Monty Python's The Meaning of Life

Director: Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam

Overview

The Monty Python comedy troupe presents the meaning of life in their own twisted way, through a series of hilarious, often tasteless vignettes, each representing a stage of life, from birth to death. Highlights include the machine that goes 'ping', the gluttonous Mr. Creosote, and a very angry Grim Reaper.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/05/2008
UPC:	0025192894329
Original Release:	1983
Rating:	R
Source:	Universal Studios
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	1:48:00
Sales rank:	12,516

Special Features

Eric Idle introduction; Hilarious feature commentary with Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam; Soundtrack for the Lonely: a soundtrack for people watching at home alone; Director's cut with 3 deleted scenes

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Graham Chapman	Chairman/Fish #1/Doctor/Harry Blackitt/Wymer/Hordern
John Cleese	Fish #2/Dr. Spencer/Humphrey Williams/Sturridge/Ainsworth
Terry Gilliam	Window Washer/Fish #4/Walters/Middle of the Film Announcer
Eric Idle	Gunther/Fish #3/Mr. Moore/Mrs. Blackitt/Watson/Blackitt
Terry Jones	Bert/Fish #6/Mum/Priest/Biggs/Sergeant/Man with Bendy Arms,Chadwick/Jeremy Portland-Smythe
Michael Palin	Window Washer/Harry/Fish #5/Mr. Pycroft/Dad/Chaplain/Carter
Carol Cleveland	Beefeater Waitress/Wife of Guest 1/Leaf Mother/Leaf Daughter
Patricia Quinn	Mrs. Williams
Judy Loe	Nurse #1
Andrew MacLachlan	Groom/Wycliff/Victim #1/Guest #3
Valerie Whittington	Mrs. Moore
Mark Holmes	Victim #2/Troll Waiter/Guest #2
Jennifer Franks	Bride
Peter Lovstrom	Brown's Son
Imogen Bickford-Smith	Nurse #2
Victoria Plum	Actor
George Silver	Diner Eating Howard the Fish
Angela Mann	Wife of Guest #2
Anne Rosenfeld	Actor
Sydney Arnold	Actor
Guy Bertrand	Actor
Andrew Bicknell	Actor
Ross Davidson	Actor
Myrtle Devenish	Old Lady
Tim Douglas	Actor
Eric Francis	Actor
Matt Frewer	Cornered Executive who Jumps
Billy John	Actor
Russell Kilmister	Actor
Peter Mantle	Actor
John Du Prez	Composer
Peter Merrill	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Cameron Miller	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Gareth Milne	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Larry Noble	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Leslie Sarony	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
John Scott Martin	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Eric Stovell	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")
Wally Thomas	(segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance")

Technical Credits

Terry Jones

Terry Gilliam

Eric Idle

John Cleese

Michael Palin

Graham Chapman

Terry Jones	Screenwriter
Terry Gilliam	Screenwriter
Eric Idle	Screenwriter
John Cleese	Screenwriter
Michael Palin	Screenwriter
Graham Chapman	Screenwriter
John Goldstone	Producer
Terence J. Cox	Special Effects

Scene Index

Side #1 --
1. The Meaning of Life
2. Birth
3. Birth in the Third World
4. The Protestant View
5. Religious Education
6. Sex Education
7. Physical Education
8. Fighting Each Other
9. Military Education
10. Officers & Gentlemen
11. A Tiger
12. Find the Fish
13. Philosophy a la Carte
14. The Liver Donor
15. The Galaxy
16. The Very Big Corporation of America
17. Mr. Creosote: The Joy of Fat
18. The Meaning of It All
19. The Good Death Guide
20. Autumn Leaves
21. The Grim Reaper
22. Stairway to Heaven
23. Christmas in Heaven
24. The End of the Film

Menu

Side #1 --
Play Movie
With Prologue
Scene Selection: The Crimson Permanent Assurance
Scene Selection
Special Features
Director's Cut
Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam's Commentary
Soundtrack for the Lonely
Foreigners
Spoken Language: English 5.1
Spoken Language: English 5.1 DTS
Spoken Language: Français 2.0 Mono
Captions & Subtitles: English
Captions & Subtitles: Español
Captions & Subtitles: Français
Captions & Subtitles: None

Editorial Reviews

Though their work as a television comedy troupe ended in 1974, Monty Python would intermittently reunite for features, including 1975's Monty Python and the Holy Grail, 1979's The Life of Brian, and 1983's The Meaning of Life. Unlike Brian, their most cohesive effort, Meaning is a likably scattershot collection of vignettes, reminiscent of the Monty Python's Flying Circus series and their first film, 1971's And Now for Something Completely Different. The film swings wildly between pointed hilarity and just plain silliness; the humor is also notably coarser and more vulgar their previous work, exemplified by the classic scene with a gastrologically challenged overeater. In this outing, the directing tasks were handed over to Terry Jones, but Meaning retains the idiosyncratic visual style established by longtime Python director Terry Gilliam. The comedy unexpectedly garnered the Grand Jury Prize at the 1983 Cannes Film Festival.