ANI-MOVIES, *A Liar's Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman

Even though there are some live-action clips shown throughout the production, A Liar's Autobiography is a love letter to deceased Monty Python member, Graham Chapman. The comic actor passed away in 1989 in his late forties, but prior to his death he wrote a sensationalized version of his life up until that point, which he also performed the audiobook of. This movie takes the original audio tracks and mixes in portions of Graham's life with animation from 14 different studios bringing a new dimension to the story. Written by Chapman's life-partner David Sherlock, the feature has input from most of the surviving Pythoners, including a bizarre voice over by Cameron Diaz as Sigmund Freud. This could be viewed as an animated anthology, even though all the segments fit together in a single narrative.

The movie begins with Graham Chapman trying to remember a line from a Oscar Wilde sketch Monty Python did live. He then spends the rest of the of the film going over parts of his life from going on boring vacations with his parents, attending college, and joining his school's drama club. This leads to him meeting up with John Cleese, where the two of them went on to do material for British entertainer David Frost, and eventually their hooking up with the rest of Monty Python which became one of the world's hugest comedy troupe. A good portion of the movie then reflects on how Graham handled the success Python brought him, as well as him coming to terms with his sexuality and alcoholism. The movie does a great job handling how Graham's life as being openly gay was in fact a positive thing in his life. The film goes back and forth between reality and fictional accounts like how reading the Biggles adventure books as a child helped him navigate his own personal outlook on the world.

A Liar's Autobiography is a delightful insight into the tragically short life of one of the greatest comic minds of all time. The entire feature has more dark tones to it than you might realize but done in a comedic manner. The voice overs by the remaining Python team make for a fine extended cast, but what really sells it is Graham's narration with the eclectic animation. If you were ever a member of the Dead Parrots Society, then you can't miss this necessary look in one of its founding members.