MOVIE REVIEW: “SATURDAY NIGHT” (R)
“Saturday Night” is one of those films that I really want to love but try as I might, I simply don’t. A shame because I’m a fan of director Jason Reitman. I count “Thank You For Smoking” as his strongest film and I’m also quite fond of “Juno” and “Young Adult.” Heck, I’m even a big-time supporter of the divisive “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” which, despite a little too much fan service, really hit the sweet spot for me. I wish the same could be said for “Saturday Night.”
The events in “Saturday Night” take place within the chaotic and somewhat tumultuous 90-minute time frame leading up to the very first Saturday Night Live broadcast which occurred five long decades ago. That opener would ultimately pave the way for what is arguably the most influential sketch comedy show of all time. In fact, it’s still on air to this very day. Those on hand for that most historic night on October 11th, 1974, included showrunner Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle) and SNL players, John Belushi (Matt Wood), Chevy Chase (Cory Michael Smith), Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris), Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt), Jane Curtain (Kim Matula), Laraine Newman (Emily Fairn), and Dan Aykroyd (Dylan O’Brien.) just to name a precious few.
A solid cast here to be sure and by and large, these performers all look the part (especially O’Brien.) Additionally, they do sometimes manage to evoke the spirit of their SNL counterparts but since this movie is structured as a real-time series of events, it often feels like we’re observing shadowy reflections of these performers rather than the performers themselves, particularly where iconic SNL players like John Belushi are concerned.
The very idea of a 90-minute ramp up to the very first 90-minute live SNL broadcast is a clever and creative one but too much of this film feels forced and inauthentic. What’s more, it’s not really as intense as one would hope. It’s clear that director Reitman and his right-hand man, co-writer Gil Kenan, are going for a colorful, high-energy Aaron Sorkin-esque vibe but ultimately, the end result is a mixed bag.
It should also be noted that “Saturday Night” often paints some of its key players in an unflattering and mean-spirited light and while I’m sure there was plenty of bad behavior and conflict going on, the movie might have benefitted from showcasing a little more of a joyful side as well. I recognize that some of this stuff coming across as hyper-real is by design but still, the balance is off. And this goes beyond the smug and assholish depiction of Chase, which if I’m being honest, wasn’t all that surprising given some of the things that have been written and said about the man through the years.
More problematic is the fashion in which legends like Jim Henson are depicted. He’s portrayed as an uptight dork and that felt disingenuous at best (even by comedy standards), particularly after watching the recent documentary, “Jim Henson: Idea Man.” Likewise, Milton Berle comes across as an arrogant gangster type and while this legend was known for being a bit prickly in real life, he was also a beloved personality referred to as Mr. Television. It would have been nice to see a little of that. Still, JK Simmons is pretty damn funny in the role.
For all of its flaws, “Saturday Night” isn’t without its moments and Reitman, Kenan and crew are to be commended for keeping the proceedings brisk and for making sure they kept the run time under 2 hours. That being said, perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay this hit-and-miss tribute to the old school SNL, is that I’d much rather watch it than any full episode of “Saturday Night Live” from the last 5 years and that’s certainly saying something.
