8.1/10
263,936
315 user 115 critic

Life of Brian (1979)

R | | Comedy | 17 August 1979 (USA)
Trailer
1:36 | Trailer

Watch Now

From EUR2.99 on Amazon Video

ON DISC
Brian is born on the original Christmas, in the stable next door. He spends his life being mistaken for a messiah.

Director:

Reviews
Popularity
1,978 ( 520)
Top Rated Movies #172 | See the Top Rated Movies as rated by our users.

Videos

Photos

Learn more

People who liked this also liked... 

Adventure | Comedy | Fantasy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.3/10 X  

King Arthur and his knights embark on a low-budget search for the Grail, encountering many, very silly obstacles.

Directors: Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
Stars: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle
Comedy | Fantasy | Musical
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  

The comedy team takes a look at life in all its stages in their own uniquely silly way.

Directors: Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam
Stars: John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle
Groundhog Day (1993)
Comedy | Fantasy | Romance
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X  

A weatherman finds himself living the same day over and over again.

Director: Harold Ramis
Stars: Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott
Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X  

In a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.

Director: Terry Gilliam
Stars: Bruce Willis, Madeleine Stowe, Brad Pitt
Comedy | Crime
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X  

"The Dude" Lebowski, mistaken for a millionaire Lebowski, seeks restitution for his ruined rug and enlists his bowling buddies to help get it.

Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Stars: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore
Comedy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.9/10 X  

The original surreal sketch comedy showcase for the Monty Python troupe.

Stars: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam
Die Hard (1988)
Action | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X  

John McClane, officer of the NYPD, tries to save his wife Holly Gennaro and several others that were taken hostage by German terrorist Hans Gruber during a Christmas party at the Nakatomi Plaza in Los Angeles.

Director: John McTiernan
Stars: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia
Alien (1979)
Horror | Sci-Fi
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.5/10 X  

After a space merchant vessel perceives an unknown transmission as distress call, their landing on the source planet finds one of the crew attacked by a mysterious lifeform. Continuing their journey back to Earth with the attacked crew having recovered and the critter deceased, they soon realize that its life cycle has merely begun.

Director: Ridley Scott
Stars: Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt
Animation | Comedy
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X  

An anthology of Monty Python's best sketches from their 1st & 2nd seasons of their original TV show.

Director: Ian MacNaughton
Stars: John Cleese, Michael Palin, Graham Chapman
Jaws (1975)
Adventure | Drama | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X  

When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and a grizzled fisherman set out to stop it.

Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfuss
Sin City (2005)
Crime | Thriller
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X  

A film that explores the dark and miserable town, Basin City, and tells the story of three different people, all caught up in violent corruption.

Directors: Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez, and 1 more credit »
Stars: Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen, Bruce Willis
Action
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.1/10 X  

The Bride wakens from a four-year coma. The child she carried in her womb is gone. Now she must wreak vengeance on the team of assassins who betrayed her - a team she was once part of.

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Daryl Hannah
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
Wise Man #2 / Brian Cohen / Biggus Dickus
...
...
...
Mr. Cheeky / Stan aka Loretta / Harry the Haggler / Culprit Woman / Warris / Intensely Dull Youth / Jailer's Assistant / Otto / Lead Singer Crucifee
...
...
...
...
...
Neil Innes ...
Charles McKeown ...
John Young ...
Matthias, Son of Deuteronomy of Gath
...
Sue Jones-Davies ...
Peter Brett
Edit

Storyline

The story of Brian of Nazareth, born on the same day as Jesus of Nazareth, who takes a different path in life that leads to the same conclusion. Brian joins a political resistance movement aiming to get the Romans out of Judea. Brian scores a victory of sorts when he manages to paint political slogans on an entire wall in the city of Jerusalem. The movement is not very effective but somehow Brian becomes a prophet and gathers his own following. His fate is sealed however and he lives a very short life. Written by garykmcd

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Taglines:

See the movie that's controversial, sacrilegious, and blasphemous. But if that's not playing, see The Life of Brian. See more »

Genres:

Comedy

Certificate:

R | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

 »
Edit

Details

Country:

Language:

|

Release Date:

17 August 1979 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Monty Python's Life of Brian  »

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$26,376 (USA) (30 April 2004)

Gross:

$646,124 (USA) (22 October 2004)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Color:

(Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

The shots of the crowds walking toward the Mount at the beginning of the movie were accidental. The scene was shot in the late afternoon, and all the Tunisian extras left suddenly because the women had to prepare dinner for their families. The sweeping shots at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount sequence are the extras returning to the set. See more »

Goofs

When the Centurion corrects Brian's slogan, "Romanes Eunt Domus", he says Domum is the locative case, which would be Domi. It's actually the accusative of place, which drops the preposition Ad from Ad Domum. However, the resulting sentence, "Romani Ite Domum", is correct. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Wise Man #1: Ahem!
Brian's mother: Oh!
[falls over in chair]
Brian's mother: Who are you?
Wise Man #2: We are three wise men.
Brian's mother: What?
Wise Man #1: We are three wise men.
Brian's mother: Well, what are you doing creeping around a cow shed at two o'clock in the morning? That doesn't sound very wise to me.
See more »

Crazy Credits

The opening credits are presented as an elaborate Terry Gilliam animated sequence of Roman temples being destroyed. See more »

Connections

Follows Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969) See more »

Soundtracks

Brian Song
Words by Michael Palin
Music by André Jacquemin and Dave Howman (as David Howman)
Arranged by John Du Prez
Sung by Sonia Jones
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

See more (Spoiler Alert!) »

User Reviews

 
I Think God Has A Sense Of Humor, Don't You?
1 April 2002 | by (USA) – See all my reviews

And in the 1979th year of Our Lord, God took in a screening of Monty Python's "Life Of Brian," and thought it was funny.

He did NOT think the film was blasphemous or offensive in any way. Yea, God did admire it's incredibly clever pokes at religion and at religious fanatics, for God Himself knew the virtue of being able to laugh at one's self. He also knew before He even walked into the theater that the title character, Brian, was NOT Jesus Christ, but merely a man who was born at the same time as Christ---right next door, in fact---and became mistaken for a messiah. God settled into His seat, with popcorn in one hand and diet soda in another, and had a rollicking good time.

He recommended "Life Of Brian" to His Son, Jesus, who went to see it the following week. He, too, thought it was a hilarious film, and immediately sang the praises of the Monty Python troupe---John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam & Michael Palin---for creating such a wonderful spoof. And He recommended the film to His friends. Have an open mind, He told them, and have fun.

But God and His Son were quite puzzled why so many people in the Bible Belt community were so upset by "Life Of Brian"---especially the ones who hadn't even bothered to SEE the frigging film for fear of being damned for all time. And They both shook their heads in dismay. It's only a movie, They thought, and a very funny, harmless one at that. Get a life!

But God gave Monty Python's "Life Of Brian" the power to overcome such ridiculous adversity, and today, well over two decades later, the film is rightfully regarded as a comedy classic, and one of the Python's finest works. It's *still* not a film for everybody, but does it have to be? If you're in tune with the Python's style of zany comedy, you'll enjoy "Life Of Brian."

And praise be to Saint George Harrison, late of The Beatles, for lending the Pythons a hand in making this wonderful movie. :-)


285 of 365 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Hugely innacurate sarahwellis
Life of Brian or Holy Grail elijam
Am I missing something? AlienFanboy
This is not an anti-christian or an atheist movie. san-fairy-ann
What was your funniest scene? Kotkijet
David Prowse?? RSpisket
Discuss Life of Brian (1979) on the IMDb message boards »

Contribute to This Page

Create a character page for:
?