Monty Python's Life of Brian is a 1979 British black comedy film starring and written by the comedy group Monty Python (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin). Directed by Jones, the film incorporates surrealism and satire which parodies the biblical history of the birth and death of Jesus Christ. The film tells the story of Brian Cohen (played by Chapman), a young Judaean man who is born on the same day as—and next door to—Jesus, and is subsequently mistaken for the Messiah. Following the withdrawal of funding by EMI Films just days before production was scheduled to begin, musician and former Beatle George Harrison and his business partner Denis O'Brien arranged financing for Life of Brian through the formation of their HandMade Films company.