Monty Python’s Life of Brian is an old comedy released in 1979. I was introduced to it by a friend when we were chatting over drinks in a pub after I quoted some lines from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, released in 1975.
I will not go into the details of it since it is an old movie. I had originally considered it a parody of the life of Jesus and somewhat felt the movie seems to make a mockery of Jesus’ ministry and life on earth. However, one could also read it as taking a swipe at the at the people who hear but never listen, and also those used their own agendas and beliefs to supercede Jesus’ teachings. All these was done through the ‘misadventures’ of Brian and it is very well depicted because from that the cast and the producers avoided insulting Jesus himself.
Anyway, no matter how I read the movie, I am not an extremist nor a fanatic so I watched it simply for laughs. It is a good movie to watch to lighten up, but be warned that the ending is rather anti-climatic. I have watched two Monty Python movies so far and in both of them I end up going ”duh?!’ at the end of them.
There’s a part which I watched three times and I laughed so hard till I got stitches. It is a conversation between four Jewish rebels: Stan, Francis, Reg (the leader) and Judith. Calling themselves the People’s Front of Judea, they were trying to define the agenda of their anti-Roman movement in the middle of a Roman Colosseum in Jerusalem, when the conversation took a surprised turn to the one below:
Reg: Furthermore, it is the birthright of every man
Stan: Or woman.
Reg: Why don’t you shut up about women?
Stan: Women have a perfect right to play a part in our movement.
Reg: Why are you always on about women, Stan?
Stan: I want to be one.
Reg: What?
Stan: I want to be a woman. From now on, I want you all to call me “Loretta”.
Reg: What?
Stan: It’s my right as a man.
Judith: Well, why do you want to be Loretta, Stan?
Stan: I want to have babies.
Reg: You want to have babies?!
Stan: It’s every man’s right to have babies if he wants them.
Reg: But you can’t have babies.
Stan: Don’t you oppress me.
Reg: I’m not oppressing you, Stan. You haven’t got a womb! Where is the fetus gonna gestate? You’re gonna keep it in a box?
Judith: Here, I’ve got an idea. Suppose you agree that he can’t actually have babies, not having a womb which is nobody’s fault, not even the Romans but that he can have the right to have babies?
Francis: Good idea, Judith. We shall fight the oppressors… for your right to have babies, brother! Sister, Sorry.
Reg: What’s the point?
Francis: What?
Reg: What’s the point of fighting for his right to have babies when he can’t have babies?
Francis: It is symbolic of our struggle against oppression.
Reg: Symbolic of his struggle against reality.
Why did I find the conversation hilarious at all? Because it would also quite aptly describes the absurdity the argument of some pro-HBT (Homosexual, Bisexual and Transgendered) people and even the HBT’s fight for marriage or civil union. Especially the last remark made by Reg, the leader before the next scene: symbolic of the struggle against reality.
Indeed!! Now remember that the movie was released in 1979. Perhaps it would be indicative that the the generation before Gen-X (mine) maybe the last one with their head screwed on tight, and proper.