Monty Python's The Meaning of Life
A return to their roots for the Monty Python team, instead of a semi-coherent story like Holy Grail and Life of Brian, The Meaning of Life is a collection of short skit-like segments arranged around a general thematic journey from birth to death. Some times I think Python is brilliantly funny and surprisingly smart, and I can admire the audacity of the idiosyncratic humor and their multi-million dollar movies largely made for their own amusement, and then sometimes their just juvenile and gross. This is a little of column A and a little of column B, I think it works better as a film them Life of Brian, but Holy Grail will always be there most iconic work. This movie simultaneously has both the most cross-dressing and the most breasts of any Python film. It boasts some dang catchy music, as well as some surprisingly good effects in places, and Terry Gilliam's 17 minute "supporting feature" The Crimson Permanent Assurance is one of the great vanity projects of all time (it should have been a cartoon, so he did it live action). **1/2
The Thing That Couldn't Die
The funniest thing about many a vintage sci-fi/horror movie is the absurdity of their plots, that is certainly the case here. On a struggling dude ranch in southern California a young "water witch" (Carolyn Kearney) warns her aunt (Peggy Converse) and the visiting archeology student she's in love with (William Reynolds) against digging up a 400 treasure chest she locates on the property. She is of course ignored, and before long two hired hands on the ranch have freed an animate, telepathic severed head (Robin Hughes) of a wayward member of the Francis Drake expedition. Said head wants to find his body which was also buried in the vicinity and if he has to break-up some other guests engagement, kill a few people, and get Carolyn to start dressing like a member of an interpretive dance troop to do it, he will. But will he succeed.... kind of, but on the whole no. Really its the absurdity that gets you through this movie, that otherwise has very little budget, and very bland talent (but a lot of hutzpah). **
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