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I didn't want to take away from John Cleese, so here's a new thread on another Pythoner. - Perdita
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THE 'ANTI-GIBSON' OF ITS TIME RETURNS - Aidin Vaziri, May 16, 2004, San Francisco Chronicle
Now that Mel Gibson is done boring everyone to tears with his account of major religious historical events in "The Passion of the Christ" there couldn't be a better time for the Monty Python gang to revive their definitive 1979 biblical tale, "Life of Brian." The once-controversial movie, which turns 25 this year, chronicles the cross-dressing, extremely naked adventures of Brian, the man born in the manger next door to Jesus. There is even a dramatic crucifixion scene, albeit with a lot more singing. We spoke with Eric Idle, 61, one of the key Python players and the man who played nine roles in the movie..
Q: You filmed "Life of Brian" in the same Tunisian desert where George Lucas shot "Star Wars." Were there any random Wookie attacks?
A: Yes, it was very weird. We were above the troglodyte villages. But I think they were just crucifying Trekkies.
Q: I didn't know Trekkies were into "Star Wars."
A: I think they are. They're the older brothers of "Star Wars" people, aren't they?
Q: No, they're not. They bitterly hate each other.
A: Like the Protestants and Catholics? Nobody else can tell the difference but they hate each other. It's like the Judea Peoples' Front and the Peoples' F -- Front of Judea.
Q: What other kinds of problems did you have with the locals you used as extras?
A: They were fine. They were actually very nice people except they were so poor sometimes they would steal the rags that were meant to be costumes at the end of the day.
Q: How did they deal with all the rampant male nudity?
A: Well, when Graham Chapman came to the window naked they all ran away because there were women in the audience and they're not allowed to see naked British boys standing in a window.
Q: Did they also wonder why all these Englishmen were running around their village in drag?
A: I would think so but, to them, Westerners are beyond the pale. I don't think they bother to ask themselves what motivates Western people. They just think we're insane, and for good reason.
Q: How many times did they try to cook you?
A: They didn't. Tunisians are very good people. They were part of the French empire for the longest possible time so they like lunch and good food and swimming and fishing and things like that. Unfortunately, America's ignorance of the Arab world is so profound they can't tell the difference between any Arabs, whereas the Egyptians are quite different from the Tunisians, who are different from the Libyans, who are different from the Moroccans. They're vastly different countries.
Q: The people in Tunisia actually dealt with the movie better than the Westerners, didn't they?
A: Well, of course. You're threatening people's power bases. The great thing about religions is they scare people into doing what they're told. If you question that then they're quite right to protest.
Q: Some rabbi claimed "Life of Brian" was produced in hell. The Catholics condemned it. The Protestants said it was profane. People actually prayed the film would fail. You were totally like the Mel Gibson of 1979.
A: No, we were not. We were the anti-Gibson. Anybody who gets in the way is going to be blown away by these religious people. You've seen their hairstyles, now look at their television programs. How can you take them seriously? Any God that spoke to this lot is not to be trusted.
Q: You were the one that originally wanted to call the movie "Jesus Christ, Lust for Glory.''
A: Well, that was an ad-lib when somebody asked me what our next movie was going to be. We discovered very quickly you can't attack Jesus because what he says is rather good. If only more Christians would practice it, then it would be fabulous.
Q: You can't even attack the guy born next door to Jesus.
A: Absolutely. Religion is funny. Everyone says they believe in God, but they all totally disagree with each other. What's the thing you agree on, then? They all agree to kill each other. You never see war started by atheists.
Q: How rich did all those religious protests make you anyway?
A: They didn't. Besides, unlike most things in America, it isn't all about the money. Some things need saying. We didn't know we were going to make money with "Life of Brian." In fact, we knew we were going to make trouble.
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THE 'ANTI-GIBSON' OF ITS TIME RETURNS - Aidin Vaziri, May 16, 2004, San Francisco Chronicle
Now that Mel Gibson is done boring everyone to tears with his account of major religious historical events in "The Passion of the Christ" there couldn't be a better time for the Monty Python gang to revive their definitive 1979 biblical tale, "Life of Brian." The once-controversial movie, which turns 25 this year, chronicles the cross-dressing, extremely naked adventures of Brian, the man born in the manger next door to Jesus. There is even a dramatic crucifixion scene, albeit with a lot more singing. We spoke with Eric Idle, 61, one of the key Python players and the man who played nine roles in the movie..
Q: You filmed "Life of Brian" in the same Tunisian desert where George Lucas shot "Star Wars." Were there any random Wookie attacks?
A: Yes, it was very weird. We were above the troglodyte villages. But I think they were just crucifying Trekkies.
Q: I didn't know Trekkies were into "Star Wars."
A: I think they are. They're the older brothers of "Star Wars" people, aren't they?
Q: No, they're not. They bitterly hate each other.
A: Like the Protestants and Catholics? Nobody else can tell the difference but they hate each other. It's like the Judea Peoples' Front and the Peoples' F -- Front of Judea.
Q: What other kinds of problems did you have with the locals you used as extras?
A: They were fine. They were actually very nice people except they were so poor sometimes they would steal the rags that were meant to be costumes at the end of the day.
Q: How did they deal with all the rampant male nudity?
A: Well, when Graham Chapman came to the window naked they all ran away because there were women in the audience and they're not allowed to see naked British boys standing in a window.
Q: Did they also wonder why all these Englishmen were running around their village in drag?
A: I would think so but, to them, Westerners are beyond the pale. I don't think they bother to ask themselves what motivates Western people. They just think we're insane, and for good reason.
Q: How many times did they try to cook you?
A: They didn't. Tunisians are very good people. They were part of the French empire for the longest possible time so they like lunch and good food and swimming and fishing and things like that. Unfortunately, America's ignorance of the Arab world is so profound they can't tell the difference between any Arabs, whereas the Egyptians are quite different from the Tunisians, who are different from the Libyans, who are different from the Moroccans. They're vastly different countries.
Q: The people in Tunisia actually dealt with the movie better than the Westerners, didn't they?
A: Well, of course. You're threatening people's power bases. The great thing about religions is they scare people into doing what they're told. If you question that then they're quite right to protest.
Q: Some rabbi claimed "Life of Brian" was produced in hell. The Catholics condemned it. The Protestants said it was profane. People actually prayed the film would fail. You were totally like the Mel Gibson of 1979.
A: No, we were not. We were the anti-Gibson. Anybody who gets in the way is going to be blown away by these religious people. You've seen their hairstyles, now look at their television programs. How can you take them seriously? Any God that spoke to this lot is not to be trusted.
Q: You were the one that originally wanted to call the movie "Jesus Christ, Lust for Glory.''
A: Well, that was an ad-lib when somebody asked me what our next movie was going to be. We discovered very quickly you can't attack Jesus because what he says is rather good. If only more Christians would practice it, then it would be fabulous.
Q: You can't even attack the guy born next door to Jesus.
A: Absolutely. Religion is funny. Everyone says they believe in God, but they all totally disagree with each other. What's the thing you agree on, then? They all agree to kill each other. You never see war started by atheists.
Q: How rich did all those religious protests make you anyway?
A: They didn't. Besides, unlike most things in America, it isn't all about the money. Some things need saying. We didn't know we were going to make money with "Life of Brian." In fact, we knew we were going to make trouble.
