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Comedy

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983): Cast, Box Office & Plot

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983) movie poster

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life is a 1983 comedy starring Angela Mann as Second guest's wife, Matt Frewer and Andrew Bicknell. It runs 1 hour 47 minutes and earned $14.9 million worldwide.

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Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life (1983) movie poster
Released
Runtime
1h 47m (107 min)
Genre
Comedy
Original language
English
After the credits
No No extra scene
The story

What Is Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life About?

The premise of Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.

It took God six days to create the heavens and the earth, and Monty Python ninety minutes to scramble them. The film answers life’s big questions in outrageous sketches: a London insurance office morphs into a pirate ship; National Health doctors try to harvest a living donor’s liver; a glutton takes vomiting to heights before his final demise.

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Themes & Keywords

· 50 tags
  • philosophy
  • monty python
  • meaning of life
  • death
  • greed
  • restaurant
  • organ donor
  • gluttony
  • vomiting
  • breaking the fourth wall
  • surrealism
  • heaven
+38 more
  • sketch comedy
  • exploding body
  • blood
  • religion
  • poisoning
  • disgust
  • skeleton
  • exploding stomach
  • dying
  • musical number
  • animated sequence
  • bucket on head
  • fish
  • obesity
  • cult comedy
  • cult film
  • cult classic
  • outer space
  • food
  • aquarium
  • violence
  • gross out comedy
  • sex education
  • absurd comedy
  • absurdism
  • end of life
  • life span
  • humanity
  • satire comedy
  • death character
  • grim reaper character
  • soldier
  • battle
  • black comedy
  • anglo zulu war
  • female nudity
  • sexuality
  • organ donation
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Cast & crew

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Cast & Characters

Angela Mann leads the cast as Second guest's wife, with Matt Frewer as Cornered Executive who Jumps (segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance") and Andrew Bicknell.

Also Starring in Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life

· 19 more
Show all 23 cast members
Plot

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Plot Summary

What happens in Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 15 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 5-minute read.

Spoilers ahead

Six fish in a restaurant tank greet each other, then witness a friend being eaten, a moment that sparks the film’s central inquiry into the meaning of life. The story unfolds as a tapestry of interlinked sketches, each satirizing different corners of human behavior while probing big questions with wit, whimsy, and a touch of the macabre. The tone remains observational and gently ironic, weaving together absurd humor with moments of surprising insight.

The Miracle of Birth opens the montage, where maternity doctors are preoccupied with impressing a hospital administrator rather than the woman in labor. The scene sets the film’s rhythm: grand ideas filtered through everyday absurdities, where care and routine collide in comic, pointed ways.

Full summary

The whole story of Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, scene by scene

Read the full summary
Box office

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Box Office

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life grossed $14.9 million worldwide. $14.9 million came from the US and Canada and $20,145 (0%) from the rest of the world.

1983 box office

Worldwide gross

$14.9M

US & Canada
$14.9M
International
$20.1K
US & Canada 100% Rest of the world 0%
Videos

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Videos

2 videos: 2 clips.

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life | The Miracle of Birth
  • Clip Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life in 4K Ultra HD | The Gift of War | Extended Preview
Quiz

How Well Do You Know Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life?

10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.

Question 1 of 10

  1. Question 1: not answered
  2. Question 2: not answered
  3. Question 3: not answered
  4. Question 4: not answered
  5. Question 5: not answered
  6. Question 6: not answered
  7. Question 7: not answered
  8. Question 8: not answered
  9. Question 9: not answered
  10. Question 10: not answered

What creatures witness one of their own being eaten in a restaurant tank at the very start of the film, sparking its central question about the meaning of life?

Details

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life Also Known As

37 alternative titles, including “万世魔星:生命的意义” and “Monty Python e o Sentido da Vida”.

Also known as
  • 万世魔星:生命的意义
  • Monty Python e o Sentido da Vida
  • Monty Python: Livets mening
  • Monty Python - O Sentido da Vida
  • Monty Python - Il Senso Della Vita
  • El sentido de la vida
  • Monty Python: Smysl života
  • Monty Pythons - Der Sinn des Lebens
  • Az élet értelme
  • Monty Python - le sens de la vie
  • Sens życia według Monty Pythona
  • Monty Python's Meningen med livet
+25 more
  • Смысл жизни по Монти Пайтону
  • O Sentido da Vida
  • Monty Pythonův Smysl života
  • 人生七部曲
  • Monty Python - the Meaning of Life
  • Μόντι Πάιθονς: Το νόημα της ζωής
  • מונטי פיטון: טעם החיים
  • 脱线一箩筐
  • Monty Python Hayatın Anlamı
  • 몬티 파이튼의 삶의 의미
  • Монти Пајтонов смисао живота
  • Monty Python: Elämän tarkoitus
  • Монти Пайтън: Смисълът на живота
  • Monty Pythons meningen med livet
  • 人生狂騒曲
  • Sensul vieții
  • Monty Python: elu mõte
  • Monty Python: Smisao života
  • Smisel življenja, ცხოვრების აზრი მონტი პაიტონის აზრით
  • Gyvenimo prasmė
  • Сенс життя за Монті Пайтоном
  • El sentit de la vida
  • Monty Python, le sens de la vie
  • มอนตีไพธันส์เดอะมีนิงออฟไลฟ์
  • Ý Nghĩa Cuộc Sống

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FAQ

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life FAQ: Cast & Box Office

Runtime, release date, cast, box office and post-credit scenes of Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, each answered in a sentence.

How long is Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life?

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life runs 1 hour 47 minutes (107 minutes).

When was Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life released?

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life was released on March 31, 1983.

Who is in the cast of Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life?

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life stars Angela Mann as Second guest's wife, Matt Frewer as Cornered Executive who Jumps (segment "The Crimson Permanent Assurance") and Andrew Bicknell, among 23 credited actors.

How much did Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life make at the box office?

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life grossed $14.9 million worldwide ($14.9 million domestic, $20,145 international).

Does Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life have a post-credit scene?

No. Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life has no extra scene during or after the credits.

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