A bit of background on "And Now for Something Completely Different"…
"And Now for Something Completely Different" was as JohnnyComeLately simply stated: "a movie by Monty Python in 1971", recorded after the second season. It was an attempt by the troupe to obtain exposure in America. Unfortunately, it flopped much like the dead parrot onto the animal boutique's counter. American (merkin) interest would not surface until a few years later when the show appeared on a Dallas, TX PBS station.
"And Now for Something Completely Different" is to the Pythons what moonshine is to hillbillies; it contains the most hilarious (sometimes just goofy) sketches the Pythons' could concoct. They are the sketches known around the world; the sketches college students perform to the delight of sometimes dozens. Among them are: The Lumberjack Song, the pet shop (dead parrot) sketch, twit of the year, and John Cleese in a bikini.
The director, Victor Lownes, demanded that his name be in the beginning of the film, in Terry Gilliam's animation. This, and the fact that the pure randomness of the film was his doing, irritated the troupe. During one interview, the troupe considered it "just a bunch of men sitting behind desks." Quite true, 12 of the 27 sketches are just that.
It was also the cheapest Python Film, at approximately 80,000 pounds. It makes sense as most of the indoor shots were done in an old milk factory.
Although a flop in 1971, It would be safe to assume that every true Python fan has a copy, or at least a bootleg, making it a true success in the end.
Quick salute to http://www.pythonet.org/pyth-faq.html for some info, the DVD for the rest.