Monty Python. Again.

I wonder if I can count the number of times I've watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail in or for a class.  I've watched it at least once in high school and at least three times in college.  And unfortunately, I've watched it a couple of times with friends.  I will admit, every time I watch it, something makes me laugh and it's usually an enjoyable experience.  It has never, however, been exactly my cup of tea.  The first time I watched it, I remember laughing hysterically at the monks chanting and hitting themselves with - what were they? boards?  I guess one could relate that to Bergson's idea that we laugh at the mechanical nature of humans.  The monks are quite mechanical in their movement and the action is wholly unexpected from them, as corporal self punishment is thought of as very unnatural and inhuman.
Another funny scene is the one in which the villagers are trying to decide if the woman is a witch.  I enjoyed this scene most when I watched it for my Critical Reasoning class last year.  It was hilarious picking out all of the fallacies and just really focusing on how incredibly illogical it was.  I mean, obviously, it's supposed to be illogical, but when that's the only thing you're focusing on, it becomes more so. 
The knights who say "Ni" has never struck me as funny.  Call me crazy, but I just don't get it.  It's just dumb to me.  During that part, however, the "Bring out your dead!" scene always gets a laugh.  The slapstick aspect of the entire film again ties in with Bergson's theory on laughing at what is not graceful as opposed to laughing at what is grotesque.  The monks, the "bring out your dead," the crazy bunny, all of these things tie into the ungraceful and nonsensical comedic theories. 
Finally, on the wittier side of things, is the taunting of the French guards.  As one of our classmates pointed out, it doesn't matter what they say, the French accent is just funny!  The taunts and ridiculous threats could be a form of verbal slapstick, again because of the nonsense, ungraceful nature, and over-the-top attitude.  They could also be viewed as the makers' satirical wit coming out to make fun of the French, Arthurian lore, and society in general.  And yet again, so could the rest of the movie.  So now the movie is a history lesson, a logic lesson, one of many depictions of King Arthur, and a study of how slapstick, wit, and satire can work together in British Comedy.  Impressive, but it's still not my cup of tea.

Oh, a thought from last time, Cecily has a "diary" that really acts as a commonplace book in The Importance of Being Earnest.  I don't really have much to say about it other than I noticed it and it made me smile.  Also, I have evidently been spelling "Earnest" wrong this entire time and I'm thoroughly embarrassed about it.