Life of Brian (1979)
He's not the messiah...he's just a naughty boy.
Brian Cohen is an average young Jewish man, but through a series of ridiculous events, he gains a reputation as the Messiah. When he's not dodging his followers or being scolded by his shrill mother, the hapless Brian has to contend with the pompous Pontius Pilate and acronym-obsessed members of a separatist movement. Rife with Monty Python's signature absurdity, the tale finds Brian's life paralleling Biblical lore, albeit with many more laughs.
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| Type | Movie |
|---|---|
| Released | 17 August 1979 |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Director | Terry Jones |
| Starring | Graham Chapman, John Cleese and Terry Gilliam |
| Runtime | 94 min |
| Rated | R |
| Scores | Rotten Tomatoes (average) 8.3/10 · Rotten Tomatoes 96% · Metacritic 77/100 · TMDB users 7.8/10 |
| Budget | $4 million |
| Box office | $21 million worldwide |
Where to watch Life of Brian
Life of Brian is streaming on Prime Video ($13.98 a month) in the US. It is also on Fubo and Peacock ($16.99 a month). If that is the only reason to subscribe, one month of Prime Video is $13.98 at list price.
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Rent or buy
You can rent or buy Life of Brian on Apple TV, Prime Video, Google Play and YouTube.
Where to watch Life of Brian in 2 other countries
| Country | Streaming on (price a month) |
|---|---|
| Canada | Prime Video $9.99 CAD |
| Spain | Prime Video €4.99, Filmin €9.99 |
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What kind of watch this is
Terry Jones directs this 1979 comedy, which runs 94 minutes. It leans on the specific brand of absurdity Monty Python perfected, pairing biblical parallels with a protagonist who is decidedly not what the crowd expects. The humor comes from the gap between the grandeur of the events and the mundane reality of the people involved. It is a film that treats its own premise with a wink, never quite taking the messiah angle seriously. The tagline sums it up: he is just a naughty boy.
What the critics said
Rotten Tomatoes holds a 96% Tomatometer score as of November 2022, with an 8.3/10 average from rated reviews as of September 2021. Metacritic lands on 77 out of 100 as of June 2023. Leonard Maltin called it "the funniest and most sustained feature from Britain's bad boys." Vincent Canby saw "a nonstop orgy of assaults" on the funny bone. Gary Arnold disagreed, finding it "a cruel fiction" that made him nod off. The film has since topped Channel 4's 50 Greatest Comedy Films list and been named the greatest comedy in a 2007 Guardian poll.
How it did with audiences
It cost $4 million and pulled in $21 million worldwide, with $20 million of that coming from the United States. In studio arithmetic, that is a healthy margin. On TMDB, users give it a 7.8 out of 10.
What came next for the cast
Before Life of Brian, the core group was defined by Flying Circus and Holy Grail. Cleese had already established himself in Fawlty Towers, while Chapman, Gilliam, and Idle were firmly in the Python orbit. The credits that followed diverge sharply. Cleese slid into the Harry Potter franchise and a James Bond film. Gilliam drifted toward Jupiter Ascending and Bye Bye Morons. Idle landed in Casper and Ella Enchanted. The film did not cause these shifts. It just happened to be the last time they all stood together before scattering.
If you liked this
TMDB's recommendations for people who watched Life of Brian.
Sources
- Life of Brian on TMDB — synopsis, cast, ratings and recommendations
- Wikidata Q24953 — review scores, box office and awards (CC0)
- “Monty Python's Life of Brian” on Wikipedia, by its contributors (history) — reception, audience figures and legacy, summarised and adapted here under CC BY-SA 4.0
- Where to watch and prices: Binge Boss, from TMDB watch-provider data (powered by JustWatch) and our own provider list
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