Review – Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Okay, I admit it. Monty Python is an acquired taste. If you don’t think these guys are funny – or even if you don’t happen to be in the mood for their brand of humor – you’re gonna hate this movie. However, I’m in the camp of folks who find this kind of sarcastic absurdism hysterical. Though I like Life of Brian just a little bit better, this satire of Arthurian legend is a close second. Of course it’s full of classic Python moments – the Black Knight, the Knights Who Say Ni, and so on – I also enjoyed some of the smaller moments. In particular the argument between Arthur and the anarcho-syndicalist serfs is a bit of brilliant fun with both the ridiculousness of monarchical myth and the heartlessness of the rationalism that later replaced it. Lest it sound too high-brow, however, the picture is also packed with comedy that’s just plain silly. Worth seeing