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Monty Python's Life Of Brian [DVD] [1979]

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Monty Python's Life Of Brian [DVD] [1979]

DVD ~ Graham Chapman

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (108 customer reviews)

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	92% buy the item featured on this page: Monty Python's Life Of Brian [DVD] [1979] 4.5 out of 5 stars (108)
	5% buy Monty Python - The Movies (6 Disc Box Set) [DVD] [1971] 4.7 out of 5 stars (22) �14.98
	1% buy Monty Python And The Holy Grail [DVD] [1974] 4.7 out of 5 stars (82) �3.98
	1% buy Monty Python's Flying Circus - The Complete Boxset [DVD] [1969] 4.6 out of 5 stars (34) �13.67

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Product details

Actors: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle
Directors: Terry Jones
Writers: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle
Producers: Denis O'Brien
Format: PAL
Language English, Latin
Region: Region 2 (This DVD may not be viewable outside Europe. Read more about DVD formats.)
Number of discs: 1
Classification: 15
Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
DVD Release Date: 3 Dec 2001
Run Time: 89 minutes

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (108 customer reviews)

ASIN: B00005QB95
Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 49,401 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

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Reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review

There is not a single joke, sight-gag or one-liner in Monty Python's Life of Brian that will not forever burn itself into the viewer's memory as being just as funny as it is possible to be, but--extraordinarily--almost every indestructibly hilarious scene also serves a dual purpose, making this one of the most consistently sustained film satires ever made. Like all great satire, the Pythons not only attack and vilify their targets (the bigotry and hypocrisy of organised religion and politics) supremely well, they also propose an alternative: be an individual, think for yourself, don't be led by others. "You've all got to work it out for yourselves", cries Brian in a key moment. "Yes, we've all got to work it our for ourselves", the crowd reply en masse. Two thousand years later, in a world still blighted by religious zealots, Brian's is still a lone voice crying in the wilderness. Aside from being a neat spoof on the Hollywood epic, it's also almost incidentally one of the most realistic on-screen depictions of the ancient world--instead of treating their characters as posturing historical stereotypes, the Pythons realised what no sword 'n' sandal epic ever has: that people are all the same, no matter what period of history they live in. People always have and always will bicker, lie, cheat, swear, conceal cowardice with bravado (like Reg, leader of the People's Front of Judea), abuse power (like Pontius Pilate), blindly follow the latest fads and giggle at silly things ("Biggus Dickus"). In the end, Life of Brian teaches us that the only way for a despairing individual to cope in a world of idiocy and hypocrisy is to always look on the bright side of life.

On the DVD: Life of Brian returns to Region 2 DVD in a decent widescreen anamorphic print with Dolby 5.1 sound--neither are exactly revelatory, but at least it's an improvement on the previous release, which was, shockingly, pan & scan. The 50-minute BBC documentary, "The Pythons", was filmed mainly on location in 1979 and isn't especially remarkable or insightful (a new retrospective would have been appreciated). There are trailers for this movie, as well as Holy Grail plus three other non-Python movies. There's no commentary track, sadly. --Mark Walker

Special Features

English
Region 2

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Customer Reviews

108 Reviews

5 star:		(87)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

Average Customer Review

4.5 out of 5 stars (108 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What have the Romans ever done for us?, 1 April 2003

By	Touring Mars (London, UK) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Monty Python's Life Of Brian [DVD] [1979] (DVD)

John Cleese once said that this film is what he'd most like to be remembered for, which coming from a man who wrote some of the best Python sketches and Fawlty Towers, should tell you something about how good this film is.

Hugely controversial at the time, the subject matter of 'The Life of Brian' was considered strictly taboo in 1979, and even today it can still rattle a few cages, but ultimately the Python team all shared the same conviction that they were not poking fun at religion (or Jesus) per se, but at the people who blindly follow and misunderstand. In this way, 'The Life Of Brian' became not just a comedy classic, but a ground-breaking movie that pushed the barriers of what was previously considered 'off-limits'.

Graham Chapman revels in the lead role of 'Brian of Nazareth', and the rest of the team play multiple rolls, in a very Goon Show-esque type way, with the story always revolving around Brian. The turning point comes when, in an attempt to evade the notice of the Romans, Brian pretends to be a street preacher and gathers the attention of a small crowd. Once the Romans pass by, however, he stops preaching and tries to walk away, only to find that the small crowd want to hear the rest of what he was saying. As more and more people come along to find out what is happening, his followers multiply until they are convinced that he must be some sort of messiah. They follow Brian home only to be told by his mother that "There's a mess alright, but no messiah.." (I'm paraphrasing, by the way!)

Each member of the Python team contributes immensely to the film, with Eric Idle supplying a classic Python tune as Brian is being crucified ("Always Look On The Bright Side of Life"), Terry Gilliam with some great visual gags, Terry Jones as the director of the film, Cleese and Palin turning in multiple brilliant performances (like Cleese's Reg, the leader of the PFJ, and the classic "What have the Roman's ever done for us?" sketch), not to mention Chapman as the unsuspecting hero. There are also a couple of cameo appearances (notably Spike Milligan and George Harrison) which can be spotted by the eagle-eyed viewer, but are all too brief if you ask me.

If you haven't got this film in your collection, then now is your chance to correct the error of your ways!... and as the "Not the Nine O'Clock News" team once pointed out, Britain is still ostensibly a Python-worshipping country, so do your duty and buy a copy of this classic today!

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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars '' People called 'Romanes' they go the 'ouse ?'', 12 Oct 2006

By	Mr. A. E. Hall "brother_of_sadako" (Liverpool, UK) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Monty Python's Life Of Brian [DVD] [1979] (DVD)

Greatest comedy ever? Maybe! Comedies get dated very quickly, but yet this wonderful cutting, social and political comedy will have you rolling arounding in side-splitting agony more than a quarter century after its release.

The Python gan were famed for the series the Flying Circus and The Search for the Holy Grail is also superb but Life of Brian proved to be their masterpiece. Despite managing to offend a lot of people by parodying the life of Christ, they managed to make the rest of the world laugh with wonderful characters are one of the most quotable scripts ever written. Among the best and most memorable lines are:

Brian's mum: 'He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy'

Pontius Pilate: 'This man commands a cwack legion. He wanks as high as any in Wome'

Prisoner: 'I'm Brian and so's my wife'

Reg: 'So apart from the roads, the wine, law and order, medicine, education, irrigation and public health...what've the Romans ever done for us?'

How do you get your graffiti to be grammatically correct? What is Biggus Dickus's wife called? Why should you always haggle? And just how many pressure groups are their in ancient Rome?

The acting is OTT in the extreme and perfectly done with the greatest comic script ever. It'll probably be making people laugh long into this century.

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63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Excellent film ruined by a terrible DVD, 8 Dec 2001

By A Customer

This DVD has to be the worst I have ever seen in terms of picture quality, the print used is truely awful and it often distracts from the enjoyment of the film.

That said the film itself is still probably the funniest film ever and it puts modern "comedies" to shame.

Buy the video instead and save yourself some money.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars life of brian
evry sceene is a classic & BRILLIANT love the judean peoples popular front romans go home,stoning of the blasphemere & crucifiction

Published 4 days ago by Clifford R. Hewitt

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential
Brilliant unmasking of religion's myths and manipulations. Brilliant start, lots of laughs. The best, most sardonic end ever.

Published 5 days ago by Antonio RRdeP

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
Probably one of the funniest films ever. Well played, well written and well directed. This was one of the last meaningful things the full team of Monty Python did together (apart... Read more

Published 1 month ago by Andrew S. Finel

5.0 out of 5 stars my husbands delight
I bought this DVD as a gift for my Husband, he was thrilled as he had previously been banned from watching Monty Python as I hate it. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Liz Oak

5.0 out of 5 stars Great DVD!
I love this film, and this DVD is of very good quality. I find the behind-the-scenes parts very interesting. Thank-you!

Published 1 month ago by Ms. J. F. Hikins

5.0 out of 5 stars I do find it risible!
What a movie, perhaps the funniest ever. My wife and I watched it again, having finally purchased the DVD to replace the worn out video, and we thought our sides would split! Read more

Published 2 months ago by D. Haigh

5.0 out of 5 stars "We are all individuals!"
This, in my opinion, along with 'Withnail and I' stands head and shoulders above
all other comedies. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Coc y Gath

5.0 out of 5 stars Life of Brian
The funniest film ever. If you've not seen it, what planet have you been living on? If you have then you don't need my review!

Published 4 months ago by Mr. A. P. Dicken

5.0 out of 5 stars Biblically correct and very funny...well done Pythons
Brilliant Film, very well researched, beautifully written and fabulously acted! They must have had such a laugh doing this! Read more

Published 7 months ago by Anthony Parry

1.0 out of 5 stars Schoolboy stuff
Although it annoys me that film makers are allowed to poke fun at Christ but not Muhammed or the Muslims (are they scared to ? Read more

Published 9 months ago by Jay

› See all 108 customer reviews...

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