History Film / MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian

* BenevolentAlienInvasion: "What have the Romans ever done for us?"

* BenevolentAlienInvasion: "What have the romans ever done for us?"

The film follows the misadventures of Brian (Creator/GrahamChapman), who was born just down the street from UsefulNotes/JesusChrist. Dissatisfied with his life as a Jew in Roman territory, Brian attempts to join LaResistance (though mostly because there's a very pretty girl there) and ends up fleeing from the Romans. The film is notable for being the only Python feature to make a solid attempt at a single, cohesive plotline rather than a RandomEventsPlot or collection of sketches.

Upon its release, this film drew a lot of controversy, mainly in the form of criticism from various religious groups and orders due to what was perceived as a disrespectful mockery of UsefulNotes/JesusChrist (which in turn was frequently based on the erroneous belief that Brian was intended to be/actually was Jesus, rather than just someone whose life parallelled him in several ways). Rather than mocking Jesus, however, the film actually treats the source material [[JesusWasWayCool with a lot of respect]]. It just points out that UsefulNotes/{{Christianity}} may have missed the point on some of what Jesus taught. It is not unheard of for the movie to be regarded as an AffectionateParody by actual ministers. The Pythons themselves have always maintained that the film is not [[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blasphemy blasphemous]] (i.e. critical of God and Jesus), but rather [[https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/heresy heretical]] (critical of ''the church'').

* NakedPeopleAreFunny: Brian accidentally exposing himself in front of his followers, and later in the same scene Judith delivering a passionate speech in defense of Brian while stark naked. The hermit played by Terry Jones (the one who was under the vow of silence) probably counts, too.

* NakedPeopleAreFunny: Brian accidentally exposing himself in front of his followers. The hermit played by Terry Jones (the one who was under the vow of silence) probably counts, too.

* BilingualBonus: The facades of Pilate's palace have the words "PILATUS IUDAEOS REGET OK" inscribed on them. Translated from Latin, it reads "PILATE RULES OK", a phrase based on a popular UK colloquialism.

* WritingLines: As the punchline to the "Latin Grammar" scene's parody of [[SternTeacher merciless Latin teachers]], the centurion orders Brian to write out the corrected message ("Romani Ite Domum") on the walls of the palace 100 times before sunrise.

* AnAesop: The film's intended message is spelled out by Brian in exactly three lines: "You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to work it out for yourselves! You are all individuals!"

-->Life's a piece of shit\\

Just remember that the last laugh is on you.

** In addition, while the film does bring up the fact that it would be unfair to dismiss the Romans as little more than [[EvilOverlord Evil Overlords]], they were perfectly capable of being so on their worst days, and sometimes even on their best. Some of the largest rebellions against them, including the UsefulNotes/JewishRevolts, were directly caused by a high-ranking Roman (or a group of them) grabbing the VillainBall with both hands[[note]]The Jewish Revolts were kicked off by a centurion ordering the slaughter of a bunch of Jews ''for no reason whatsoever!''[[/note]] -- a common cause for revolt would be the installation of an asshole tax collector who would make demands he ''knew'' could not be met until the locals got tired of him and retaliated; or [[ChronicBackstabbingDisorder they would betray a loyal ally]] [[KickTheDog for no good reason]], then [[WrittenByTheWinners make up a story]] [[NeverMyFault about how the rebels started it]]. But what more often than not broke their necks was the total disregard for local customs -- this was particularly evident in their treatment of Judaism, which they never quite fully understood until ''after'' they fought three devastating wars against Jewish rebels, ending with the destruction of Jerusalem and the diaspora. So, overall, while the Romans certainly did a lot, many people, including the Jews, had every reason to despise them.

* BeYourself: {{Deconstructed|Trope}}. While the film is clearly in favour of not blindly following dogma, the Pythons were savvy enough to both recognize this could be a LostAesop in all the silliness, and that the trope itself is a built-in BrokenAesop. Therefore, it takes a more bitter interpretation of "Don't blindly follow dogma ''you made up yourself'' because a guy ''really really'' seems like the messiah to you": Brian explicitly states the message, and people still screw it up because they've convinced themselves ''that much'' that he's a messiah.

* DoWrongRight: The scene with the centurion making Brian change his (treasonous) graffiti to be grammatically correct Latin.
* DoYouWantToHaggle: Lampooned. While Brian is in a desperate hurry to avoid the centurions looking for him, he tries buying a false beard as a disguise. He attempts to buy it full-price, but the vendor [[JewsLoveToArgue insists on doing the back-and-forth of a buyer-seller haggling.]] When Brian refuses to play along, he calls in his tall brute to threaten him if he does not. He manages to pay for the beard for a slightly lower price, along with a free gourd, Brian insists that he keeps the change, saying that that is his payment for the gourd, only for the vendor to wind up haggling (again, with the brute forcing Brian to play along) that the gourd is worth more despite the fact that it was free.

-->'''Centurion:''' "Romanes eunt domus? 'People called Romanes, they go the 'ouse?!'"

-->'''Brian:''' Look, you've got it all wrong. You don't need to follow me. You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves! You're all individuals!
-->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all individuals!
-->'''Brian:''' You're all different!
-->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all different!
-->'''Man in crowd:''' I'm not...

* OffOnATechnicality: Since the LargeHam priest got stoned to death for saying "Jehovah," it's probably safe to say that the old prisoner is off the hook.

* OnlySaneByComparison:
* In the climax, Judith is who points out that Brian will be killed if they don't stop debating with each other and take immediate action.(She is, of course, ignored.). She still believes that Brian is a messiah of some kind, so she is far from healthy.

--->"I'm not a Roman, Mum, and I never will be! I'm a kike! A Yid! A Hebe! A hook-nose! I'm kosher, mum! I'm a Red Sea pedestrian, and proud of it!"

* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: Pretty far on the cynical side in regards to its portrayal of modern organized religion, MoralGuardians, and society in general. That said, it's notable that the film ends with a song telling you to look on the bright side of life, even if it is a joke.
** Note that Brian only acquires disciples in the first place when he inadvertently starts to promise them some unspecified reward if they do X, Y and Z. Before then, his attempts to preach are mocked and laughed at, but once he says that they'll be "given" something, they're all ears. Unfortunately, he was only busking preacher-type language to blend in with the other preachers and avoid the attention of the Romans, and didn't mean what he was saying. Nevertheless, they start flocking after him, demanding he tell them what they'll be given.

-->'''Biggus Dickus:''' ...wath it thomething I thaid...?

* WeAREStrugglingTogether: The TropeNamer. This is a bit of a GeniusBonus: while any Brit could see the reference to the British Left in the late '70s (which was about to get much, much worse), the truth is that the ''actual'' Judaean rebels ''really were'' incredibly divided and often couldn't get it together enough to fight the Romans.

* WritingLines: As the punchline to the "Latin Grammar" scene's parody of [[SternTeacher merciless Latin teachers]], the centurion orders Brian to write out the corrected message ("Romani Ite Domum") on the walls of the palace 100 times before sunrise.

** Most of the nose-based insults in the film come from Jewish characters themselves, with Mr. Cheeky calling another Jew "Big Nose," and telling him and Brian "Where are you two from, Nose City?"

-->'''Brian''': I'm not the Messiah! Honestly, I'm not!\\
'''Female Follower''': [[MortonsFork Only the true messiah denies his divinity]].\\
'''Brian''': (''horrified'') Well, what kind of a chance does that give me?! Alright, I ''am'' the Messiah!\\
'''Multitude''': HE IS! HE IS THE MESSIAH!\\
'''Brian''': NOW.... '''[[PrecisionFStrike FUCK OFF!]]'''\\
(''beat'')\\
'''Male Follower''': ...how shall we fuck off, O Lord?

--->'''Mud-covered Madman''': And the eyes will be ''red with the blood of living creatures''! And the whore of Babylon shall ''riiiiide'' forth, on a threeheaded serpent! And throughout the land will be a ''greeeat rubbing of parts''!\\
'''Redclad Haranguer''': [''Northern Irish accent''] And the demon shall burn and maim, with a ''nane''-bladed sword! Not two, or five or seven but nane-bladed, which he will wield against all wretched sinners, sinners just like you, sir, there! And the horn on his head shall be...\\
'''Boring Prophet''': [''mildly''] There shall, in that time, be rumours of things going astray, erm, and there shall be a great confusion as to where things really are, and nobody will really know where lieth those little things wi-- with the sort of raffia-work base, that has an attachment. At this time, a friend shall lose his friend's hammer, and the young shall not know where lieth the things possessed by their fathers that their fathers put there, only just the night before, about eight o'clock.

-->'''Ben''': '''Nail''' ‘em up, I say! Nail some sense into ‘em!

-->'''Reg''': They've bled us white, the bastards. They've taken everything we've had! And not just from us, but from our fathers, and from our fathers' fathers!
-->'''Loretta''': And from our fathers' fathers' fathers!
-->'''Reg''': ''*annoyed*'' Yeah.
-->'''Loretta''': And from our fathers' fathers' fathers' fathers!
-->'''Reg''': Yeah. All right, Stan[[note]](who is Loretta)[[/note]], don't labour the point.

-->'''Brian''': I'm not the Messiah! Will you please listen? I am not the Messiah, do you understand? Honestly!\\
'''Girl''': Only the true Messiah denies His divinity. \\
'''Brian''': What? Well, what sort of chance does that give me? All right! I am the Messiah!\\
'''Followers''': He is! He is the Messiah!

-->''Brian''\\
''The babe they called Brian.''\\
''He grew...''\\
''Grew, grew and grew...''\\
''Grew up to be...''\\
''[[LargeHam GREW UP TO BEEEEEEEE]]...''\\
''A boy called Brian.''

** ''Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)'', a comic oratorio written by Creator/EricIdle and John du Prez (the same team of ''Theatre/{{Spamalot}}''). Besides many original compositions are Python mainstays "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" and "The Lumberjack Song".

--> '''Prisoner''': Look at that! Bloody favouritism!

--->'''Brian:''' Look, you've got it all wrong. You don't need to follow me. You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves! You're all individuals!
--->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all individuals!
--->'''Brian:''' You're all different!
--->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all different!
--->'''Man in crowd:''' I'm not...

-->'''Brian:''' Look, you've got it all wrong. You don't need to follow me. You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves! You're all individuals!
-->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all individuals!
-->'''Brian:''' You're all different!
-->'''The Crowd:''' Yes! We're all different!
-->'''Man in crowd:''' I'm not...
** When Brian and members of the People's Front of Judea break into Pilot's home to kidnap his wife, they're met by a rival group with the same objective, and [[WeAreStrugglingTogether begin fighting each other]]. Brian points out they should be united against a common enemy, to which both groups stop fighting and say, in unison, [[RunningGag "The Judean People's Front?!"]]

** The scene where a centurion catches Brian writing "Romanes eunt domus" on a wall and upbraids him for his poor grasp of Latin and forces him to correct his mistakes. [[spoiler:If you're wondering, "Romanes eunt domus" is very bad Latin for "Romans go home", or as the guard puts it, "People called Romanes, they go to the house?"... it gives the adjective for "Roman" an incorrect declension and uses an incorrect mood (indicative, when it should be imperative) for "go" and case (nominative, when it should be accusative locative) for "home". The corrected version, "Romani ite domum", is much more accurate.]]

* ChoosyBeggar: [[http://www.montypython.50webs.com/scripts/Life_of_Brian/6.htm Scene 6]] of ''Film/MontyPythonsLifeOfBrian'' has Brian and his mother pass a group of lepers begging for alms. One (played by Creator/MichaelPalin) turns out to have been cured of leprosy by UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}}, whom he calls a "bloody do-gooder" and complains about how the cure ruined his livelihood.

* SpiritualSuccessor: The film has more than a few resemblances to ''Film/{{Jabberwocky}}''; a Monty Python-alumni film directed by Terry Gilliam about a man who is unwittingly swept up in the politics of the ignorant or insane people around him, repeatedly victimized, lionized and all-around abused by the absurd world that they live in.

* ElmuhFuddSyndwome: Pontius Pilate. It was actually considered sophisticated to have a speech impediment back then. They did their research. So it's even applying DeliberateValuesDissonance to make it funny.
** An entire film of Pilate's inability to say R seems to have just been used to set up an IncrediblyLamePun on the mispronunciation of "rank".

-->'''Brian''': I'm not the messiah! Honestly I'm not!\\
'''Female follower''': Only the true messiah denies his divinity\\
'''Brian''': Well what kind of a chance does that give me? All right, I AM the messiah!\\

'''Brian''': NOW.... '''FUCK OFF!'''\\
* beat*\\
'''Male follower''': How shall we fuck off, O Lord?

* AgeProgressionSong: The "Brian" song begins with him as a babe and describes him growing into a man.

** The Judean People's Front, for reasons unknown. [[UnreliableNarrator At least, that's how they're perceived by others]]. [[AllThereInTheManual Deleted scenes]] provide more explanation, showing their leader to be a pastiche of Hitler.

* AnAesop: The film's intended message is spelled out by Brian in exactly two lines: "You don't need to follow anybody! You've got to think for yourselves!"

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Eric Idle's Mr Cheeky spends the first half of the film insulting everyone he sees as 'big nose'...but in the finale when Brian is crucified, he is genuinely supportive and sympathetic to him and seems genuinely upset that the Romans take his 'I'm Brian' joke seriously and the real Brian will still keep suffering.

** During his full frontal nude scene, Graham Chapman famously used a rubber band to make the illusion he was circumcised like a proper Jew. In reality, the total circumcision they were simulating, called ''periah'' or ''priah'', would not be a Jewish custom until a couple of centuries later. By the point he film is set, Jewish circumcision only severed the tip of the foreskin (something admittedly much harder to simulate), which only got expanded to the full extrication of the foreskin in order to impede Hellenized or Romanized Jews from restoring it through weighting (Greeks and Romans considered circumcision to be inhumane and barbaric).

** Some things the Romans are said to have done for the Jews (see WhatHaveYouDoneForMeLately) were actually already present prior to Roman conquest (such as wine, which had been around since the time of the Old Testament), some of them even having been established by previous rulers (such as Greece or Persia).

* RealJokeName: Brian tells Pilate that he's a Roman and his father was a soldier named Naughtius Maximus. The Roman guards think that this is a joke name and try to explain the concept to Pontius Pilate by giving examples of other joke names like 'Sillius Soddus' and 'Biggus Dickus', only for Pilate to say that he knows someone by the name of Biggus Dickus. He's not kidding. Dickus is his friend and he comes to visit later.

** The PFJ take it in turns to be the only sane man. Reg is the only one to realize the futility of fighting for Stan's right to do something which is biologically impossible anyway. But later it's Judith who points out that Brian will be killed if they don't stop debating with each other and take immediate action. (She is, of course, ignored.)

See also ''Series/MontyPythonsFlyingCircus''.