Monty Python And The Holy Grail Gleefully Skewers The Filmmaking Process | CineFix Top 100

“Dennis, There’s Some lovely filth down here…”
Our community season continues with one of the funniest movies of all time and our first newly minted Top 100, Monty Python and The Holy Grail. A gleeful skewering of the filmmaking process by first time filmmakers, The Holy Grail crams in a musical number, an animated god, and a record scratch of an ending that breaks the fourth wall in the same way Blazing Saddles did. Clint, Cal and Alex discuss the movie being impossible to turn off, its place as a foundational post-modernist comedy, and how budget constraints changed the ending and invented the term “cop-out”. Who made the mistake of not including this brilliant comedy on their list?
Meanwhile, Dan’s algorithm is still trying to determine how to count to three before throwing the holy hand-grenade into the list.
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CineFix Top 100 is produced by Tayo Oyekan, with Director of Photography, Jamie Parslow and Technical Producer, Marhyan Franzen. Our Executive Producers are Clint Gage, Dan Parkhurst and Corrado Caretto. Logo and graphic design by Eric Sapp and title animations by Casey Redmon.
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[@bluedingo1186]

Probably my most favorite visual joke in this completely absurd movie is at the very beginning of the witch scene. It's less than 3 seconds long, and all you see is Sir Bedevere testing if a dove can fly with a coconut tied to its feet. The very first time I noticed what he was doing, I laughed so hard I ended up having an uncontrollable coughing fit. They never mention what he was doing, he doesn't share his observations, and the swallow/coconut argument is never brought up again until the bridge scene. Absolutely brilliant.

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

It foreshadows the comedic call back

[@kbaley]

They touched briefly on this but to me, it’s amazing that they got so much mileage out of not having money for horses. The entire opening scene had to be rewritten, this throwaway scene with Sir Bedivere, the bridge scene. What did the script look like with horses instead?

[@ReverendMeat51]

Lancelot pausing on the stairs and turning around just to chop the flowers is the funniest thing I've ever seen

[@dalegarraway9865]

"Anarcho Syndicalist Commune"

[@Primifluous]

I do like the idea of communist arachnids...terrifying.

[@rhysalexander182]

Graham Chapman playing it so straight it what makes this movie so great. I saw Spamalot three times in London, and only one Arthur really understood that.

[@michaelstill5184]

He would regularly end sketches in the TV shows by entering, dressed as an army officer and stop it for being too silly. So he was established as the straight one, in that sense at least,

[@Harbara]

"And that is how we know the earth to be banana shaped." The little lines around the edges of the scenes.

[@DevinJHiggins]

"I mean if I walked around, proclaiming I was an emperor, just because some moistened bint lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away!!" I used to drive my high school friends nuts with how many times I quoted that whole exchange. And I don't know how many times I've used, 'Those responsible for sacking those who have been sacked...have been sacked' in various work discussions. And any time I see a rabbit or something to do with rabbits, the first thing that pops in my head is, "What's it do...nibble yer bum?!" This movie is an endless font of quotability.

[@jphilb]

I can no longer effectively count to three. Five is right out.

[@MrLee-zh9ls]

The rage in Clint when he finds out it wasn't on everyone eles list.😂😂😂

[@mepollack]

Truly, the greatest travesty. At least they felt bad about it.

[@grennbalze]

Patsy: “Its only a model” Arthur: “Shh”

[@megabeth]

A subtle joke I only got *this year* is that the guy saying, "bring out your dead" is a Dead Collector 😂

[@patrickkleemann4919]

Fun fact: In Germany this movie is called 'The knights of the coconut'

[@Zed-fq3lj]

Monty Python, Mel Brooks and Zucker Brothers - The Supreme Lords of parodies, spoof and comedy in general!

[@jphilb]

I have been to Doune Castle, bought a pair of coconuts, and stood at the window and said “huge tracts of land”. Checked off the bucket list! The ladies in the group were talking about Outlander.

[@theonlymegumegu]

you are a legend

[@hallesdad]

Can’t be the only one correcting their misquotes in your head while still loving this video

[@theonlymegumegu]

who else was triggered by clint saying, "this movie is so quotable" and then immediately saying "i wave my private parts in your auntie's face" i was like, "whooooooa, i don't remember it going quite like that!" D:

[@apostrotastrophe1]

"Cop out" - by 1942, noun ("a cowardly escape, an evasion") and verb ("sneak off, escape, give up without trying"), American English slang, perhaps from COP A PLEA (c. 1925) "plead guilty to lesser charges," which is probably from northern British slang COP "to catch" (a scolding, etc.); as in COP A FEEL "grope someone" (1930s); see COP (v.). Sense of "evade an issue or problem" is from 1960s.

[@allisonbergh4429]

I love this film, and I love when people mention liking the Groundhog Day musical!! The Python boys did eventually get their epic battle - The Crimson Permanent Assurance

[@uncommon_niagara1581]

Arthur, Lancelot and all of the other Knights are obviously innocent of the Historian's murder because the killer was on a horse.

[@squared_eyed]

"British people making fun of the French. That's, uh... you can't go wrong with that." - Clint Gage. As a British person... 🤣🤣🤣

[@McSorleyCallum]

Looove these long-form discussions. Giving The Holy Grail this treatment is such a delight

[@meattroller8853]

So, in the early aughts I was part of technical professional organization that met early evenings after work. The guy that introduced me to the group and I loved these hot pepper/salami sandwiches from this sandwich shop that was one of these counterculture places about a mile from a college campus. We talked about 20 members from the group to going out and trying them one night. While eating we all got to quoting Monty Python and the Holy Grail. We could not stop laughing and quoting and re-quoting. A couple strangers even joined us. After a couple of hours, this group of 20 of us, mostly in suits, getting ever louder quoting the movie, got interrupted by this guy with a purple mohawk and a chain from his nose to his ear. He begged us to leave as we were disturbing the rest of the diners who were trying to study for finals. We the suits got tossed out for being too rowdy for the mohawk crowd.

[@DesertNavy]

I've always wondered if the "cop=out" ending was partially inspired by the Blazing Saddles ending where the Sherriff chases Hedley Lamarr through modern day Hollywood

[@MrMann0123]

Your timing is perfect! I'm literally putting on my shoes to head to the cinema to watch this again! Brilliant and amazing synchronicity! I'll watch this when I get back!

[@MrMann0123]

Well, I will be if the bloody teenagers hurry up and get dressed!!!! 3pm start 15min walk, 20mins to go.

[@MrMann0123]

BACK!!! THAT WAS AS GOOD AS I REMEMBER!!!

[@Badvision]

So good. Loved it! Looking forward to the updated list of yours in probably 10 years time 😉

[@astragalusson]

If Nic Cage played Tim the Enchanter, King Arthur's "what an eccentric performance" would be even more meta hilarious...

[@azma11]

The 'get on with it' part is a running gag from the flying circus show and so is the cop out ending.

[@theonlymegumegu]

clint talking about three movie being faithful to the original text in parts just made me think of the old cinefix "abe lincoln axe fighter" mashup trailer and how accurate the dialogue where he talks to Mary is with the original XD

[@lupinbandito]

Always glad when Dennis explains proper societal structure to Arthur.

[@MrMann0123]

Dont forget the overlooked stars of the movie, the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, especially Neil Innes, himself a virtual 7th Python

[@0xyartes]

John Cleese has said Americans always pronounce his name wrong, he clarified it's pronounced like "Cheese".

[@KakosBananas]

one of the greatest movies I've ever seen. That movie would never come out today

[@rotcod2886]

Why does he keep saying arachno- cynicism? He needs to watch that scene a few dozen more times like the rest of us. It's anarcho- as in anarchy, and -syndicalist, which is worker based.

[@Serai3]

And now everyone knows that you know. They're allowed to enjoy it in their own way, dude.

[@michellequinn1940]

Government without rulers, not government of spiders

[@Shozb0t]

I think it was a subtle warning from the Pythons that in a worker-anarchy you will end up making piles of s***.

[@Serai3]

@@Shozb0t Go home, wingnut.

[@mepollack]

I was thinking the exact same thing. Remember that scene beat for beat, too.

[@ZonkerRoberts]

Great commentary on this one! Though I wish you'd given more time to the brilliant songwriting by Neil Innes. The song of Sir Robin being particularly brilliant. (And Neil Innes played the part of the lead minstrel.)

[@jacknecron123]

"What...is the air speed velocity of an unladen swallow?"

[@meattroller8853]

"What do you mean, an African or European swallow?"

[@mrhedgebull1658]

African or European swallow?

[@iceclimbers22]

ONE DAY AAAAALL THIS WILL BE YOURS! What, the curtains?

[@professorg9424]

The ending becoming a joke on the viewers is further driven home by the fact there is another 2-3 minutes of black-screen and music playing. No credits, just music. I can't tell you how many times I've watched people (reactors included) sit there expecting another scene to tie everything up.

[@andreraymond6860]

My favorite line from the movie was the taunt 'You silly English Ka-niggit!" as a dig on weird english language quirks. How dis the k become mute and GHT drift into 'ite' ? English is weird. I only gotthat joke after many viewings of the movie. I kept wondering what that word was that the french guy was calling Arthur. Then a bulb went on over my head. Knight. Ohh, Knight! Only PHD Terry Jones and a bunch of Oxford and Cambridge types could come up with this movie. The latin chants of the self flagelating monks, etc. all marks of highly educated comedians. On par with their phisolophers playing football.

[@carmawarlock8455]

English is weird? Have you ever looked into French? They'll have 5 silent letters in a row

[@6thwilbury2331]

One of my friends has the last name Wright. I always call him "Wriggit." Been doing it for 20 years, not sure if he knows why or where it comes from.

[@LMde20]

Seeing your unfettered enjoyment, I'm almost ashamed to admit, that I never really got into the Monty Python movies. I actually enjoyed your exuberant breakdown more. Thanks.😂 But,, believe it or not, I thoroughly enjoyed John Cheese's job training video's. Brilliant, hilarious, and always spot on point.

[@larrywagner1432]

Spamalot was absolutely fantastic! Felt so lucky to see it when it came to Wyoming.

[@lougear1]

Got to see this at the cinema on Saturday with a decent sized audiance which was amazing

[@Xylus.]

Monty Python had the Buzz Aldrin episode, where the credits rolled over a picture of his face and everything in the episode was credited to Buzz Aldrin. Pythons really did invent using credits as a vehicle for more laughs.

[@joesky011]

One of the big influences on Monty Python was The Goons. The Goons were Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe & Peter Sellers and preceded Monty Python by about a decade. It was very absurdist and mostly written by Spike Milligan who by the way, appears in a cameo role in Monty Python's "The Life Of Brian".

[@MrMann0123]

So excited that you end up talking over each other

[@VonBlade]

But like, some like times, like, that's not such umm, erm, you know, like, like a bad, you know, idea. Like. Erm yeah.

[@BoyNamedSue4]

The first time I saw this movie I was in a terrible mood and didn’t enjoy it. But I kept thinking back to certain jokes and would laugh. So I gave it another shot and was crying I was laughing so hard. It goes to show how baggage you bring in can ruin an otherwise incredible film.

[@David0gden]

Trevor Moore from Whitest Kids You Know led the most recent group in my mind that tapped into the same energy as Monty Python.

[@Serai3]

Of course they don't get the Grail. Nobody ever did. In the Arthurian mythology, the Grail was never recovered, and the knights spent their lives chasing a shadow. In pretty much everything, this movie was accurate even when it was being stupidly ridiculous. It's a dance that still awes me with its dexterity. The members of the troupe met in university, and most of them have degrees. Terry Jones, who played Sir Bedevere of the awesome mustaches and the Pale Prince, had a degree in Medieval History. So the authenticity was built in, as well as the erudition of their comedy. One example is the witch-finding scene. It's incredibly silly, and yet that is exactly what the logic of witch-finders sounds like. It makes no sense at all; they might as well be claiming that very small rocks will float. It's not something I would have thought could be funny, but they made it ludicrous by exposing it, something they're really good at. One of my favorite silly details is God's little hands hanging onto the cloud. The insults were historically correct; the throwing of animals actually happened at a battle once; the rabid rabbit was straight out of medieval marginalia - it really is amazing how good the details are. According to Terry Jones, the Intermission was there solely to get the audience to get up. It's not three minutes, by the way; it's less than thirty seconds. It just seems that long. It's enough to get people to get up and start moving out of their seats, and then the movie comes back.

[@darinfoat8410]

So the whole "get on with it" gag actually wasn't in the original theatrical cut of the movie. And it's not on the version I own on DVD. It was a deleted scene restored for later versions of the film. I imagine it was originally left out because it includes characters that hadn't had their in scene introductions yet.

[@JustinRm6820]

I watch a Monty Python movie marathon when I was in high school but that was the last time if it wasn't for Monty Python movies like Deadpool probably want to be Hopefully what I'm saying makes sense since I use the speech to text and sometimes When you do a movie marathon what type of food do you ?

[@paulstroud9686]

I am looking forward to Rear Window! Best Hitchcock film

[@daveyoung8420]

Calls the whole Top 100 process into question (the correct answer is #13). Assuming early onset dementia by the non-Clint voters, three thoughts: 1. Nicolas Cage as Roger the Shrubber. Meets all the "don't worsen the film" criteria and a Cage cameo on a horse is what we all need in these dark times. 2. Best line: A Famous Historian's Wife: FRANK! 3. While I know this wasn't their intent (and no apology was needed) you could always interpret the abrupt ending as an apology to Arthurian legend, established filmmakers, and society in general. "We all know this was silly and it's not a proper movie, so we'll stop it here." Kind of a like a teenage boy telling a joke and then losing confidence at the end and basically mumbling the punchline so he can say he's sorry. Again, neither needed nor intended, but I can just picture it. And maybe that's why Cleese hated it.

[@cameronbobsmith]

I have a lot of time for the three Amigos; but Holy Grail is a masterpiece

[@chandrawalker7484]

Arachno - cynicism? That's (unintentionally) hilarious! To fundamentally misunderstand the core intent behind that joke, only to be replaced with something equally absurd and stupid is actually kind of splendid! Anarcho - syndicalism is a political philosophy - essentially a permutation of revolutionary anarchism that seeks to put power back in to the hands of union workers in an oppressively capitalistic society. Arachno - cynicism is, apparently, a simplistic viewpoint toward our unimpeachable spider overlords. 🤣

[@rhysalexander182]

Interesting that you are “casting” Nicholas Cage in this. My claim to fame is that he was in the audience when I was in a (terrible) production of King Arthur in Glastonbury… he left in the interval!

[@AlyssaSteiner]

I too watched it in an 8th grade english class but I do know i'd definitely seen it before then

[@hayleylewis1458]

Just a heads up to the glass drinking beer drinkers….don’t drink beer from a glass that has been washed in detergent! ( or. It will look headless and flat)

[@I30T]

i saw it in the 7th grade first time back in 2001, and for the next 3 months, at least once when i returned from school.

[@cbythesea]

Spider Worker Owned?

[@brianstewart8561]

Clearly Cage should have been Sir Not Appearing in this Movie...just a picture of Nicholas Cage would have been great.

[@eolanallen4969]

Sad Terry Jones kept being omitted from the list of Python performers. And also not being attributed as one of the co-directors with Gilliam (and later took sole directing control of Python films).

[@marshallsdocumentariesandr6439]

My mum took me to see this in a double bill when I was about 10...the other movie was Blazing Saddles. When was the last time two such comedically perfect movies came out around the same time & were playing together? One interesting note...the horse in the scene with 'A Famous Historian' is the only one on the movie...not sure many notice that. Most quotable movie until Life Of Brian came along.

[@ahseaton8353]

I was going to say that Blazing Saddles is the American equivalent of Holy Grail. They both send up the foundational myths of our two cultures. But let's not...they are both too silly...

[@LynnHermione]

I'm guessing the end with the cops probably works better if you're British and I wouldn't discount being a reference to some recent event

[@gregorstamejcic2355]

I happen to be an anarcho-syndicalist. What's so difficult about this phrase? Oh, and yes, there's violence inherent in the system!

[@I_Am_The_Paulrus]

The only real horse that appears in the film is the one the knight that kills the famous historian is on I always found that hilarious for some reason

[@michaelcoss4866]

Does anyone not notice Bedivere releasing doves with coconuts on strings at the start of the witch scene?

[@michaelstill5184]

Python accepted their biggest influence was Spike Milligan.

[@CornishCreamtea07]

The UK had quite high taxes in the 70s, so rich people would fund stuff like this to pay less taxes. George Harrison did the same thing for Life of Brian.

[@Heffeth]

I came to this movie via the game. Unfortunately, not only did the game already contain the most hilarious movue moments, it expanded on it in such brilliant ways (playing Tetris with not quite dead bodies, reading the Black Knight's journal etc) that it was kind if disappointing for me when I finally came around to watching the source material. Sorry 🤣

[@saranonimus9211]

"Ni" is the original "sheesh."

[@fynnstarke]

Is there a reason why this one is not uploaded on Spotify?

[@cthellis]

All the cool kids have a stuffed Killer Rabbit with red beady glowing LED eyes and hidden fangs.

[@cthellis]

FEEL BAD, NON-RANKERS

[@cthellis]

Life of Brian better be higher.

[@Chasmodius]

The thing that makes the ending work for me is that the police obviously have the wrong people: the presence of a real horse in the historian scene is incontrivertible evidence that Arthur wasn't responsible. Some modern interpretations give this film a plot that makes sense: these are LARP-ers being filmed in the modern day. But that just isn't as funny.

[@yojimbobillions]

Nicholas Cage in character from National Treasure as the narrator of the history documentary who is killed.

[@valmarsiglia]

Skewar? Great QC there.

[@Advent3546]

One of the most quotable movies ever made.

[@aleksandarmahdik377]

I know the joke is not to thank Dan for anything, but if hadn’t come up with the idea of movie replacements, and if he hadn’t put it in that envelope…

[@paulstroud9686]

Look at the bones!

[@jennyzarate7086]

This movie is still funny and is funny for different countries and cultures.

[@mikedelong1207]

I don’t know how this didn’t make it into the Top 100 without being a replacement. Proof the algorithm is broken.

[@DanParkhurst318]

The algorithm isn't perfect, but this is why the strike mechanic has been introduced! The algo is basically draft 2 of the list with draft 3 being the striking and replacements.

[@Pooneil1984]

Arachno what? It is an "anarcho-syndicalist commune." The belief that workers' organisations that oppose the wage system will eventually form the basis of a new society and should be self-managing.

[@colonelweird]

But arachno-cynicism is equally valid - we should be ruled by disillusioned spiders.

[@ahseaton8353]

Close enough...

[@Pooneil1984]

@@ahseaton8353 You'll never bring about the workers paradise with that attitude!!!

[@swwordman]

Nic Cage as ALL the minor characters.

[@lewisjames4268]

The Holy Grails budget was $3.6 million in todays money

[@ryandineen3655]

This makes me all the more bothered that Robin Hood remained when only one person liked it…what else was in the envelope!:-P

[@MrMann0123]

And Patsy calling out that it is a model

[@SecondLineNews]

Anarcho-syndicalism, brother. Read some Rudolf Rocker!

[@MrMann0123]

No improv in the final cut... which suggests there was earlier

[@iansanderson2567]

The Python's took inspiration from Spike Milligan look up the Goon Show a 1950s radio show and th Q TV series 1960s and 1970s. And Peter Cook Dudley Moore Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller Beyond the Fringe

[@nbergstedt]

Did you guys release this video on George Harrison’s birthday on purpose??

[@ahseaton8353]

Shouldn't that be a "moistened bint"?

[@Germania9]

You don't expect that 'cause some watery tart threw a sword at you

[@denvan3143]

But King Arthur didn’t kill the historian; the person who did was riding an actual horse, but neither King Arthur, nor his knights of the round table had horses, they used coconut shells. It was false arrest; come and see the violence inherent in the system!

[@gildacosta3185]

I find Life of Brian 100 times funnier

[@paulkenny105]

Love this series and the 3 of you but discount TJ Miller needs to stop with the “like”

[@josephcallahan1664]

Cleese was the biggest.

[@eddardstark5034]

yo what happend to this Channel? views in the low 10's of thousands? when and how did this happen?

[@hwizell7478]

George of the pop group Harrison of the chakras Legacy with legs #haiku #montypython #georgeharrison

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

Didn't George Harrison--Beatle--largely finance it?

[@rocko7711]

🤣😂

[@robabiera733]

skewar?

[@djvibekiller]

Is that a typo in the thumbnail? "Skewar"

[@chancemartin4737]

Castle Anthrax is always the least funny scene to me. But the movie is incredible

[@nicholasschroeder3678]

When your 16, and Galahad--sweating a storm--says, "Well, I could stay a BIT longer," it's utterly hilarious.

[@vickiw1895]

fetchez la vache!

[@jsullivan2112]

Quoi?

[@rocko7711]

🍿🎥🎬📀📼🎦📽️🎞️

[@rocko7711]

❤🍿🎥🎬📀📼🎦📽️🎞️❤