Monty Python and the Holy Grail: Shaming American Comedy Since 1975

Film Viewed: Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Director: Terry Gilliam & Terry Jones

Year: 1975

Stars: Graham Chapman, John Cleese & Eric Idle

Genre: Adventure, Comedy & Fantasy

Ashley Vannatta

Monty Python and the Holy Grail: Shaming American Comedy Since 1975

The opening scene features the British King Arthur approaching a French castle while his servant is clapping coconut shells together to create the illusion that the King is riding a horse. When the guard of the castle takes notice of the men approaching, he starts taunting them and they get side tracked with talk of where the coconuts came from. The guard is French, and part of the joke throughout the film is that every castle the King approaches is guarded by the same man who is constantly taunting and belittling the King's family. The final scene consists of the Kings and his servant approaching the "Castle of Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah", guarded by the same Frenchman. Once they have been denied entrance to the castle, they turn back and call their soldiers to attack. During the advancement of soldiers, English police arrive and proceed to arrest the King and Bedemir. The first and final scenes are not strongly connected in terms of story line, but by the implications made towards the French throughout the film. It seems that the British have a negative view of the French because the French seem to consistently and naively create obstacles for the British. In the final scene, the French guard is heckling the British King just as he was in the beginning of the film, but this time it is detrimental to the king's quest: King Arthur and Bedemir are arrested and never find the Holy Grail.

One of the first characters to face a detrimental crisis is the Black Knight in the fourth scene. The knight is guarding a bridge that the king and his companion must cross. Arthur and the Black Knight engage in a sword fight and Arthur ultimately leaves the Black Knight helpless and with no limbs. The knight is aware that he is losing his limbs in the fight, but only responds with the famous line: "it's only a flesh wound!" The scene closes with Arthur and his companion "riding away" while the Black Knight, defiant until death, screams "come back here, I'll bite your legs off!" This man deals with the dilemma by fighting to his death, (which viewers do not witness.) Another notable character to face life threatening trauma, is the witch in scene five. The townsfolk openly accuse the woman of being a witch, and when questioned, state it is because she is dressed like one. The woman defends herself by explaining that the people dressed her like that. When authorities blatantly take note