Most helpful customer reviews
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5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the GOOD books on Python!, Jun 5 2004
By A Customer
At this point, there have been many, many tomes written on the now-legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python. The best of them are: George Melly's "The Life of Python" (one of the few written before member Graham Chapman's death); Kim Howard Johnson's two titles, "First 20 Years of Monty Python" and "Life Before and After Monty Python"; and David Morgan's "Monty Python Speaks." This 16 ton autobiography is quite good but, if you've read any or all of the aforementioned books, there will be far fewer suprises here. The way in which this book stands out from the rest is the increased detail of many of the oft-told tales and a handful of newer (if somewhat trivial) revelations. The larger reveals seem to take place during their individual childhoods and events which took place near the end of their partnership, with much detail given involving the writing of "Meaning of Life" and the proposed '90s reunion which never materialized. Also welcome are the comments of Chapman's brother John who provides a new perspective on the most conflicted Python. If you do not own or have never read any of the other finer titles, this could very well be considered the one stop shop for all Monty knowledge. There is NO editorializing in this book, simply anecdote after anecdote from those involved. This, and the other titles, are probably of most interest to those interested in the art of comedy writing in that they are largely accounts of the creation of the material and group dynamic. A great book!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
The Pythons, April 15 2004
Santa's sled has pulled in early this year and left every naughty and nice boy and girl the definitive story of the preeminent English comedy consortium of our day, Monty Python. The surviving members of the group-John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin-collaborate with noted film critic Bob McCabe (Dark Knights and Holy Fools: The Art and Films of Terry Gilliam) to tell the Python story in this magnum opus of previously unpublished diary entries, interviews, and a sumptuous photographic buffet of more than 1000 images and illustrations. Designed much like the Beatles Anthology, the text is divided into seven sections that detail the Pythons, their biographies, life before their union, Monty Python's Flying Circus, the Python films, Graham Chapman's death, and their subsequent individual projects. Pythonophiles have been blessed with numerous celebratory texts, notably Kim Johnson's troika (now all o.p.), but this glorious offering is the bible, the last word, and, yes-the full Monty. One of this season's best offerings; a pox on every library that doesn't acquire it
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3.0 out of 5 stars
And Now For Something Completely Distant, Mar 26 2004
From the overlong pre-Python segments (yes, we get it - some of them worked for David Frost) to the glossing over of Season Three (blink and you'll miss it) to the chronology-free pictures (look for pictures from Season Four routinely rubbing shoulders with pictures from Season One for no narrative reason)... this book is a delightful first draft. I look forward to the final version.Following the arc of these six comedic heroes as they go from ballsy, non-conformist artists to men who argue like they are stuck in the Argument Clinic itself makes "The Pythons" a depressing read. It certainly needs a better ending than Eric Idle's terse "we'll never do anything again" - a fact that probably dawned on the rest of us after the (relatively) disjointed "Meaning of Life." On the whole, the boys are just as you expect them to be. Terry Jones, the workaholic. Mike Palin, the nice guy. Terry Gilliam, the American. Eric Idle, the cunning linguist. John Cleese, the Tall One. Graham Chapman, the dead one. There aren't many revelations along the way, though a few interesting stories emerge from the group's earlier days. And some of the pictures - especially when they are relevant to the adjoining text - are absolutely delightful. For those interested in the group's work and not how much Graham Chapman drank, a subject discussed more than any aspect of, say, creating an innovative televsion show, the lighter and more concise "Monty Python Speaks" is recommended.
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