Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983)

Key words: films, Monty Python, The Meaning of Life, The Miracle of Birth, Find the Fish, The Crimson Permanent Assurance, Terry Gilliam.

I’ve just seen Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, and I guess it’s a good film to start this conversation with. I have to admit this was the first time –although it’s already two times by now- that I saw it completely. Not that I hadn’t tried before. I made an effort to finish it long time ago, but I simply couldn’t put up with it. Blame the criminal Spanish dubbing! Now I regret not having seen it before, and I promise to see again those other Monty Python’s films from which I keep an unimpressive memory.

The Meaning of Life claims the intention of, precisely, reflecting upon these fundamental questions: “Why are we here, what is life all about?” But of course, being the Monty Python, no wonder if these mysteries remain unresolved –or poorly resolved, indeed. The questions arisen, however, are many and profound. The film, in the end, attempts to mock at (or reflect upon -choose the verb you like, I keep both) different philosophical matters through a series of individual sketches, very much in the tradition of the Flying Circus. Of course, being the Monty Python again, no wonder if this philosophical inquiry is also forgotten more often than not.

Although I found the film irregular -perhaps due to its loosely integrated structure- I admit it’s full of corrosive imagination and high-level satire. I won’t go over the whole of it here, but I would like to mention at least two memorable scenes. The first one is “The miracle of life, Part II: The third world,” with a delightfully blasphemous musical reflecting upon the Catholic prohibition of contraception. The second one is a terrific example of pure surrealism beginning with a Zulu-clad announcer's welcome to “The middle of the film” and ending in the “Find the Fish” utterly bizarre shot; this latter being one of the craziest cinematic moments I’ve ever seen.

However, I wouldn’t be fair if I only focused on the main film. In fact, although I didn’t do well the first time I attempted to see it all throughout, I was already then stroke by Terry Gilliam’s The Crimson Permanent Assurance, the short film that acts as a prologue to the main feature. In fact, this was what I was looking for when I downloaded the Monty Python’s film this time. It is well-known that Gilliam’s work was supposed to be included as just another sketch, but it grew so ambitious that it got to unbalance the film, and was thus cut from it and presented as a ‘supporting feature’.

I strongly recommend this short film and still think it’s the best bit of the whole movie. It’s Gilliam at his most. The author of Brazil and Twelve Monkeys delivers 16 minutes of bizarre comedy, social satire, filming dexterity and poetry, all at once. Just consider the plot: the elderly office clerks from an old British company just taken over by an American multinational (literally) mutiny against their bosses and (literally) turn into pirates, and (literally) sail their building "upon the high seas of international finance”.


The highly poetic feel of this short film is given by the constant identification of everyday objects and situations from the dull administrative world with those of the bold-spirited, hazardous life of pirates. A clear example can be the company building itself, covered with sheets by cleaners, which is turned by association into a real pirate ship, with sails and all. But this identification is not reduced to logical analogies only. Gilliam includes also beautiful metaphors that are incarnated in concrete things. This is the case of the anchor that keeps the building attached to the financial district, or the shining metal sword wielded by the American corporate, which contrasts with the improvised hand-made weapons of the brand new pirates.

My intention is not to analyse these symbols now, nor to give out more details that are supposed to be found and judged by each viewer alone. I’m just trying to move others to see this film and consider commenting on it. The aim of this blog is precisely to become a place for recommending, discussing, analysing and criticizing films. I’d like to begin with this one. If any of you is willing to continue this conversation, do it by adding a comment to this post. I will answer.

Meanwhile, I leave some links to bits of the film (try to get it complete though!):

• The Crimson Permanent Assurance in two parts (Part I – Part II)
• The Miracle of Birth, Part II: Third World
• The Middle of the Film (together with Find the Fish; the Zulu-clad announcer’s presentation missing)

Welcome then,
And hope to see you around.