“Saturday Night” transports their audience back to the 1970s
“Saturday Night,” directed by Jason Reitman and released on Oct. 11, goes backstage into the lives of the original cast of “Saturday Night Live” [SNL], the famous late-night NBC comedy segment. The new young batch of comedians and writers, although unknown in the entertainment industry, chaotically prepare for their first live broadcast on national television.
What stood out to me the most was the casting, as they did an amazing job with selecting Cory Micheal Smith, who plays Chevy Chase, an original cast member, and Nicholas Braun, who plays Jim Henson, the creator of “The Muppets” and a guest star on SNL, who are near look-alikes to the people they are playing.
The actors as a group did an amazing job of building up tension with their rambunctious personalities, which was paired with a countdown that was shown every few scenes. I was on the edge of my seat even during my second watch. The close bonds between the young comedians create a homely environment, even though the show is predicted to fail from the start. Even though I was stressed when watching, the banter and jokes distracted me from the fact that they might not make it to air.
Gabriel LaBelle’s performance as Lorne Micheals, the producer of SNL, was excellent. He captured Micheals’ anxious mannerisms perfectly, yet he carries the character with so much determination and electricity as he actively rebelles against the NBC executives.
One of my favorite scenes of LaBelle’s is at the end of the movie when he can confidently say what the show is. He says that it’s an idea of what you expect when you go to New York on a Saturday night. This quote not only is inspirational given he is standing up to the men who told him that his show wouldn’t make it to national television, but it also is the wake up call for the rest of the staff that they only have 10 minutes till show time.
Reitman displays the 70s aesthetics accurately, with the 16mm film stock adding a gritty and vintage filter over the screen, along with warm-toned costumes and set designs. The soundtrack has many period-appropriate tunes that include “At 17” by Janis Ian and “Right on” by Ray Barreto. The camera angles are very close up and immersed within the blocking so this, combined with other technical elements, is what ultimately made me feel that I was in the studio.
My one critique of this movie, however, is although I thought Reitman’s fast pacing was appropriate, by the end, I had many unanswered questions, specifically about Dan Akroyd’s and Rosie Schuester’s complicated “situationship.” Although married to Micheals, Schuester and Akroyd have a seemingly flirty relationship that is shown often only in the background, which leaves no room for further exploration of these complex dynamics.
This movie is an amazing tribute to the timeless “Saturday Night Live” with its top-notch casting, familial environment and the sense of chaos and urgency that is a main theme throughout.
