Pushing the Boundaries: Life of Brian (1979) Remastered
Director: Terry Jones Run Time: 94 min. Rating: R Release Year: 1979
Starring: Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
Country: United Kingdom
Language: English, Latin
The 1970s: Pushing the Boundaries
A Film Center retrospective on the most groundbreaking films to come out of the 1970s.
See more Pushing the BoundariesAbout the film:
Brian Cohen is an average young Jewish man, but through a series of ridiculous events, he gains a reputation as the Messiah. When he’s not dodging his followers or being scolded by his shrill mother, the hapless Brian has to contend with the pompous Pontius Pilate and acronym-obsessed members of a separatist movement. Rife with Monty Python’s signature absurdity, the tale finds Brian’s life paralleling Biblical lore, albeit with many more laughs.
“A beautiful film, a perfect comedy, and a gentle triumph of silliness over pomposity, self-importance, and intolerance.”
—Matt Ford, BBC
About the filmmaker:
Terry Jones was a Welsh filmmaker and comedian who graduated from Oxford University with a degree in History. During his time at Oxford, Jones met and befriended Michael Palin, with whom he performed comedy routines as a part of the Oxford Revue. He found the greatest success, of course, as a founding member of the archaic and irreverent Pythons alongside Palin, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, and Terry Gilliam.
Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British surreal comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Their foray into films began with And Now for Something Completely Different (1971), a collection of sketches from the first and second TV series of their show and continued with Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979), Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1982), and Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983).
See our upcoming films