The Meaning of Life

Continuity mistake: During the parade scene, one of the men says he's learning the piano, and Michael Palin screams at him. In a close shot of MP's face he's screaming into the man's right ear, but in a wider shot it's the left ear. (00:32:55)

Jon Sandys

Visible crew/equipment: The third time that Mr. Creosote throws up onto the floor and John Cleese calls for the cleaning woman, the pipe that the fake puke comes out of is visible in front of his mouth. Then it retracts afterwards.

Revealing mistake: During the sperm song in the "Miracle of Birth part II" there is one shot where the kids are dancing down the street. Watch the girl at the front on the left. She hesitates and then runs to catch up to the front line. Then when they go round the corner, she has to be moved along by the other kids as she stops to stare at the camera.

Continuity mistake: When John Cleese is fixing the bed in the class room you see him standing holding his coat with his right hand. When it cuts he is holding it with his left hand. (00:39:50)

Mortug

Continuity mistake: The third time that Mr. Creosote vomits - watch the table behind him that Graham Chapman is sitting at. They all change positions slightly during the next shot of them. This is most noticeable on the man sitting nearest the camera. In the first shot, he is holding a napkin, in the second shot he isn't.

Revealing mistake: Near the beginning of the 'Crimson Permanent Assurance' sketch one of the guys running out in panic quite badly clamps his fingers in the door yet it doesn't appear he really hurt himself much.

Continuity mistake: When the search party are walking through the forest, two Zulu POWs are carrying the injured man's bed at the front, and a guard and the doctor are carrying it at the back. When they come into the clearing, the Zulus are nowhere to be seen and the doctor and the guard are at the front. Whats more, when they start shooting at the "Tiger" the doctor pulls out a gun and starts firing.

The Meaning of Life mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When the doctor on the right walks in the operating room he puts a glove on. A shot later it's off and he's putting it again.

Sacha

Continuity mistake: During the sex education lesson, the headmaster catches Wadsworth watching the football match and he is told to move to a desk behind another pupil. When the headmaster asks Watson to name two ways of getting vaginal juices flowing, Wadsworth is back at his original desk, and when Wymer gives an answer, he has changed places again.

Continuity mistake: When the headmaster makes Biggs play in the rugby match after he catches him laughing during the sex education class, the pupil at the front desk turns his head around and looks at the front. In the next shot, he has turned his head around again and is now looking directly at Biggs.

Continuity mistake: In the creosote scene after the cleaning woman comes in and creosote vomits over her back the first time Eric Idle walks away with the fresh bucket brought over for creosote then the camera changes not only has the cleaning woman moved 1-2 meters over and changed directions but the bucket has appeared where she was and has filled.

Revealing mistake: When the Indian servant is stabbed in the back by one of the Zulu warriors, we can see that he is wearing something under his jacket to enable the spear to stick to him. (00:51:15)

Mortug

Audio problem: The young soloist during the "Every Sperm is Sacred" song is missing her two front teeth, but articulates perfectly, even the s's. It's obviously been dubbed.

New Mother: Is it a boy or a girl?
Obstretrician: I think it's a bit early to start imposing roles on it, don't you?

More quotes from The Meaning of Life

Trivia: When the title first appears, it says "Monty Python's Meaning Of Liff," which abruptly changes to "Life" with the title is struck by lightning. Author Douglas Adams (friend of Graham Chapman and occasional Python contributor) contacted Terry Gilliam to ask if he could use the title "The Meaning Of Liff" for a mock dictionary he was writing at about the same time. Adams and the Pythons agreed that the crossover publicity could be mutually beneficial. (00:17:35)

Xofer

More trivia for The Meaning of Life

Question: At imdb's trivia section for this movie there's a mentioning of the Michael Palin line "Hey, but I didn't eat the mousse" line being an ad-lib. What scene is this in?

Answer: At the end scene where death shows up to the dinner party and kills everyone. They all die because they eat bad salmon mousse. After their spirits leave their body, Michael Palin says the line.

RJR99SS

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