Despite being about the death of their close friend and frequent collaborator, Monty Python’s upcoming adaptation of the late Graham Chapman’s autobiography should prove to be incredibly silly.
The project, branded with the working title Graham Chapman: Dead in 3D, will be an animated film formed around Chapman’s own voice recording of his “loose” autobiography, Liar’s Autobiography: Volume IV, and will borrow additional voices from the living members of the comedy group (with Eric Idle still on the fence). John Cleese will voice himself, Terry Jones and Michael Palin will voice Chapman’s mother and father respectively (Jones will also voice himself), and Terry Gilliam will provide the voices to many characters.
It’s been far too long since we’ve seen a true Monty Python film. The revival of Holy Grail in Spamalot form was satisfying, but nothing would top a reunion of the original minds on the big screen.
The story will take an episodic format, with different production companies working on different animated chapters of the film, each to fall between the range of three and twelve minutes. The film in its entirety will be just shy of an hour and a half. Although it will only premiere in British theaters, American audiences will be able to view the film on television and — as if it needs mentioning — online.
Although the film will be unique to the Monty Python catalog in that it might ostensibly be deemed a biopic (although I bet it sways heavily from the genre), its form as a series of skits, the use of the group’s trademark style of animation, and the staple of men portraying women keeps me optimistic that this could be another great, traditional Monty Python film.
Source: Vulture
