There are a lot of people who get missed by the pointed stick of Monty Python's humor. Some complain that they overdo everything. Others complain that their stuff doesn't go anywhere (see the ending of this movie if you don't know what I'm talking about). Still others are just lost. But, for those of us who like it, get it, and appreciate the things that they are trying to say, this movie makes us laugh EVERY TIME.
I'm not going to say that Monty Python was trying to make a social statement with this movie. There is really nothing in this movie that was intended for anything except to make us laugh. They do tend to beat you over the head with a joke, such as the scene with the guards in Swamp Castle and the Knights Who Say Ni, but that's what makes everything so funny. They do everything they can possibly do with a joke, and then hit you with something completely out of left field that confuses you, disorients you, and, in many cases, loses you completely. Which brings me to the topic of the ending.
*** IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE, DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH! IT WILL SPOIL THE WHOLE THING! ***
So, what's up with the ending? During the charge towards the Castle Aargh, cops show up and arrest Bedevere and Arthur. What the heck?!? Like I said, completely from left field. This is what makes a lot of people not like this movie. It doesn't matter how hard you laughed throughout the entire movie up until this point, you don't really get a sense of completion here. Why did they do this? To tick people off? To see the reaction? Because they couldn't think of a good ending? If you know anything about Monty Python at all, then you realize that this movie could not have ended any other way. Had Arthur and Bedevere recovered the Holy Grail, it would have been completely untrue to who Monty Python was. They didn't make sense, their sketches didn't make sense, and, utimately, they made us laugh at ourselves because they pointed out how absurd life can be.
*** NOW BACK TO THE REVIEW, SPOILER FREE FROM THIS POINT ON! ***
I gave this movie a 9, mostly because there are several production mistakes and some of the scenes are a little slow. But who cares. You hardly notice. If you can appreciate it for what it is instead of dwelling on what it isn't, you won't be able to stop yourself from chuckling at least a little. And you'll be saying "Ni!" for the rest of your life.
I'm not going to say that Monty Python was trying to make a social statement with this movie. There is really nothing in this movie that was intended for anything except to make us laugh. They do tend to beat you over the head with a joke, such as the scene with the guards in Swamp Castle and the Knights Who Say Ni, but that's what makes everything so funny. They do everything they can possibly do with a joke, and then hit you with something completely out of left field that confuses you, disorients you, and, in many cases, loses you completely. Which brings me to the topic of the ending.
*** IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE, DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPH! IT WILL SPOIL THE WHOLE THING! ***
So, what's up with the ending? During the charge towards the Castle Aargh, cops show up and arrest Bedevere and Arthur. What the heck?!? Like I said, completely from left field. This is what makes a lot of people not like this movie. It doesn't matter how hard you laughed throughout the entire movie up until this point, you don't really get a sense of completion here. Why did they do this? To tick people off? To see the reaction? Because they couldn't think of a good ending? If you know anything about Monty Python at all, then you realize that this movie could not have ended any other way. Had Arthur and Bedevere recovered the Holy Grail, it would have been completely untrue to who Monty Python was. They didn't make sense, their sketches didn't make sense, and, utimately, they made us laugh at ourselves because they pointed out how absurd life can be.
*** NOW BACK TO THE REVIEW, SPOILER FREE FROM THIS POINT ON! ***
I gave this movie a 9, mostly because there are several production mistakes and some of the scenes are a little slow. But who cares. You hardly notice. If you can appreciate it for what it is instead of dwelling on what it isn't, you won't be able to stop yourself from chuckling at least a little. And you'll be saying "Ni!" for the rest of your life.