Just over 50 years ago, Saturday Night Live aired for the first time on NBC. On Oct. 11, the film “Saturday Night” showcased the spectacular, head-spinning events that occurred in the 90 minutes before the iconic show first went live. This beautiful portrayal of a historic night in television history carries a high adrenaline atmosphere throughout its runtime.
Starting at 10 p.m. on Oct. 11, 1975, the bustling crew members set up lights as writers finalized scripts. The movie shows the quarterly time stamps of the night passing by as Loren Michaels and the stars of the show get ready. The audience cannot help but feel stressed and nauseous with the anticipation building up on trying to make it to air at 11:30 pm. There is not a single break from the chaos. This is truly a motion picture that never stops moving.
Since the film is constantly trying to include as much as possible within a two-hour time frame, there are a couple of plot holes within the script that never get resolved. Teasing information about the original cast of SNL and not following through with it seems like an unnecessary addition to the script. Other than that, the constant push and pull with Michaels and NBC is amusing to watch. Sarcastic and crass comebacks are so common in the dialogue that they come across as a natural way of conducting business,which is alarming yet entertaining and it works for the rebellious comedians.
A bunch of 20-year-old comedians coming together is a marvel to experience.
The ensemble cast is mind-blowing with their performances. Stars like Kaia Gerber as Jacqueline Carlin and Jon Batiste as Billy Preston showed up and showed out with glamorous 1970’s style. Adding a bit of personal history about Lorne Michaels is his ex-wife Rosie Shuster played by Rachel Sennott. Rachel gave a flirty yet reassuring performance running around the set of SNL as the costume designer.
The actors did not disappoint when representing the hall of fame stars in this biographical comedy. Corey Michael Smith starring as Chevy Chase was a thrilling and extremely accurate resemblance to the beloved star from the National Lampoon Franchise. Dylan O’Brien as Dan Aykroyd was electrifying and charismatic, bringing light as the comedian easing the tension of the night.
When watching this film, one cannot help but root for the underdog Lorne Michaels played by Gabriel LaBelle, a determined yet complicated showman running around the Rockefeller Plaza establishes an intriguing connection with the audience. Certainly a newfound appreciation is discovered when embarking on this journey with Michaels. The producer and creator of one of the longest-running live television shows sets an example to all creators — that with confidence and spontaneity one can cement an idea into reality.
This movie has it all from authentic film cinematography to dark comedic prose spoken throughout the movie. There are jaw-dropping moments that make the audience think “Did that really happen?” So many cultural references that one would not expect to be included in the 1970s stars’ dressing rooms. ‘Saturday Night’ is a great movie for the cinephiles obsessed with film history,but really it is a movie for anyone who appreciates a classic with a whole lot of great comedy.
