Life of Brian - Scott Funck

In Life of Brian, the Monty Python troupe explores a satirical way of examining Jesus’ life though the main character of Brian, a boy born at the same time of Jesus, and confused for him by the Magi.  This sequence actually starts the film, before the credits even, and shows the audience not only the humor that will be shown but also the idea that, without God’s interference, anyone could have been the messiah.  It is interesting to watch as Brian then grows up, and actually hears “Jesus” give the Sermon on the Mount.  This seems to influence his own ideas, but more importantly that scene shows the confusing interpretational work that is done to the text.  One of the characters hears Jesus say “Blessed are the cheese makers.”  In response, the people start arguing what that means with one person saying that is must refer to all makers of dairy products.  This also starts a little argument between the people in the audience and their differences, alluding to the concept of Jewish factions and ideas.  After this Brian’s mother takes him to a stoning, which goes horribly wrong as the people are so legalistic that they will not listen to the priest and jump at anyone who has said the word “Jehovah”, killing the priest as he is reading the crimes of the blasphemer?  Overall, the Jews are not portrayed too kindly in this film because of their splintering, fanatic martyrdom, and unwavering legalism.   The Romans do not make it out of the film unscathed either as they are depicted as stupid yet brutal.  In fact they help the Jews harass them, teaching Brian proper Latin so he can write slander against them.  They also do not understand the strangeness of the Jews and just watch them kill themselves because of their hatred for each other over the Romans.  The Romans are also brutal because they just kill everyone for a first offence, and they do not care if they person is the right person or not, as long as the number of people are killed they are happy.  The film does have one concept that did challenge my concept of Jesus though, and that is Brian talking to his followers that he did not want.  Telling them to go home and be individuals, but they take him as a grand teacher and follow him creating a religion behind their unwilling leader.  I have not thought of a Jesus who was mistaken as the messiah, and trying to tell his followers that he is not and send them home.