How does an American comedy institution like Saturday Night Live start? For writer/director Jason Reitman, it starts 90 minutes before that first show, before the Not Ready for Primetime Players were household names.
Saturday Night opens at 10:00 pm, October 11, 1975. The studio doesn’t have an audience, cast members are fighting, crew members are actively not working, and the show is double its runtime. Heading all of this is co-creator Lorne Michaels (played by Gabriel LaBelle), whose marriage to writer Rosie Schuster (Rachel Sennott), is clearly up in the air. Chasing after him to keep on budget is executive producer and NBC cronie Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman). Keeping him on his toes are various department heads and crew members who are dealing with his high standards and demands including using actual brick for the stage.
Meanwhile, his cast is gearing up for the show with John Belushi (Matt Wood) refusing to sign his contract and Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris) questioning his place as the only Black cast member. Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt), Laraine Newman (Emily Fairn) Dan Aykroyd (Dylan O’Brien), and Jane Curtin (Kim Matula) run through various sketches before while Chevy Chase’s ego gets in his way.
Add in a defiant writing staff led by head writer Michael O’Donoghue (Tommy Dewey), an all-to-ernest Jim Henson (Nicholas Braun, who also portrays comedy legend Andy Kaufman), and Lorne Michaels has a disaster waiting to happen. With the network breathing down Lorne’s neck, he has to find a way to bring everyone together to make a comedy show in 90 minutes or everyone loses their jobs. No pressure, right?
Some critics have compared the film’s style and tone to an Aaron Sorkin project (anyone remember the short-lived Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip?) While an apt comparison, we’ve seen this fast-paced, ensemble dramedy from Reitman before in 2018’s The Front Runner. The script is tighter and the director’s vision is clearer in Saturday Night, the real-time feel and one location help ground the action.
Comedy nerds and SNL historians will be the first to point out that film is far from factually accurate. Spiritually, Reitman and co-writer Gil Kenan nail the chaos and rebellious energy that came out of that first season.
Reitman and LaBelle’s characterization of showrunner Lorne Michaels is the most frustrating and confusing part of the film. For many, Lorne Michaels is a mysterious figure in American comedy. We see him walk around the studio in between commercials during the live show and occasionally appear in sketches as himself. But for the most part, audiences hear about Michaels through what current and former cast members say about him. I don’t think Reitman and Kenan clear up any of that character development. The entire narrative is arguably on this character’s shoulders and hinges on his lackluster leadership skills. That one character flaw isn’t compelling enough to drive an entire film about America’s greatest comedy institution.
Luckily, this is where the rest of the cast comes in. I could watch hours of Lamorne Morris, Dylan O’Brien, and Nicholas Braun running around 30 Rock playing these comedy legends. While their character arcs remain unresolved by the time Chase yells the first “Live from New York. It’s Saturday Night!”, the unpredictable yet endearing performances are what keep you watching. It’s kismet considering that is what keeps people watching the show fifty years later.
Saturday Night hits select theaters Oct. 4 and nationwide Oct. 11. Watch the trailer below.
