- [Narrator] These are the problems
they overcame making "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."
What's your favorite scene in "The Holy Grail?"
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Okay, when you wanna make a film,
what is the first thing you need?
- A shrubbery.
- [Narrator] No.
- A newt. - No.
- A good spanking. - No.
- Another shrubbery.
- Get on with it.
- [Narrator] Money. You need money.
- Oh yeah.
- [Narrator] With major studios refusing to fund the film,
the Pythons had no choice
but to seek a less orthodox means of help.
- If you will not assist us voluntarily.
Nee. - No, never.
- [Narrator] When that didn't work,
they finally got their funding
from several smaller contributors.
Some of these backers were rock legends,
Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, and Genesis.
One cool thing about this method
was that it gave the Pythons
an unusual amount of creative control on the film
and could make it exactly how they wanted.
- Our new king.
- Well I didn't vote for you.
- [Narrator] Despite their famous financiers,
"The Holy Grail" still had
a relatively small budget of $400,000
and the Pythons had to make a few compromises
to ensure the film was cost effective.
- And not too expensive.
- Instead of riding horses, Python member, Michael Palin,
came up with the idea of having someone clap coconuts
beside the knights, as they pretended to ride.
Instead of giving every character real chain mail,
they spray painted wool caps and cowls to look like mesh.
Instead of a pricey final battle against the Frenchmen,
it was decided to intentionally end the film
on an anticlimax where the knights get arrested
by the police.
Spoiler alert: while cost cutting measures
like these would probably not work in "Return of the King,"
the Python's work arounds fit their self aware,
absurdist humor like a glove
and led to some of the films funniest moments.
- [Narrator] When suddenly,
the animator suffered a fatal heart attack.
- Are you suggesting coming up to my grate?
- [Narrator] If you ever wanna see a master class
on how to own a limited budget, "Holy Grail" is the one.
- It's only a model.
- [Narrator] While the Pythons did make one movie
before called "And Now for Something Completely Different,"
which was an extended collection
of their best sketch comedy,
"The Holy Grail" in its own way
was also something completely different.
- Come on, ya pansy.
(man screams)
- Victory is mine.
- [Narrator] The film was directed by Terry Jones
and Terry Gilliam,
neither of whom had ever directed
a live action feature film before.
While the Pythons had joked
that the job should simply go to anyone named Terry,
directing duties weren't exactly fought over
due to how big of a filmmaking quest this would be.
Referring to themselves as tag team directors,
the two Terrys would take turns behind the camera.
Oh, say that five times fast.
The main issue with this strategy
was that each Terry had a unique directing style.
Terry J being fast and improvisational.
- Run away, run away.
- [Narrator] And Terry G being a bit more thoughtful
and meticulous.
- And we will attend to your every, every need.
- [Narrator] Many times the two would undo each other setups
and lighting.
(man screams)
And the actors would even boys concerns
that Terry G would treat them more like paper cutouts
than actual performers,
almost as if he had a background in animation or something.
- Every time I try to talk to someone,
it's sorry this and forgive me that and I'm not worthy.
What are you doing now?
- I'm averting my eyes, oh Lord.
- [Narrator] Thankfully, this tag team directing style
managed to achieve a nice balance
as Terry Gilliam's work was very cinematic
and Terry Jones' work was more in the moment
and allowed for certain jokes to land just right.
- Wait.
A herring.
- We shall do no such thing.
- Oh, please.
- [Narrator] So maybe two heads can be better than one,
but let's not get carried away.
- You're lucky. You're not next to him.
- What do you mean?
- You snore.
- Oh, I doubt it. Anyway, you've got bad breath.
- [Narrator] Then, there were the other problems on set.
Not only were there broken cameras
and demanding rabbit owners.
- Jesus Christ.
- [Narrator] One thing that really caught the Pythons
with their pants down was the main filming location itself.
Mostly shot in Scotland,
the team had to deal with constant rain,
which made for a muddy, damp,
and less than ideal experience.
At the end of each day,
the cast would be dying to get out of their soaked,
woolen armor and get to the much warmer hotel.
On top of that, the shots that took place in the mountains
weren't just difficult, they were pretty dangerous.
(man screams)
All of that said,
Scotland and all of its unforgiving elements
didn't provide the film with a level of authenticity
and immersion that it might not otherwise have had.
So maybe it was all worth it?
- [Man] Bloody weather.
- [Narrator] If that weren't enough,
there were also problems with something that's kind of
important in a medieval film.
- A shrubbery.
- [Narrator] A castle.
- I bid you welcome to your new home.
- [Narrator] At the last minute.
- Message for you sir.
- [Narrator] The Scottish Department of Environment
told the Pythons they couldn't use any
of the publicly owned castles,
considering the film to be quote inconsistent
with the dignity and fabric of the buildings.
- For at last, I call a cry of distress.
- [Narrator] In fewer words, they might break stuff.
Slightly miffed by this,
the Pythons responded by saying.
- Your mother was a hamster
and your father smelled of elderberries.
- [Narrator] Just kidding,
but the guys did have to improvise once again.
- On second thoughts, let's not go to Camelot.
It is a silly place.
- Right.
- [Narrator] They did this by using the privately owned
Doune Castle for a majority of the exterior shots.
Through the use of different angles and distances,
the Pythons did a decent job of making one castle
look like several.
As a bit of silver lining, shooting extensively
at one location made production even more efficient.
Not only that, Castle Dounes last minute hospitality
didn't go unrewarded either
as it's now a very popular tourist attraction
for people who want to see the famous castle
from "Holy Grail."
(man spits)
So once the film was completed,
it was clear sailing from there, right?
Not exactly.
At one of the earlier screenings,
a projector broke and started a fire.
At first, the audience thought the film burnt on screen
was just the Pythons being Pythons,
that was until an employee told them that it was no gag
and that they, in fact it needed to leave the building.
(men screaming)
While that was an isolated incident,
a more prevalent issue with early cuts of the film,
people weren't dying of laughter.
- I'm not dead. - What?
- Nothing. Here's your nine pence.
- I'm not dead.
- Here, he said he's not dead.
- Yes he is. - I'm not.
- [Narrator] With this being Monty Python,
it's obvious that it wasn't due to a lack of humor,
so what could the problem be?
- Walk away. Just ignore them.
- [Narrator] Well, there were two issues.
The first was that in early screenings,
the Pythons would bluntly ask the audience
to help them figure out why their film wasn't good.
- Do you think this scene should have been cut?
- [Narrator] Possibly setting a negative tone,
this provided little incentive for the audience to laugh.
However, once they started expressing
a bit more confidence in their work,
the audience was far more welcoming.
(man laughs)
- [Narrator] The second issue
was that the music being played throughout the film
had made it extremely difficult to pause for laughter,
pretty important thing in a comedy.
So other than having an occasional singer,
some unflattering minstrel music, and--
♪ I have to push the pram a lot ♪
- [Narrator] The film's music
was trimmed down significantly.
After that, the film had no problem getting constant laughs.
- That's enough music for now, Lance.
- [Narrator] In the end,
the making of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail"
came with a number of issues, curve balls,
and unexpected compromises.
- But now we glad.
- [Narrator] Not only did the film end up making
over 10 times its initial budget,
you'll also find "Holy Grail"
on countless lists of the funniest movies ever made.
- One, two, five.
- Three, sir.
- Three.
- [Narrator] It also gave the Pythons
the ability to make even more films
as well as inspire the Tony winning musical.
♪ Spamalot ♪
- [Narrator] When it comes to filmmaking,
things rarely go according to plan.
- You make me sad.
- [Narrator] But with a sharp creative team
and a refusal to ever give up,
you can still make an all time classic,
no matter what gets thrown at you.
(cow moos)
- Jesus Christ.
- Run away.
- [Narrator] Well, within reason.
What's your favorite part of the "Holy Grail?"
What problems should we cover next?
- Christ, I'll do you for that.
- You'll what? - Come here.