After it launched in 1969, Monty Python’s Flying Circus ran for five years and 45 episodes. It also developed into one of the most influential comedy series of all-time.

The Python troupe leapt to the movies in 1971 with And Now Something Completely Different. However, this amounted to little more than a collection of sketches from the series’ first two seasons, reshot for the film screen.

1975’s Monty Python and the Holy Grail turned into Python’s first original cinematic release. 1979’s Life of Brian became their second – and last – narrative film.

1982’s Live at the Hollywood Bowl documented a run of 1980 concerts, so 1983’s The Meaning of Life turned into the group’s final cinematic offering – well, under the full “Monty Python” banner, at least. Films like Time Bandits and A Fish Called Wanda mixed Python alumni in various measures, but never with a "full reunion”.

Meaning of Life essentially acts as a big-screen update on the Flying Circus formula. Though loosely connected by a “meaning of life” theme, we get a series of sketches across the film’s 107 minutes.

I don’t recall when I first watched Flying Circus, but I suspect I did so in the early 1980s – not too long before the release of Life, probably. I certainly knew of the Python’s no later than Time Bandits in 1981, but being a little too young for Brian in 1979, Life became my first big-screen experience with the full Python troupe.

As I recall, I felt underwhelmed. As much as I enjoyed the TV episodes from a decade or so prior, Life just lacked creativity or a whole lot of laughs.

At least I thought that almost 40 years ago. Would I still feel disenchanted so much later?

Yeah, pretty much. While it comes with some positives, Meaning nonetheless continues to feel like subpar Python.

Matters launch on a lackluster note, as the opening scene features a crew of elderly accountants who launch a rebellion against their corporate overlords. Obviously the work of Python Terry Gilliam, the sequence feels like an idea more than a fleshed-out sketch.

This piece goes nowhere of real interest. It runs about 16 minutes, much too long to sustain its flimsy “old office workers turned pirates” concept.

That segment lacks significant onscreen appearances from the Pythons themselves, so I hoped the film might improve once they entered the picture. Meaning also treats the opening as a “pre-movie short”, so one can regard it separately if one wants.

Once this tedium ends, the Pythons finally appear… as fish who ponder the meaning of life. This less than enthralling introduction then takes us to the series of sketches proper.

“The Miracle of Birth” ensues, with Graham Chapman and John Cleese as not especially concerned/invested doctors. The basic talents of the various Pythons manage to evoke some minor chuckles, but nothing memorable ensues.

Commentary about the Catholic Church’s policies against birth control comes with the next piece, and it also fails to find much insight or cleverness. Again, a smattering of laughs arise, but the target feels too easy and the end result never shows the intelligence we expect of the Pythons.

This sketch also runs too long, a trait that appears to become a recurring issue with Meaning. A rant from a smarmy Protestant (Chapman) follows and also just seems more extended than the material merits.

Religion continues as a target with “Growth and Learning”, a short that looks at the parochial education of kids. We get it: organized religions come with plenty of flaws.

Python already confronted similar themes with Life of Brian, and they did so in a much superior manner. “Growth” turns into another obvious and stale sequence.

Should we expect insights from “Fighting Each Other”, a segment that looks at the nature of warfare? Not really.

Mildly clever moments ensue – such as a spoof of the demanding drill sergeant – but as usual, the sketches seem light on inspiration and run too long.

A rare moment of absurd inspiration appears during “Middle of the Film”, a surreal sequence in which we play “where is the fish”. It actually doesn’t overstay its welcome and it seems so odd that it amuses.

Then we shift to “Middle Age”, a part of the movie that looks at issues related to that part of life – except it doesn’t, at least not with the first sketch. We see some tourists (Eric Idle and Michael Palin) who end up in a restaurant with an oppressive medieval theme.

This feels gratuitous, but the waiter (Cleese) prompts discussions about… the meaning of life. Some comedy results, but again, the piece continues past its appropriate life span.

Does “Live Organ Transplants” – the next segment – have anything to do with middle age either? Not really, and it just feels like an excuse for some gross-out humor.

Corporations pop up again from here, with a return of the accountant pirates. It just reminds me how little I liked the prior visit with those themes.

As we progress through stages of life, “Autumn Years” follows, and it brings the film’s most famous sequence with Mr. Creosote (Terry Jones). A massively obese glutton, he consumes enormous quantities of food at a restaurant and vomits on a frequent basis.

Python wasn’t above grotesque humor prior to 1983, but those moments usually felt like accents to the main gags. In the case of Mr. Creosote, the disgusting content acts as virtually the entirety of the “comedy”.

This sequence seems beloved, but I never understood why. It offered absolute lowest common denominator material in 1983 and it doesn’t seem any funnier now.

After the restaurant staff muses on the meaning of life briefly, “Death” follows, with arguably the film’s second most famous sequence. Arthur Jarrett (Chapman) gets sentenced to death but he gets to select his own method of execution.

Arthur elects to have beautiful topless women chase him until he falls off a cliff. It never seems amusing – and it remains unclear why Arthur wouldn’t select a more enjoyable way to mix women and death - but… boobies.

Next the Grim Reaper visits the inhabitants of a seaside cottage (Chapman and Idle). Some minor amusement results, but this remains another sketch with a concept that doesn’t sustain its length.

This sends the characters to heaven, where most of the prior participants also appear as a Big Finale. The film wastes the ending on an uninspired “Christmas in Heaven” musical number.

Though I guess this wraps up Meaning in a perversely appropriate way, as it seems like flash without substance. The Pythons still boasted immense talent, as they displayed on other projects.

However, with Meaning we find evidence they’d run their course as a team. Depressingly devoid of wit or cleverness, this becomes a poor cinematic finale for a classic comedic group.

Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life appears in an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 on this 4K UHD Disc. Though it showed its roots, the image largely worked well.

For the most part, sharpness appeared satisfactory. A few slightly soft elements appeared at times, but most of the film seemed accurate and well-defined.

No issues with jagged edges or moiré effects appeared, and I saw no edge haloes. Grain felt natural, and no print flaws manifested.

Colors showed nice clarity and vivacity. Though the film often stayed with a somewhat subdued palette, it popped to life at times and demonstrated fairly rich tones, with extra heft from the disc’s HDR.

Blacks seemed deep and dense, while shadows were smooth and clear – within the constraints of the original photography. HDR brought added impact and power to whites and contrast. Though not a visual showpiece, the image satisfied.

On the other hand, the DTS X remix of Meaning of Life disappointed, mainly due to a perplexing soundfield. The reworking of the audio led various sonic components to wind up in places that they didn’t belong.

This didn’t become a persistent concern, as aspects of the track showed up where they should, such as during a warfare scene. That one managed to place elements in logical spots and created a good sense of the material.

Other sequences fared less well, though, especially because dialogue localization felt odd. While lines stayed in the appropriate front center at times, they also often bled to the surrounds in a disconcerting manner.

Other effects also used the back speakers too much, with music as an overly loud factor in those channels at times. Though the soundscape occasionally satisfied, it felt awkward and unnatural too much of the time.

Audio quality seemed erratic as well, with lines that varied from fairly natural to edgy and reedy. The dialogue remained intelligible, at least.

Music and effects also lacked consistency, as they veered from smooth and dimensional to rough and shrill. I got the impression the mix included some re-recorded elements as well, for some of the war-related elements didn’t mesh with the rest of the track. The biggest issue here remained overkill, as the DTS X mix just went too nuts and didn’t support the film well.

How did the 4K UHD compare to the Blu-ray version? The BD’s 5.1 track worked substantially better than this clumsy DTS X mix. It didn’t excel but it matched the film in a superior manner.

On the other hand, the 4K UHD’s visuals seemed better defined, brighter and more dynamic than the grimy Blu-ray. The picture became an obvious upgrade.

With better audio on the Blu-ray and superior visuals on the 4K, what should the viewer do? I’d still opt for the 4K due to the improved picture, but I wish the soundtrack didn’t turn into such a mess.

As we move to extras, we open with an audio commentary from actor/director Terry Jones and actor/animator Terry Gilliam.

Both recorded separate running, screen-specific tracks that got edited into one piece.

The commentary looks at various aspects of the movie’s different sketches. At times, the Terrys offer useful insights about the material and the shoot.

However, more than a little dead air comes along for the ride, and we get a ton of praise for the film and its participants – especially from Gilliam, who often tries to convince us the movie represents peak Python. Gilliam also seems confused about chronology, as he occasionally indicates that he thinks Meaning of Life was shot after 1985’s Brazil.

All of this leads to a highly disappointing commentary. While not devoid of informational value, too much of the track simply feels banal and dull.

An alternate audio option appears via Soundtrack for the Lonely. With it, Michael Palin plays a man who watches the movie.

As he views, the Palin character laughs, hums, farts, and occasionally makes phone calls. Some entertainment results – but not nearly enough to sustain the viewer across the whole film. Though a clever concept, the end result drags.

In addition, the movie can be viewed with a Sing-Along. It simply provides onscreen lyrics during songs and offers nothing more engaging than that.

As we go to video extras, a 30th Anniversary Reunion lasts one hour, 15 seconds. Four Pythons – Michael Palin, Terry Jones, John Cleese and Terry Gilliam – gathered together in London, while Eric Idle joined them via video call from LA.

After a few minutes of general chitchat, they discuss aspects of Meaning of Life as well as the then-current state of comedy and various Python memories. This becomes a good collection of thoughts and a fun way to see the Pythons together.

A 2003 Prologue by Eric Idle goes for one minute, 17 seconds. He presents a comedic poem to introduce the movie and gives us a quick little bit of entertainment.

Titled The Snipped Bits, we get seven cut sequences that fill a total of 18 minutes, 22 seconds. Two – “Martin Luther” and “The Hendys” – come with non-optional commentary from Jones.

“Martin Luther” presents that religious icon as a horny weirdo and proves pretty amusing. Jones regrets its omission and I agree, as it offers the sort of oddball weirdness that Pythons did well.

The rest prove more erratic. “Hendys” just extends an existing scene, and the others feel mediocre.

Jones’ commentary delivers a few notes about the two aforementioned segments. He gives us some minor insights, but the fact we can’t watch the scenes without his chat annoys.

Under The School of Life, we get four elements. The Meaning of Making The Meaning of Life spans 49 minutes, two seconds and involves Palin, Cleese, Jones, Gilliam, Idle, and Python Graham Chapman.

The show looks at the project's origins and development, writing and the pursuit of a narrative theme, Jones as director, aspects of the shoot, and the movie's release/reception. It provides a pretty enjoyable overview of the different topics.

Education Tips runs six minutes and offers a circa 2003 Python sketch that involves Palin and Cleese. Though it doesn’t embarrass, it lacks much real amusement value.

Next comes Un Film de John Cleese, a one-minute, 31-second segment. Also from 2003, it offers a Cleese-centric version of the Meaning of Life trailer. While predictable, it seems mildly entertaining.

Remastering a Masterpiece lasts eight minutes, 21 seconds and offers notes from Jones, Gilliam and film restorationist James C. Katz. It offers a tongue in cheek look at efforts to bring the movie to DVD.

With that we head to Show Biz, a section with three components. Song and Dance occupies 11 minutes, 32 seconds and involves Jones, choreographer Arlene Phillips and dancer Jane Leeves.

This one looks at some of the movie's musical numbers. It turns into an engaging reel.

Songs Unsung brings alternate versions of the movie’s tunes. We get “Every Sperm Is Sacred (Eric Idle Version)” (3:09), “It’s The Meaning of Life (Terry Jones Version)” (2:54) and “Christmas in Heaven (Eric Idle Version)” (3:13). All match 1980s recordings with 2003 lipsynch footage of Idle and Jones to become mildly interesting.

In Selling The Meaning of Life, we get the film’s trailer and two TV spots. “US Promotion” (2:03) shows some dude who impersonated Mr. Creosote – and who did so without a hint of humor.

“Rejects” (0:59) displays nine poster concepts, and “UK Radio” (2:19) presents three English ads. “Telepathy” (2:27) finishes matters with an unusual trailer – one that seems more clever than almost anything in the actual film.

Fish ends the disc with two segments. 2003’s Virtual Reunion (3:09) takes the five surviving Pythons as they get digitally inserted into settings and sort of pretend to interact. It proves moderately amusing.

What Fish Think spans 16 minutes, five seconds and shows aquatic life with occasional “thoughts” voiced as well. It feels more like a glorified screen saver than anything to brings entertainment value.

The set also includes a Blu-ray copy of the film. It presents the same extras as the 4K UHD.

The final Monty Python film, The Meaning of Life becomes a tremendous disappointment. Little of the usual Python wit and cleverness appears in this largely flat and uninspired collection of sketches. The 4K UHD comes with erratic audio, good visuals and a sizable set of supplements. Little of the anticipated Python genius appears here.

To rate this film, visit the Blu-Ray review of THE MEANING OF LIFE