In 1975 Monty Python tried to make a proper movie (unlike their first film in 1971 which was just a loosely coupled revamp of some of their TV sketches). Everyone said they were daft to make a feature film, but they made it all the same, just to show them. It sank without trace. So they made a second one. And that one sank without trace too. So they made a third. That was panned by the critics and then sank without trace. But the fourth one they made was “Monty Python and the Holy Grail”, first premiered on March 14th 1975. This premiere was not – as you might think – in England, but in Los Angeles. A comedy legend was born.
The budget of the film was just £200,000 (so a BvS quotient of 0.08%!) comprising 10 principle investors among whom were the rock bands Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Genesis: I’m sure they have made a tidy return on that investment over the years.
Apparently when they were touring to promote the film they were constantly asked what their next film would be, and at the Paris premiere Eric Idle joked that it would be “Jesus Christ: Lust for Glory.” So were sown the seeds for an even more successful and controversial film in the Monty Python canon: “Life of Brian” four years later.
I’ve been enjoying your reviews for a year, but am not interested in on this day emails. They are too regularly intrusive. Might there be a way of opting out of them? Otherwise I might consider opting out altogether.
Hi – Thanks for commenting and letting me know your views, which are appreciated. I don’t want these posts to be annoying, and appreciate that unlike most other blog subscriptions WordPress users get an email at each post (which annoyingly – come on WordPress! – don’t seem to be able to be turned off on a per post basis). What I will do is refrain from posting these types on WordPress in future but solely post them on my “One Mann’s Movies” site on Facebook instead. (I will probably post one more here in a few days time just to… Read more »