Story Time (film)

Last updated

Story Time
Storytime (film).jpg
Directed by Terry Gilliam
Narrated byTerry Gilliam
Release date
1979
Running time
9 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Story Time is a 1979 short animated comedy compilation film written, directed and animated by Terry Gilliam. It is compiled from several of Gilliam's works from the late 1960s and early 1970s, and stylistically resembles the distinctive animations which Gilliam produced in that period for Monty Python's Flying Circus . [1]

Contents

Story Time is composed of three loosely connected animated segments. [2] The first two, "Don the Cockroach" and "The Albert Einstein Story", were originally broadcast within the television series The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine (1971–72), while the third, "The Christmas Card", was created for the 1968 Christmas Special of Do Not Adjust Your Set . [3] [4] It was also shown as an accompaniment to some British theatrical releases of Monty Python's Life of Brian .

Plot

The film begins with an animated version of director Terry Gilliam reading from a children's storybook. The story, "Don the Cockroach", opens with a palace high atop a mountain. Inside the wall of one of its rooms lives a cheerful cockroach named Don, who is shown frolicking and generally enjoying his life as a cockroach. One day, as Don scurries across a kitchen floor, he is suddenly crushed by a foot. The narrator Gilliam remarks that this does not matter, as cockroaches are not very interesting. The story then shifts to the man who crushed Don, then to his brother, then to the brother's friend, then to the friend's employer, and so forth. Eventually the chain of interconnected people reaches a cleaning lady who is involved in a search-and-destroy mission against a colony of cockroaches, one of whom is named Don. The film then loops back to Don, replaying some of the earlier events until a gruff voice interrupts the narrator with "You already said that!" and the sound of a punch. An intertitle appears, announcing that the animator responsible for the previous cartoon has been sacked, and promising that the next one will be better.

The next segment, entitled "The Albert Einstein Story", revolves around an English man who happens to share the name of the famous physicist, and is "quite interesting in his own right". The new narrator says that Einstein is very good with his hands, and that his hands are very good to him. However, they once stayed out late at night, carousing, misbehaving, and even cheating on their owner by shaking other hands. One of the hands was once seen out with a foot, causing a scandal in the upper-class society of hands, who were prejudiced against feet. The film then cuts to a musical extravaganza starring "Fred & Frank Feet & Their Dancing Body". The curtains draw to a close with the sound of a jeering audience, and the words "The End – Yours truly, Terry Gilliam" appear.

Next the film cuts to a segment entitled "The Christmas Card", set on Christmas Day in 1968 London. A lonely old man receives a Christmas card in the post. A series of Christmas cards are then shown coming to life in bizarre ways, connected only by the Three Wise Men, who follow the Star of Bethlehem from one card to another. Suddenly the postman returns and takes the card back, apologising for delivering it to the wrong address.

Related Research Articles

<i>Do Not Adjust Your Set</i> British television series

Do Not Adjust Your Set (DNAYS) is a British television series produced originally by Rediffusion, London, then, by the fledgling Thames Television for British commercial television channel ITV from 26 December 1967 to 14 May 1969. The show took its name from the message that was displayed when there was a problem with transmission or technical difficulties.

<i>Monty Pythons Life of Brian</i> 1979 film by Terry Jones

Monty Python's Life of Brian is a 1979 British comedy film starring and written by the comedy group Monty Python. It was directed by Jones. The film tells the story of Brian Cohen, a young Jewish-Roman man who is born on the same day as—and next door to—Jesus, and is subsequently mistaken for the Messiah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monty Python</span> British surreal comedy group

Monty Python were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus, which aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974. Their work then developed into a larger collection that included live shows, films, albums, books, and musicals; their influence on comedy has been compared to the Beatles' influence on music. Their sketch show has been called "an important moment in the evolution of television comedy".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Palin</span> English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter

Sir Michael Edward Palin is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He was a member of the Monty Python comedy group. He received the BAFTA Fellowship in 2013 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019.

<i>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</i> 1975 British comedy film

Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a 1975 British comedy film satirizing the Arthurian legend, written and performed by the Monty Python comedy group and directed by Gilliam and Jones in their feature directorial debuts. It was conceived during the hiatus between the third and fourth series of their BBC Television series Monty Python's Flying Circus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Gilliam</span> British filmmaker, comedian and actor

Terrence Vance Gilliam is an American–born British filmmaker, comedian, animator and actor. He gained stardom as a member of the Monty Python comedy troupe alongside John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Jones, and Graham Chapman. Together they collaborated on the sketch series Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969–1974) and the films Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian (1979) and The Meaning of Life (1983). In 1988, they received the BAFTA Award for Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema.

"Crunchy Frog" is the common name for a Monty Python sketch officially titled "Trade Description Act", inspired by the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 in British law. It features two health inspectors interrogating the owner of a sweet shop about the increasingly bizarre ingredients in his confections, including the titular crunchy frog. Written by John Cleese and Graham Chapman, it originally appeared in episode 6 of the first series of Monty Python's Flying Circus, and later appeared in several Monty Python stage shows. In the original sketch, Cleese and Chapman play the inspectors, while Terry Jones plays the sweet shop owner. In later versions, the second inspector is played by Terry Gilliam or left out of the sketch entirely.

<i>Monty Pythons The Meaning of Life</i> 1983 film by British comedy group Monty Python

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, also known simply as The Meaning of Life, is a 1983 British musical sketch comedy film written and performed by the Monty Python troupe, directed by Terry Jones. The Meaning of Life was the last feature film to star all six Python members before the death of Graham Chapman in 1989.

<i>Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl</i> 1982 British film

Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 concert comedy film directed by Terry Hughes and starring the Monty Python comedy troupe as they perform many of their sketches at the Hollywood Bowl. The film also features Carol Cleveland in numerous supporting roles and Neil Innes performing songs. Also present for the shows and participating as an 'extra' was Python superfan Kim "Howard" Johnson.

<i>And Now for Something Completely Different</i> 1971 British film

And Now for Something Completely Different is a 1971 British sketch comedy film based on the television comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus featuring sketches from the show's first two series. The title was taken from a catchphrase used in the television show.

The Crimson Permanent Assurance is a 1983 British swashbuckling comedy short film that plays as the beginning of the feature-length motion picture Monty Python's The Meaning of Life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cutout animation</span> A form of stop-motion animation produced by moving two-dimensional pieces of material

Cutout animation is a form of stop-motion animation using flat characters, props and backgrounds cut from materials such as paper, card, stiff fabric or photographs. The props would be cut out and used as puppets for stop motion. The world's earliest known animated feature films were cutout animations, as is the world's earliest surviving animated feature Die Abenteuer des Prinzen Achmed (1926) by Lotte Reiniger.

Mr Eric Praline is a fictional character from the television show Monty Python's Flying Circus, played by comedian John Cleese.

<i>A Liars Autobiography: Volume VI</i> 1980 autobiography by Graham Chapman

A Liar's Autobiography: Volume VI is a comical autobiography written by Graham Chapman of Monty Python fame, featuring a fictionalised account of his life. First published in Britain in 1980, it was republished in 1991, 1999 and 2011.

<i>Monty Pythons Personal Best</i> British TV series or program

Monty Python's Personal Best is a miniseries of six one-hour specials, each showcasing the contributions of a particular Monty Python member. Produced by Python (Monty) Pictures Ltd., the series first aired on PBS stations between 22 February and 8 March 2006, although the Eric Idle and Michael Palin episodes were initially released by A&E on two Region 1 DVDs in 2005; the remaining episodes were released in late February 2006.

<i>Python Night – 30 Years of Monty Python</i> British TV series or programme

Python Night was an evening of Monty Python-related programmes broadcast on BBC2 on 9 October 1999, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first broadcast of Monty Python's Flying Circus. It featured newly written sketches, three documentaries and a screening of Monty Python's Life of Brian.

The "Architects Sketch" is a Monty Python sketch, first seen in episode 17 of Monty Python's Flying Circus, "The Buzz Aldrin Show". The episode was recorded on 18 September 1970 and originally broadcast on 20 October 1970. The following year, an audio version was recorded for Another Monty Python Record.

<i>Monty Pythons Flying Circus</i> British sketch comedy television series (1969–1974)

Monty Python's Flying Circus is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam, who became known collectively as "Monty Python", or the "Pythons". The first episode was recorded at the BBC on 7 September 1969 and premiered on 5 October on BBC1, with 45 episodes airing over four series from 1969 to 1974, plus two episodes for German TV. A feature film adaptation of several sketches, And Now for Something Completely Different, was released in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Blotter</span> 9th episode of the 5th season of Fringe

"Black Blotter" is the ninth episode of the fifth season of the Fox science-fiction/drama television series Fringe, and the show's 96th episode overall.

<i>A Liars Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Pythons Graham Chapman</i> 2012 British film by Bill Jones, Jeff Simpson, and Ben Timlett

A Liar's Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman is a 2012 British animated semi-biographical comedy film that is a portrayal of the life of Monty Python alumnus Graham Chapman. The film is loosely based on A Liar's Autobiography: Volume VI, a book written by Chapman and David Sherlock. It received a limited theatrical release on 2 November 2012 in the United States, and aired on the Epix TV channel on the same day.

References

  1. ↑ Harlib, Amy (17 November 2001). "Jabberwocky". Rambles. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  2. ↑ Zon (30 January 2012). "The theatrical shorts of Terry Gilliam". Smarter Than The Average!. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  3. ↑ "Terry Gilliam's first animated film, Storytime". Ikonotv. 24 March 2012. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
  4. ↑ Springer, Mike (24 March 2012). "Terry Gilliam's Debut Animation Film, Storytime". Mutantspace. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.