Jabberwocky (1977) is a comic medieval film by Monty Python's resident animator, Terry Gilliam. It stars Michael Palin as a young cooper who is forced through a series of clumsy, often slapstick misfortunes to hunt down a terrible dragon after the death of his father. The name is taken from the nonsense poem Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll.

The film, Gilliam's first as a solo director, was not well-received by critics or audiences, although it has gained something of a cult following since its release, and strongly established Gilliam's distinctive visual style and dark sense of humour.

The film is close in setting and comic style to Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which Gilliam had earlier been involved with. As well as Palin, Terry Jones and John Cleese played roles in the film, giving it a distinctly Python-esque feel, with many scenes (such as the "hide and seek" jousting tournament) heavily reminiscent of Holy Grail.

External link

• The IMDb entry on Jabberwocky