Lives of Python

Making a movie based on actual events, especially controversial ones, is a tricky business. Even for talented (and well-intentioned filmmakers) the conflict between presenting events truthfully and dramatically often tips the balance one way or the other. This often results in films that for all their accuracy are dramatically inert. If the film is also about well-known comedians, the ante is upped because there’s also an expectation of some good laughs along the way. With that in mind, I wasn’t quite certain what to expect of the recent BBC film Holy Flying Circus, which dramatizes the controversy surrounding the release of Monty Python’s film The Life of Brian in the late 70s.

I’d seen a preview trailer that looked promising, especially when it came to the casting of the members of Monty Python, but as any paying customer knows great trailers are no guarantee of a great movie. Thankfully, in this case, the trailer was only the tip of a wonderful iceberg. I really loved this movie. Aside from the casting of the film, which again was tremendous, what made the film work was its wholehearted embrace of Monty Python’s style of oddball detours and sharp verbal wit to make its satirical point without sacrificing the dramatic thrust.

To accomplish the latter point, the writer Tony Roche wisely focused on the friction between John Cleese and Michael Palin. The way in which their very different responses to the controversy over the film ultimately leads them to the same position to defend it is what drives the film. That’s not to say that the other Pythons don’t get their moments, but the sparks between Cleese and Palin are what makes the film work. And it’s because of those sparks that the conclusion of the film ends up being far more emotionally involving than I ever expected. I won’t say how and why, because I don’t want to spoil it for anyone when/if the film finally makes it to America. Going back to the earlier question about accuracy, it bears mention that the depiction of events here is reputed to be at odds with the actual events, but frankly whether that's true or not really doesn't matter so much in the context of a drama where Stephen Fry shows up in the role of God. The bottom line is that it's  a strong drama, and if you’re a fan of Monty Python I think you’ll find this film to be a terrific tribute to the group and one of their most beloved works.