Movie Review: Holy Flying Circus

Monty Python was probably my first introduction to British television (and a good intro it was!!!) so I was very excited to receive a copy of "Holy Flying Circus," compliments from Acorn Media.

Holy Flying Circus is a dramatization of the 1970s uproar about Monty Python's infamous movie, "Life of Brian." It was filmed in 2011. If you've seen "Life of Brian," you can see that some of the material might upset some (some people just don't get satire). The movie is mostly about the controversy surrounding the movie, told in a very humorous, very Monty Python-esque way.

The movie definitely touches a lot on censorship. As the movie shows, "Life of Brian," was not allowed to be shown on British tv until 1995 and it was made in the late-1970s. One recurring theme throughout the movie is many people criticizing the movie even though they had never even watched it. For us bookish people, we're very familiar with this sort of criticism. Just look at how many books have been banned or challenged without people actually reading them and really seeing what they are all about. I loved how much these people were made fun of in the movie. I just don't get how you can have an opinion if you've never seen something and experienced it for yourself. Hey, it seems to happen all the time. So it goes.

I was amazed how much some of the people looked like the original Monty Python people. The guy who played Eric Idle was a dead ringer!

You should definitely watch "Life of Brian" before you watch this docu-drama. You'll still understand it if you don't but "Life of Brian" is hilarious. You should also watch some of the actual show because it's hilarious and you are definitely missing out if you've never seen the show!

Bottom line: Good for a laugh or two (or three or infinity).