Saturday Night Live has been a television mainstay since its inception on October 11, 1975. It’s given birth to some of the most iconic comedic talents of the 20th century, but according to the movie it’s based on, the journey was anything but funny.
Now, Saturday Night is the focus of how the very first episode got started. It’s a movie that proves to have the same anarchic spirit, but I personally wanted to see more raucousness. Still, what we get is ultimately serviceable enough to recommend.
The movie takes place exactly 90 minutes before SNL first debuted. Gabriel LaBelle plays producer Lorne Michaels, who runs frantically between the actors and the crew. The movie explains how the inaugural episode suffered from Murphy’s Law from top to bottom: Scripts weren’t ready, technical issues ran amok, and the actors constantly questioned which sketches they were featured in.
Michaels is doing his best to be centered, but his cavalcade of talent is buckling under the pressure just as much: Rachel Sennott is Michaels’ wife, Rosie Shuster, Corey Michael Smith is Chevy Chase, Ella Hunt is Gilda Radner, Dylan O’Brien is Dan Aykroyd, and Matt Wood is John Belushi.
Each cast member certainly has the looks down, but they also bring the essence of who these performers were in their heyday. Smith’s take on Chase and Wood’s portrayal of Belushi are perhaps the standouts, as they deliver strong yet hilarious work when they’re not fighting.
Willem Dafoe plays David Tebet, a network executive who is unsure what the program is about and wants to quickly replace it with The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson.
There are also cameos by other legends of the time, ranging from the wholesome Jim Henson to the unapologetically brash George Carlin. Much of the movie is like a guessing game of cameos who get just enough screen time to be memorable.
Director/co-writer Jason Reitman perfectly recreates the set in such authentic detail that there will undoubtedly be a tidal wave of nostalgia for those who originally experienced SNL.
The movie gives us enough insight into the chaos, but it only succeeds at being moderately funny when it should’ve had us howling. The moments with Chase, Belushi, and Carlin provide just that, but the other actors are surprisingly low-key when they shouldn’t be.
The movie wanted to be respectful of the toll the creative and technical process took on those involved, and I can understand that to an extent. However, it also feels like it’s stepping into standard biopic territory when it should’ve been a little more adventurous.
Still, I recommend Saturday Night for its lively, energetic performances and for the way it brings to life an era when a new breed of radical comedy was determined to break down the barriers and challenge the conventions of what was acceptable for a mainstream audience.
If only it had been a little more gutsy and a little less structured.
Grade: B+
(Rated R for language throughout, sexual references, some drug use and brief graphic nudity.)
