Life of Brian

 (UK)

By VARIETY STAFF

Warner/Orion. Director Terry Jones; Producer John Goldstone; Screenplay Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin; Camera Peter Biziou; Editor Julian Doyle; Music Geoffrey Burgon; Art Director Terry Gilliam
 
Terry Jones
Michael Palin
John Cleese
Eric Idle
Spike Milligan
George Harrison
 

Monty Python's Life Of Brian, utterly irreverent tale of a reluctant messiah whose impact proved somewhat less pervasive than that of his contemporary Jesus Christ, is just as wacky and imaginative as their earlier film outings. Film was shot using stunning Tunisian locales.

As an adult in Roman-occupied Palestine, Brian's life parallels that of Jesus, as he becomes involved in the terrorist Peoples Front of Judea, works as a vendor at the Colosseum, paints anti-Roman graffiti on palace walls, unwittingly wins a following as a messiah and is ultimately condemned to the cross by a foppish Pontius Pilate.

Tone of the film is set by such scenes as a version of the sermon on the mount in which spectators shout out that they can't hear what's being said and start fighting amongst themselves.

(Color) Available on VHS, DVD. Extract of a review from 1979. Running time: 93 MIN.