Review: Saturday Night – Live from New York…
Directed by Jason Reitman
Starring Gabriel LaBelle, Rachel Sennott, Matt Wood, Willem Dafoe
7/10
It’s October 11th, 1975, and in a couple of hours, a new comedy show will be broadcast live across the nation. That’s if producer Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) can wrangle the temperamental cast, decide what skits are in the show, deal with censors, put out the literal fires on set, build a stage, and convince nervous network executives that the show is worthwhile. Of course, to do this, he needs to work out what this Saturday night live show actually is.
Saturday Night oozes chaos in the best way possible. It plunges viewers into the turbulent hours before the first live broadcast of SNL, giving them a fly-on-the wall perspective of the hectic rush towards that historic outing. Threaded through this are a series of conflicts from numerous larger-than-life personalities, the push against puritanical censorship, and the gatekeeping of established TV veterans.
It’s a plethora of themes, characters, and plot points, which director Jason Reitman (Juno) juggles with aplomb. The result seems constantly hectic, but in a controlled and channelled way. At no point is the narrative flow overwhelmed by the jumble of events on screen.
This is combined with a crowded ensemble cast that produces a number of strong performances. Some are great impressions of iconic comedians; others seem to effortlessly inhabit the stars. Matt Wood’s Belushi straddles the line, giving us an almost downplayed version of the doomed genius. Dylan O’Brien completes the other half of the eventual Blues Brothers as he launches into reams of Ackroyd techno babble at the drop of a fedora. However, it’s Lamourne Morris (as Garrett Morris) and Kim Matula (as Jane Curtin) that stand out, each stealing the show in a scene.
Reitman definitely values entertainment over verisimilitude here. Chase is really the only icon that comes into any degree of criticism (and fairly given some of the comments of his Community co-stars). The rest are painted in a more forgiving light with less reflection on their flaws. As such, Saturday Night lacks a little in terms of nuance, instead seeking to print the legend. However, although it’s easy to imagine a more complex portrayal, it’s hard to envision a more engaging one.
A vibrant whirlwind of activity, Saturday Night is an amusing comedy drama that dips into nostalgia but is never mired in it.
DAVID O’CONNELL