5. Monty Python And The Holy Grail
To put it plainly, Monty Python movies aren’t generally known for their narrative superiority. As decidedly silly ensemble comedies, subtle foreshadowing doesn’t seem like something you’d be likely to find in one of the comedy troupe’s movies. However, Monty Python and the Holy Grail does just that, concealing it as absurd humor.
Shortly after setting off in search of the Holy Grail, King Arthur arrives at a French castle. Asking to be admitted, the French soldiers rudely ask him to leave. When he tells them about his quest for the Holy Grail, the Frenchman simply replies: “We already got one!” He and his fellow soldiers have a good laugh at Arthur’s expense, and the King carries on with his quest.
The end of the film reveals that the French soldiers did actually have the Grail all along. What’s passed off as a slightly ridiculous joke early in the movie actually turns out to have been a statement of fact. It’s hardly subtle, but it’s foreshadowing, and it still slipped right by most of us. Touché, Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Touché.