Life of Brian (1979)

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

Director:

Terry Jones

Writers:

Graham Chapman, John Cleese,

Stars:

Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin

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Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Graham Chapman	...	Wise Man #2 / Brian Cohen / Biggus Dickus
John Cleese	...	Wise Man #1 / Reg / Jewish Official / Centurion / Deadly Dirk / Arthur
Terry Gilliam	...	Man Even Further Forward / Revolutionary / Jailer / Blood & Thunder Prophet / Frank / Audience Member / Crucifee
Eric Idle	...	Mr. Cheeky / Stan (Loretta) / Harry the Haggler / Culprit Woman / Warris / Intensely Dull Youth / Jailer's Assistant / Otto / Lead Singer Crucifee
Terry Jones	...	Mandy Cohen / Colin / Simon the Holy Man / Bob Hoskins / Saintly Passer-by / Alarmed Crucifixion Assistant
Michael Palin	...	Wise Man #3 / Mr. Big Nose / Francis / Mrs. A / Ex-Leper / Announcer / Ben / Pontius Pilate / Boring Prophet / Eddie / Shoe Follower / Nisus Wettus
Terence Bayler	...	Gregory
Carol Cleveland	...	Mrs. Gregory
Kenneth Colley	...	Jesus
Neil Innes	...	A Weedy Samaritan
Charles McKeown	...	False Prophet / Blind Man / Giggling Guard / Stig
John Young	...	Matthias, Son of Deuteronomy of Gath
Gwen Taylor	...	Mrs. Big Nose
Sue Jones-Davies	...	Judith
Peter Brett

Storyline

Irreverent satire of Biblical films and religious intolerance focuses on Brian, a Jew in Roman-occupied Judea. After joining up with an anti-Roman political organization, Brian is mistaken for a prophet, and becomes a reluctant Messiah.

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Plot Keywords:

Judea | Revolutionary | Satire | Latin Grammar | Sewer | 

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Taglines:

Just when you thought you were saved...

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Genres:

Comedy

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Pictures

Country:

UK

Language:

English Latin

Release Date:

17 August 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Monty Python's Life of Brian

Filming Locations:

Amphitheater, Carthage, Tunis, Tunisia

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

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

Gross:

$646,124 (USA) (22 October 2004)

Company Credits

Production Co:

HandMade Films, Python (Monty) Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

94 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The shots of all the people walking towards the mount at the beginning of the movie were accidental. It was late afternoon when they were shooting this scene, and suddenly, all the Tunisian extras left, as all the women had to prepare dinner for their families. The sweeping shots at the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount sequence are of all the extras returning to the set.

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Goofs

In the scene where a nude Brian speaks with his followers and his mother comes storming into the room, a Star of David is visible on the wall of the room. The Star of David didn't become a symbol of Judaism until the Middle Ages.

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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.

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Crazy Credits

Moose Choreography

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Connections

Spoofed in South Park: The Last of the Meheecans (2011)
Butters wakes up naked, opens the shutters and like Brian, he is greeted by thousands of cheering followers on the streets.

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Soundtracks

"Always Look on the Bright Side Of Life"
Written by Eric Idle
Arranged by John Altman
Sung by Eric Idle and chorus

User Reviews

Still funny, after 25 years

When a film is still funny 25 years after it's made, and doesn't feel particularly aged, even a quarter of a century later, then you know that you've struck gold. The famous Monty Python crew once again take a well-known subject and make a lot of fun of it. This time, the subject is religion, or, more specifically, Christianity. Everyone who knows at least a little about Christianity, which is pretty much anyone from the western world, will probably be able to laugh at something in this movie. Unless, of course, you are very Christian yourself, in that case you will probably feel that the film is blasphemous(I don't personally think so, since it makes fun of the followers and the general stupidity of people and organizations back in 30-something A.D., rather than Jesus and his teachings). The plot is about as incoherent as the usual Monty Python team film, though it should be noted that, like Monty Python and the Holy Grail, it is an actual film, and not a series of sketches, like, for example, the Meaning of Life. It's about as paced as they usually are, most of the scenes contain a lot of jokes, and then they move on to the next scene, after about five minutes of jokes and sight gags. This is, unfortunately, the problem with their films; if you don't like the jokes, the film might seem extremely slow to you; of course, one could argue that Monty Python mainly make movies for the jokes sake, but they could do better on the pacing, for the sake of viewers who don't like all those repeated jokes. That's not to say that I don't like them, I laugh at them most of the time, heck, I laughed so hard that I almost got stomach ache from it at one particular instant. But, I guess that a lot of people won't like them for this way of making movies. Oh well. You can't please everyone. The humor is great, it's standard Python wacky, crazy humor, so every Python fan should enjoy it. People who don't like Monty Python should give this a chance too, if they have at least a little humor, and they aren't Christian extremists. Christian "believers" can probably laugh at it too, like I said, it's not the religion itself, it's more the brainwashed followers that the film makes fun of. All in all, a great film for fans of the Python crew, and people who have a sense of humor about religion(a dark sense of humor, that is). I recommend it to fans of Monty Python, people who enjoy dark humor and people who can laugh a little at the less intelligent parts of Christianity. I fall into all three categories, and I loved it. 8/10