Religion Depicted In The Film: The Life Of Brian

When viewing any Monty Python material about the past, it is largely satirical, but there is always some wisdom to it. The Life of Brian is a comedic attempt on a popular, controversial religious myth from ancient Roman times- the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Despite the film being one largely made to satirize what many perceive to be a controversial myth, there is a good underlying story underneath showing the sociological roots of societal behavior. The Life of Brian portrays a kind of unwavering religious and political loyalty and fanaticism among the citizenry (both Christians and pagans, respectively for those two categories), which heavily influences the plot of the film. This element of loyalty and fanaticism manifests itself in three …show more content…
This mainly manifests itself in the actions of the citizens in the film, who quite blindly follow those who preach a message, even from those (such as the titular Brian), who have no clue what they are saying. Secondly, the issue of religious intolerance is a main driving point behind the whole film, and the film uses this to satirize how religious subjects can be so loyal in their sensibilities, they can become intolerant towards others, seen in the film as hatred of others. Thirdly, politics, as depicted in the film, is a driving force for pagan fanaticism. Although not directly related to the main theme of religion in the film, this point can satirize the point of the personalities of citizens, and how their own fanatic sensibilities can carry over somewhat into the political sphere, whether in a Roman context or through political …show more content…
Since that is the case, a brief overview of the plot and other details about the film are useful for contextual purposes. The plot revolves around a man named Brian, who was born in Judea at the same time as Jesus Christ. The plot, through various historical devices, causes the citizens of Judea to believe Brian is the real Christian messiah, and starts to have a following. Eventually, Brian is captured and is forced to be crucified, effectively satirizing the Jesus myth. Another important detail to consider, before looking the role of religious and political sensibilities in this film, is that this film is set within a Roman context. There are numerous references to the Roman Empire trying to occupy Judea, and this is played upon throughout the film (such as in a political context, when Brian joins the “People's Front of Judea” to fight the

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Religion Depicted In The Film: The Life Of Brian

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