[net.movies] The Meaning of Life

ark (04/02/83)

Anyone seen it yet?

dyer (04/02/83)

If you're a Monty Python fan, then you'll probably enjoy "The Meaning of
Life", despite the fact that its skits often run longer than the jokes
support, that its targets (British colonialism, public schools, upper-crust
hypocrisy, the Church, etc.) are all too easy to lampoon, and that its
obsession with guts and vomit might drive the faint of heart away.

This movie is very inferior to "Life of Brian", which I consider a gem.
Unlike "Brian", it's a series of skits, much like Woody Allen's "Everything
You Wanted to Know About Sex", so there isn't a conventional plot to help give
the comedy some focus.  I enjoyed some of it, but I have to ask whether those
scenes were worth sitting through the whole movie--I'm still not sure.

There's an outrageous skit about the Roman Catholic Church and birth control
which is funny at first, but which has a raw undercurrent of anti-Catholic
bigotry.  There's a sop to lampoon Protestants as well, but it's so mild in
comparison that it underscores the bias.  If you weren't attuned to this,
you'd probably miss it, but I felt like a black person watching a parody
of Black Culture put on by white rednecks: the source of the humor is as
important as the humor itself.

Steve Dyer

mjl (04/10/83)

Just saw The Meaning Of Life th other day.  Personally, I thought it was a
cut below their other two major efforts (Holy Grail and Life of Brian), 
though it did indeed have some very funny moments.  This film dwelt a lot more
on sex and gore than did the others, to the point where it became tedious.
Still, there's probably enough good material to make it worth watching.

Take the above opinion with a grain of salt, too.  Two friends saw the film
with me, and one of them liked it better that either of the first two movies.
He thought the restaurant scene was one of the funniest things ever.  No
accounting for taste...

					Matt Landau
					...!decvax!genradbolton!wjh12!mjl


P.S. -- BING !!    (* for those of you who've seen the movie. *)

nomi (04/10/83)

I just saw "The Meaning of Life", and it was by far the
worst Monty Python movie I've ever seen.  Don't see it
unless you love watching people barf for several minutes
at a time.  (Hint:  that was about the BEST scene in
the movie.)
	Nomi Harris
	rabbit!nomi

clif (04/12/83)

	I agree with your friend, I thought it was at least as good as
"The Life of Brian", and much better than Holy Grail.  (Although I must
admit that I wasn't particularly hungry after watching the barfing skit.)
I say next to "Tootsie" it was the best comedy I've seen in a couple of years.
Does anyone know where I can purchase the sound track? 
				Clif Purkiser {ucbvax floyd}!amd70!clif

guest (04/18/83)

References: rabbit.1310


 	I totally agree!    -Sharon Y. Parker, NCSU