Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

Monty Python and the Holy Grail ultimately functions as sketch comedy connected by a loose narrative. But within that light format, satire abounds.

The comedy is hilariously idiosyncratic, starting with the opening credits and a supposed subtitle dispute. The jokes are varied and constant. Throughout the film, coconuts are used to replace the hoofbeats of horses. At one point, a black-clad knight allows himself to be dismembered rather than admit defeat, haughty even as a stump. The comedy also becomes quite meta; one of the knights manages to kill a modern-day historian which provokes a police response.

The cast of characters is ridiculous without exception. To the players’ credit, many held multiple roles, a tradition in keeping with sketch comedy. Our key players all perform admirably in being so multitasked, their transformations marked not only by changes in costume and makeup, but also posture and delivery.

Perhaps the most intriguing part of the film is the way in which it satirizes Arthurian lore. The film, with whimsy, attacks and makes a mockery of the prevailing conception of the Arthurian legend present in popular culture. Instead, it seeks to replace it with something less fantastic and far funnier.

This replacement is seen in scenes such as when the commoners are collecting mud; they are not noble and loyal subjects. Life is grinding them to the bone and they don't even know who their king is. Much to King Arthur's dismay, the one commoner versed in politics is in favor of overthrowing the monarchy. Despite being revered in modern renditions of his story, this King Arthur is constantly met with disrespect and disdain. In another scene, Lancelot is seen violently cutting through peasants with abandon; the film’s version of a knight, rather than a righteous warrior, seems perfectly prepared to engage in violence without purpose.

This is all made clear when the modern day and the world of King Arthur collide, betraying the fact that they are less individual time periods sharing a timeline and more distinct entities, with one existing wholly inside the other.

Demanding a certain comedic sensibility but rewarding it greatly, Monty Python and the Holy Grail has only one thing to say to Arthurian lore: "I didn't know we had a king. I thought we were an autonomous collective."