Saturday Night: The BRWC Review. By Daniel Rester.

Many comedic legends have gained fame through Saturday Night Live, the American sketch comedy show that began as NBC’s Saturday Night in 1975 and is still airing today. It is now 50 seasons and 970 episodes in. But its legacy wasn’t always a guarantee as creator Lorne Michaels first had to establish his cutting-edge vision for the TV show. 

Jason Reitman’s film Saturday Night plays out in nearly real time as it presents the 90 minutes leading up to the first live episode of the show on October 11th, 1975. Gabriel LaBelle plays Michaels as he rushes between rooms and the studio as he tries to establish some order to the chaos of the creative process. A million things come at him at once as he wrangles the cast and crew to be able to go live and prove their talent. 

Saturday Night plays out in a manic fashion, with frequent dialogue overlaps, plenty of whip pans and tracking shots, and snappy editing. Reitman takes a cue from Birdman (2014) in displaying a lead-up to a performance in a stylish and anxiety-inducing way, though Reitman and co-writer Gil Kenan’s script lacks that film’s thematic depth and complex characters. That’s not to say the Saturday Night screenplay is bad. It’s just more on the surface as it juggles the many characters and situations. Reitman and Kenan still manage to make it entertaining and believable though. 

The cast here is huge, led by LaBelle, who manages to center the film with his likable performance even as the screen threatens to unravel around him at times. Cory Michael Smith is brilliant as Chevy Chase, perfectly delivering Chase’s wit and arrogance. Dylan O’Brien as Dan Aykroyd, Tommy Dewey as Michael O’Donoghue, and Matthew Rhys as George Carlin are also standouts. 

The female cast members, including Rachel Sennott as Rosie Shuster and Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner, unfortunately get less moments that pop. Matt Wood feels like he is trying too hard as John Belushi at times, especially during his bursts of anger. Willem Dafoe and J.K. Simmons show up as David Tebet and Milton Berle, respectively, but I always just saw Dafoe and Simmons while their younger co-stars were disappearing into characters around them. 

I could spend ten more paragraphs listing all of the players that show up here. Most aren’t worth mentioning though as many of them have little to do. That comes with the territory of the real-time structure and focus on Michaels though. Everyone does fine, but Reitman and Kenan should have beefed up the script to play out longer so that we could get to know the myriad characters better. 

Thankfully the film does slow down for a few key moments in order to flesh out a couple of the relationships – and for the audience to catch its breath. One of the film’s best scenes is a simple argument in a stairwell between Michaels and his boss Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman). It offers an emotional punch to it that comes just at the right time. 

Reitman occasionally stumbles on his feet here (why is that random drug trip scene even included?), but for the most part he skillfully handles the staging of the fast pace and chaotic drama. He is aided by cinematographer Eric Steelberg, who’s 16 mm photography helps give texture to the project. Editors Nathan Orloff and Shane Reid’s meticulous cutting and Jon Batiste’s jazzy music score add to the film’s propulsive rhythm too. 

Saturday Night can be enjoyable for both diehard SNL fans and those less familiar with the show. Parts of it are exhausting and even annoying, but it’s mostly thrilling and funny. It makes for a fine showcase of a young and talented cast paying tribute to comedic legends. 

Rating: 8/10

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