Found “Excalibur” on the DVD bargain shelf at Shopko, and I couldn’t resist. It even has a second audio track commentary by director John Boorman.
So I sat down to watch it. It’s been many years since I’ve seen it, and I was struck by the beautiful, dreamlike, jewel-toned photography. But what kept me from really enjoying it, I think, is that all kinds of Monty Python imagery kept running through my head. Boorman’s film is something you really need to buy into to enjoy, since everyone is so sincerely overacting in order to evoke that “long ago and far away” atmosphere. (Nigel Terry as Arthur best managed to carry this off without seeming foolish, I think.) And you can’t buy into the serious side of Arthurian legend when clomping coconuts keep appearing in your brain.
Bedevere: What makes you think she’s a witch?
Peasant: Well she turned me into a newt!
Bedevere: A newt?
Peasant: …I got better.
The Holy Grail is one of the best movies of all time! I love the witch scene especially. And the scene with the peasants in the field arguing politics with King Arthur. Classic!