Monty Python as a franchise has had a conflicted legacy, based mostly on its popularity. Some say it's no longer funny or been quoted too much. Even the Pythons dislike that their deliberately subversive jokes became recognizable catchphrases and popular punchlines, leading to reunion shows changing some sketches to subvert the original subversion. This film is one of the most well-known and thus, most oversaturated pieces of Python media in the eyes of some.
But there's a good case to be made that it's also the perfect comedy movie.
Holy Grail wisely broadens the Pythons' scope while retaining the comedy. Rather than being an anthology film of original sketches (which they did to mixed effect in their final movie), this film tells a linear story, just in Python fashion, taking on Arthurian legend. This format allows for distinct vignettes and Terry Gilliam's animation for transitions, but the overarching plot anchored by a cast of characters works well to make the film engaging and purposeful. And nothing of the comedy is lost with this very different structure. The Pythons work as a troupe playing several characters each, with great absurdist dialogue and meta-surrealist filmmaking. The opening credits get a rogue Swedish subtitler that leads to all of the credits staff being sacked. An intermission occurs. An animated peril sequence is cut off for production reasons, sparing the characters. An anachronistic running gag leads to the entire film's undoing. There are no end credits due to the sacked staff. It's not like the entire film is ironic and self-defeating, though, and the comedy is silly enough to be fun as well as subversive. The film is (infamously) quotable, the direction and editing are perfectly done in several gags and sequences, and nothing seems to drag or miss.
The film's low budget also gives it a bit of scrappy charm that influences a few gags and makes its achievements and level of craft more impressive. Can't afford horses? Make a running gag of it. Multiple actors play multiple characters, but it's never a problem or obtrusive. This may be a cheap movie, but it is not amateurish and it turned limitations into strengths.
If anything hasn't aged well, it's probably a sequence where a chaste knight is tempted by virginal young women in a castle, but its execution saves it from feeling like the writers were creeps. I'd call it reaching to get concerned by it, but some might feel weird about it.
Overall, this is a humble movie executed very well. It's a novel comedy setting, and the comedy is done right with great performances, surprises, and filmmaking. I don't think being exposed to the jokes can ruin them because they're done so well, and no quotation can replicate the viewing of a film. Give it a shot even if you think you've managed to watch it secondhand.
Oversaturation often happens for good reasons.
Monty Python as a franchise has had a conflicted legacy, based mostly on its popularity. Some say it's no longer funny or been quoted too much. Even the Pythons dislike that their deliberately subversive jokes became recognizable catchphrases and popular punchlines, leading to reunion shows changing some sketches to subvert the original subversion. This film is one of the most well-known and thus, most oversaturated pieces of Python media in the eyes of some. But there's a good case to be made that it's also the perfect comedy movie.
Holy Grail wisely broadens the Pythons' scope while retaining the comedy. Rather than being an anthology film of original sketches (which they did to mixed effect in their final movie), this film tells a linear story, just in Python fashion, taking on Arthurian legend. This format allows for distinct vignettes and Terry Gilliam's animation for transitions, but the overarching plot anchored by a cast of characters works well to make the film engaging and purposeful. And nothing of the comedy is lost with this very different structure. The Pythons work as a troupe playing several characters each, with great absurdist dialogue and meta-surrealist filmmaking. The opening credits get a rogue Swedish subtitler that leads to all of the credits staff being sacked. An intermission occurs. An animated peril sequence is cut off for production reasons, sparing the characters. An anachronistic running gag leads to the entire film's undoing. There are no end credits due to the sacked staff. It's not like the entire film is ironic and self-defeating, though, and the comedy is silly enough to be fun as well as subversive. The film is (infamously) quotable, the direction and editing are perfectly done in several gags and sequences, and nothing seems to drag or miss.
The film's low budget also gives it a bit of scrappy charm that influences a few gags and makes its achievements and level of craft more impressive. Can't afford horses? Make a running gag of it. Multiple actors play multiple characters, but it's never a problem or obtrusive. This may be a cheap movie, but it is not amateurish and it turned limitations into strengths.
If anything hasn't aged well, it's probably a sequence where a chaste knight is tempted by virginal young women in a castle, but its execution saves it from feeling like the writers were creeps. I'd call it reaching to get concerned by it, but some might feel weird about it.
Overall, this is a humble movie executed very well. It's a novel comedy setting, and the comedy is done right with great performances, surprises, and filmmaking. I don't think being exposed to the jokes can ruin them because they're done so well, and no quotation can replicate the viewing of a film. Give it a shot even if you think you've managed to watch it secondhand.