people talking. Male posters aired out plenty of excuses for crying in movie theaters like whipped little girls. One correspondent has a likely explanation for shedding his unmanly tears at the end of Armageddon: "a piece of meteorite got in my eye." I know how he felt. Ambient radiation made my eyes run when Spock got broiled at the end of The Wrath of Khan. And all that Middle Earth pollen played hell with my sinuses right when Boromir keeled over, begging apology with his last breath. What's your own favorite demise? Cinematical's Monika Bartyzel lists her 7 best here, from an '07 column, mentioning one time Steven Seagal didn't pull through. Incidentally an outfit called movie deaths.com insists on that the one 100 percent rating is the demise of the pugnacious black knight (above) in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Get out the kleenex and weigh in ...

Movie-turned-musicals didn't do so well at the Tony Awards last night, but that doesn't mean people are going to stop adapting films for the stage. For instance, according to The Daily Telegraph, John Cleese is turning his hit movie A Fish Called Wanda into a musical. He's currently writing it with his 24-year-old daughter, Camilla, who he claims is even funnier than he is. He also jokes that they're going to attempt to write the songs themselves, but he thinks they're going to be no good, so he'll likely be bringing in a lyricist. For now, in its early stages, Cleese says they're simply working out the story (which shouldn't be too difficult, as it already exists in film form).

The Daily Telegraph somewhat speculates that Cleese is working on the project for two reasons: one, he didn't make any money off Spamalot, because he apparently agreed to waive his royalties, thinking the musical adaptation of Monty Python and the Holy Grail wouldn't do well; two, he's currently divorcing from his third wife. Tabloid gossip aside, and ignoring the fact that Cleese may have been 'taking the piss', are we ready for A Fish Called Wanda: The Musical? And if that's a success, would a Fierce Creatures: The Musical be not far behind?

Bunnies! Bunnies! It must be bunnies!

Yeah, I must admit that part of the reason for doing a handful of bunny-related Stars in Rewind posts was to go back to some of my favorite fluffy ones, AND to be able to use that Buffy musical quote. To gush about Anya is a bit of a divergence from movie themes, but luckily there is a worthy killer bunny on film to prove her point. Any talk of cinematic bunnies would be an absolute sham without Monty Python and the Holy Grail's killer bunny.

This is no ordinary rabbit. This is "the most foul, cruel, and bad-tempered rodent you've ever set eyes on," and he doesn't just nibble your bum. Oh man, this scene makes me laugh every time. There's nothing quite like the beauty of the perfectly-performed ludicrous scene. Granted, the whole movie is full of them, but it's almost Easter, so this is the one that applies.

And for you Buffy fans out there, hit the jump.

You know what stinks? Coming up with a fairly cool idea for a new column ... only to discover that someone even cleverer not only snagged the idea a few months ago, but also did such a bang-up job that it makes a new rendition seem pointless.

But since I'm in a writing mood, here's the story: I was sharing a pithy IM convo with a good pal, and somehow we got into mocking Borat and Austin Powers for being way too over-quoted. (I call it the Stairway to Heaven Syndrome: When something of serious quality melts into near-nothingness because of endless repetition and constant over-exposure.) So I said "Hey, I could do a funny Cinematical Seven on 'the world's most annoyingly over-quoted movies'!!"

My friend's response was "Hey, good idea. Just like this one." The author is the youthful-yet-not stupid Adam Quigley, whose work you just might know if you hang around JoBlo's Movienerd Blissfactory once in a while. And while I'm well aware that I'm recycling someone else's (months old) list, I just figured it was too much fun to not pass along.

Not to spoil too many of the surprises, but the movies I would have picked for my Cine Seven are ALL on Adam's list, but they were mostly the easy ones: Swingers, Austin Powers, Borat, Holy Grail, Office Space, etc. Check out the full list of the 10 Most Obnoxiously* Over-Quoted Movies of All Time. And feel free to let us know which ones we might have forgotten. For example, I love love love The Princess Bride, but I'm tired of hearing idiots scream "inconceivable" and waiting for a charitable chuckle. (Also, most of the picks are (logically) comedies, but I'd like to hear about some over-quoted non-comedies. I suppose Jaws, Star Wars, Casablanca and Scarface would make that list.)

(* See, Adam went with "obnoxiously," whereas I was going to use "annoyingly." Well played, Quigley!! And special thanks to Will Goss for the linkage and the nerdly movie conversation. )

I'm no horror buff, but I do love the zombies. Well, I love the idea of zombies. I'm not really that interested in watching all the low-budget zombie movies, all the Italian zombie movies, or all the non-Romero Living Dead movies. But it's funny, I was looking over Ryan's recent Cinematical Seven of reasons he doesn't care for zombie movies, and it dually serves as my own list of reasons I like zombie movies. Or at least those zombie movies that apply. Primarily, I like zombie movies for the first reason: the symbolism.

Shaun of the Dead may be a comedic zombie movie, and it may not have any political undertones or serious social commentary, as do Romero's films and other prominent examples of the genre, but it does permit a scholarly subtext reading nonetheless. And because I'm a scholarly sort of gent (or maybe really I just like to over-analyze everything), I'm going to take this opportunity to look at this deeper level of the movie. Sure, I could just write about why I think the movie is one of the most hilarious I've ever seen, but that would be boring; plus, I respect that some people don't have the same sense of humor as me.

Shaun's symbolism comes in the form of the romantic story. The movie, often referred to as a "rom zom com" (romantic zombie comedy), actually serves as a sort of cinematic relationship guide, comically instructing us about dealing with commitment issues. Look at the order in which the members of Shaun's party are killed (killed dead, not undead): #1: his stepfather (Bill Nighy); #2: his mum (Penelope Wilton); #3: the other guy who loves his girl (the underrated Dylan Moran, who must be seen in Run Fatboy Run); #4: his roommate (Peter Serafinowicz); and finally, #5: his immature best friend (Nick Frost). These are the people that have to die in order for Shaun (Simon Pegg) to devote his full attention to Liz (Kate Ashfield). In real, non-lethal terms, they are the people Shaun has to let go of before he can fully connect in a relationship.

If there was a reason to be in London this month, St. George's Day would be it. The day used to mark a big tradition in England, commemorating the day the saint died on April 23, 303 -- people would throw a red rose on their lapel and many would fly a St. George's Cross flag. Interest has continued to wane over the years and now it's completely dwarfed by those big, commercial holidays like Christmas, St. Patty's Day and Valentine's Day. Really, they need a gimmick if they want to keep things going. Christmas has the tree, the good holiday films and all that; St. Patrick is commemorated with lots of beer, green food and shamrocks; and St. Valentine gets lots of tasty candy and anxious, romantic lovers. So, George needs his on shtick, but would anyone have picked Monty Python?

Trafalgar Square will be the spot where tons of fans will gather to see a public screening of Monty Python and the Holy Grail and try to create the worlds largest-ever coconut orchestra. I think his headless remains are just rolling at the thought! Mayor Ken Livingstone says: "English comedy is internationally acclaimed, and the Monty Python film screening and the coconut orchestra world record attempt illustrate the uniqueness of English humor." I would also go so far as to say the unique way they choose to honor a patron saint! The plan is to have cast members from Spamalot lead a rendition of Always Look on the Bright Side of Life that the coconut-laden fans can clip-clop to. The current record for a coconut orchestra is 1,785 people last year in New York. The British organizers are hoping for at least 2,000 for their attempt. Will this become the symbol of St. George? In 20 years, will we be able to by coconut clompers and Terry Gilliam/Patsy cards for St. George's Day?