Review of History of the World: Part I (1981)
Seen in 2017.
Monty Python’s earlier comedies in historical settings, e.g. Life of Brian (1979) for Roman antiquity and Grail (1975) for the middle ages, are funnier in part because they use setting and plot more heavily, with more integrity. Brooks’s expensive backlot sketch comedy was behind its time. There were test audiences, but the slower moments drag on as if there weren’t. The good moments are nonetheless worth it.