Customer Reviews

And Now for Something Completely Different [VHS]

5 star:		(41)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This was America's first big-screen look at the Pythons -- not a film, per se, but some of the troupe's best sketches from the early years of the TV show, reshot for the screen. As such, yeah, if you've seen the TV shows, you'll know all the words, but isn't that part of the fun?

Actually, some of the sketches DO work better in this film -- the Restaurant Sketch, for example (where every member of a restaurant staff comes to one diner's table to apologize for a dirty fork) comes together better here, if only because it doesn't have the jumpy close-ups of John Cleese ("You bastards!") that break the rhythm of the original TV sketch. Others, such as Dead Parrot and The Lumberjack Song, will work, no matter HOW you do them, and they're just as funny here as they are on TV or live. And the Upperclass Twit of the Year remains a highlight of this film, and of the early TV years as well.

If you're collecting the complete TV series that A&E is presently releasing, then you've already got all the sketches shown here. But that's no reason to stay away from ANFSCD -- it's a great way to introduce the uninitiated to the Pythons. And for those who are already fans and may own the TV sketches, it's STILL interesting to compare the filmed sketches with their TV counterparts.

Ultimately, ANFSCD still holds up, even three decades later. Check it out.

"And now, a man with a tape recorder up his brother's nose..."

This movie introduces no new material to Monty Python's body of work. It selects several key routines from the first two series of Monty Python's Flying Circus and reshoots them. So why bother?

Because this is easier to watch.

This film was shot as part of an abortive attempt to introduce Monty Python to an American audience (which wouldn't actually be accopmlished for another three years). Where the original series suffered from a low budget and spotty production values, this film has high-end production quality, including clean sound, a single variable-angle 35mm camera, and the exclusion of the laugh track that muddied the sound on the TV series. There was obviously money for retakes, allowing the boys to edit out minor line muffs and giving them permission to experiment with their character delivery.

The picture is clear and organic. The sound is clean and audible. The characters are fun and believable. Just what we've always loved about Monty Python, isn't it?

But be warned, except for one or two linking jokes, this is material that you've already seen. Don't expect anything that will take your beloved boys in new directions, and don't think you'll get anything new. Just sit back, hear the jokes you've never heard clearly before, and laugh out loud. That's what they wanted, isn't it?

After their groundbreaking TV series, British loonies Monty Python decided to try their hands at filmmaking. Produced by Hugh Hefner (who also produced Polanski's MACBETH) and directed by Ian McNaughton, who produced and directed the television shows, AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT might well have been called "Monty Python's Greatest Hits", as it is simply a collection of some of the best skits from the show, with a coat of gloss. The skits selected are excellent, and occasionally surpass their TV counterparts. More often than not, however, these new versions are a bit too dry, lacking the immmediacy of the live television atmosphere; and inevitably, there are a few bits missing whose exclusion many fans will regret. Terry Gilliam's animations, without the audience laughing along onscreen, are really bizarre and even occasionally disturbing, but every bit as funny as before. Some of the skits included here are: "The Parrot Sketch" (of course), which they rather ingeniously fuse with "The Lumberjack Song"; "Hell's Grannies"; "Nudge Nudge"; "The Upper Class Twit of the Year"; "World Forum"; "Vocational Guidance Counsellor". Overall, if you aren't a Python fan or know nothing of the group, this might be for you; it's a great introduction. For fans (like me), though, if you haven't seen this yet you might just as well not do so, except for the sake of completeness, but as the film which served to introduce American audiences to their particular brand of comical lunacy, it deserves honorable mention. Python on film would not hit its stride till their next feature, the glorious HOLY GRAIL. (Only that time they would direct themselves, with much more interesting results). In any case, catch "Monty Python's Flying Circus" to see these (and many, many more) skits in their original (and usually much funnier) form.

This film is a lovely collection of Monty Python's favourite sketches,some new sketches,and some generalized re-workings of some other sketches.( At least that's what the package says,Guv.)

Originally created as a showcase of their work,up to 1971,and to introduce them to American audiences,it goes beyond that.

A lot of classic Python skits are included here,"The Lumberjack Song","The 127 Annual Upper Class Twit of the Year Show","The Dead Parrot Sketch","Defense Against Fresh Fruit","The World's Deadliest Joke","How Not To Be Seen",and "The Marriage Guidance Counciller",among others. ( Which is much more than you deserve! )

As an introduction to Python,this makes for a good starting place. For the Monty Python affectionato,this collection is great because it contains variations of classic sketches,including some alternate endings,and some "only seen here" stuff. And....nearly 98% of the material was all re-filmed for this collection,including Gilliam's wonderful animation! ( It's amazing what a few broken fingers can achieve,eh Mr.MacNaughton?)

Whether you're an original fan or new to the scene,this video is a must for you!( Don't force us to come 'round to your house and MAKE you buy a copy,alright squire? Very good. )

Purchasers should be aware that this is a compilation of all the most famous sketches RE-INACTED and refilmed by the cast in a Movie format. It lacks the raw fresh energy in the TV versions. It's still very entertaining - but for the full MPFC punch skip this movie and spend the extra money for the original TV episodes.

And now for something completely different...if you've never seen the first two seasons of the series.

"And Now..." was put together with the specific purpose of "breaking" Python in the States and never meant for British audiences already familiar with the group. In one of the great ironies of showbiz history, it was a flop Stateside but a hit in England!

The film collects skits from the first two seasons and redoes them with a series of linking devices like the Colonel and Gilliam's animation to form a cohesive form. On some levels, it feels a bit stale compared to the original. While the Pythons have complained about the harsh TV lighting and studio audience, the film with the same skits seems lifeless at times. But the humor still comes through, and I can't knock this film as it was my own intro to the more surreal side of the group.

There's some great familiars such as "Dirty Fork", "Dead Parrot", "The Two Kilimanjaros", "Hell's Grannies" and so on. This film works best for those unaware of Python, but the diehard fan will find this enjoyable as well (though, again, it suffers in comparison to the actual TV series). Share it with your friends and neighbors, force it on them. They'll either laugh or wonder what the f#$k is the big deal.

I am going to voice a dissenting opinion. To me, Monty Python and the Holy Grail is the group's weakest effort. I opine that And Now for Something Completely Different ranks to me the most laughs per minute in a Python movie. Although the sketches are reshot from the BBC TV Series, they have a refined sense to them that makes them racier and funnier. Python fans know of the Milquetoast Mr. Putie and his encounters with the almighty, the Hell's Grannies, Ernest Scribbler and the effects of his humor writings, and one of my favorite characters in all Pythondom, the Graham Chapman portayed stuffy Royal Army Colonel who interjects to oppose the scenes he thinks are a bit silly. Right! ANFSCD provides an excellent first glimpse of what it was that made the Python so incredibly funny. I wish real British comedy would again influence the American movie screen. The best we seem to have is the Mike Myers Austin Powers movies whose humor gets old after just a few viewings. I shudder when some people say to me that Austin is British comedy. Bollocks! Plus, I'll take Carol Cleveland over Liz Hurley or Heather Graham anyday. Bottom Line: Pythons rule forever!

This is simply the outright funniest sketch comedy to be had on DVD, or anywhere else. Every skit is as funny or better than the last, and that's saying something for Monty Python to top itself. The Holy Grail (by the Python also) is only better due to the solid story for a complete movie. Some of the humor on Something Completely Different is a bit abstract, such as the "How's the wife?" man in the bar. The dead parrot, the lumberjack song, and the marraige counselor are only the jems in this collage of the obscure; every skit here is a winner. One of the best parts of the 'movie' is how each skit is strung together, usually with the troupe's cheap old animation that makes everyone laugh just as hard as they did at the skits.

On either the Widescreen or Full Screen side, go to the Talent & Filmographies section and select Terry Gilliam. On the fourth screen of his bio, press Up to highlight The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989). Press Enter to access a sub-menu which offers the theatrical trailer for the film, featuring Eric Idle.

The product description is correct in that the movie puts together some of the funniest bits from the TV series to form a full length feature film. The Monty Python animated sketches are included also. Some of the skits that I found to be really funny: 1. the accountant who goes in for vocational counseling and 2. a restuarant staff that has a mental breakdown due to a minor customer complaint about dirty silverware. Then there are skits I remember from the series that still hold up after many years: 1) the talk show host who has trouble with his guest's name and 2) the Lethal Joke. One skit that I thought was hilarious was the game show called "Blackmail".

Worth checking out if you have the time.