The Meaning of Life

I think most people (myself included) think first of The Holy Grail when they hear the name "Monty Python." But aside from that film and Life of Brian, everything the British comedy troupe ever made was of the much shorter sketch variety. This "film" is really no more than a collection of skits very loosely connected, and often with abrupt and nonsensical segues. I liked it. I liked it a lot. The production value on this 1983 movie felt much higher than that on Holy Grail (1975) or Life of Brian (1979), and when I say that I mean that I could hear the dialogue very easily over the sound effects and that the video was not blurry or fuzzy. So in that sense, it really felt like a contemporary movie despite being 28 years old. And beyond that, it was funny. Quite raunchy, even, and well-worthy of its R-rating. In a way it's a bit of a black comedy, but it isn't entirely morbid. I mean, it's Monty Python. You know what you're getting. I can't say that any of the sketches were dud or misses; each one was either funny enough or brief enough to keep my interest high and my funny bone tickled. One of my favorites was the musical number "Every Sperm is Sacred," a satirical song and dance about the Catholic Church's anti-contraception stance. I was unprepared for the shock value contained in "Live Organ Transplants," in which two organ harvesters show up at a terrified man's home and brutally remove his liver. Oh, and unlike the other movie I watched last night, What Dreams May Come, this movie's version of heaven was light-hearted and easy to appreciate; it's Christmas all the time in heaven and the whole thing is a cheesy Vegas show with topless burlesque girls in Santa hats. I mean, who'd be disappointed in that ultimate outcome? The Meaning of Life was a ridiculous and nonsensical collection of humor that I found amusing, but it's certainly not for everyone. If British humor, absurdist humor, and morbid humor are all varieties of comedy that you enjoy, you'll probably like it too.