Ah, the weekend, a time to kick back and relax after the drudgery of the nine-to-fives grind. Well, that’s the case for most of us. For the folks working at “30 Rock” in the “Big Apple” it’s truly “crunch time” Most weeks, that is. And it all started exactly 49 years ago. That’s when one of the “big three” networks (in those “prehistoric’ times before cable and streaming), the National Broadcasting Company decided to gamble on a risky concept, one that was once the “norm” nearly twenty years prior. Back in the 1950s almost everything on the tube (other than creaky old movies) was aired live. But with the advent of video tape, most of the entertainment or “variety shows” shows were run free of glitches and goof-ups thanks to meticulous editing of the “pre-recorded” content. Due to pressure from “the king of late night” NBC wanted something new and off beat, a show that could appeal to the coveted 18 to 34 demographic that sponsors love, to run rather than repeats of “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson”. After corraling a motley team of eager energetic twenty-somethings, a ninety minute original comedy and music “revue” would air at the weekend’s “epicenter”. And this new film tells the backstage story of that fateful night. To paraphrase one of the show’s many “catchphrases”, “Filmed In New York (and Georgia), it’s SATURDAY NIGHT!”. And thank you, Don Pardo…
The film takes place in the ninety minutes prior to the premiere on October 11, 1975. It’s 10 pm and a frustrated NBC page (Finn Wolfhard) can’t even give away free audience passes to the new show. His “spiel” is interrupted by the program’s creator/producer Lorne Michaels (Gabrielle LaBelle) as he greets a “featured performer” Andy Kaufman (Nicholas Braun), who has been dropped off by his parents. After getting past the security team, they two take the elevator to the “nerve center” on the eighth floor. Lorne is quickly approached by the NBC VP of late-night programming Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman) who is his “sounding board” and advisor. Priority one is the on-air talent. Chicago Second City vet John Belushi (Matt Wood) balks at wearing the bee costumes and avoids signing his contract. Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris) questions his place in the show. As does the “classicly-trained” actress Jane Curtin (Kim Matula). Dan Ackroyd (Dylan O’Brien) doesn’t like his props while Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt) fears being typecast as everybody’s “kid sister”. And Laraine Newman (Emily Fairn) wants to change costumes quicker. Towering over them all is the snarky, confident Chevy Chase (Cory Michael Smith). The loudest complainer may be the host, counter-culture stand-up comedy icon George Carlin (Matthew Rhys), while the softest may be Muppet master Jim Henson (Braun again). And as the sets are still being built, Lorne is getting “pitches” from his writing staff led by the acerbic dark-humored Michael O’Donogue (Tommy Dewey) and Lorne’s soon-to-be ex-wife Rosie Shuster (Rachel Sennott). And if that weren’t enough, the NBC talent relations exec David Tebet (Willem Dafoe) has brought in a horde of middle-aged NBC station affiliate owners and the network’s first “superstar”, Milton Berle (J.K. Simmons), who act more like sharks that just smelled blood in the water. Tebet has a big reel-to-reel videotape of Carson ready to go. Will Lorne’s “dream” be scrapped before it’s even aired? Well, we know the answer to that…
But it’s still a fun, exhilarating ride thanks to this superb cast led by LaBelle who follows up his lead role in THE FABELMANS by playing another media icon. Sure, he often resembles a “deer caught in headlights” as everything appears on the verge of self-destruction, but LaBelle imbues Michaels with a steely determination and a strong backbone when the “suits’ encircle him. He’s got to put on a brave face, but lets the mask slip away with his two biggest “back-ups”. One is Shuster given a smart and sassy air by the engaging Sennott. She’s truly walking a tightrope as she tries to bolster Michaels just enough without leading him to think that their marriage will be “patched up” while engaging in some flirty banter with O’Brien’s Ackroyd. Plus she’s also the “Belushi-whisperer” as hers is the only voice that seems to calm his “savage beast”. The other person in Michaels’ “corner” is Ebersol played with great energy and empathy by Hoffman who cares about the project but isn’t afraid to “lay it on the line” to the frazzled producer (and his “product placement” rant is pretty funny). The story’s “villain”, other than the clicking countdown to air, might be Dafoe, at his most reptilian (and that’s saying a lot) as the sinister Tebet, a blow-dried Lucifer dangling stardom in front of Chase, while cooly pushing Michaels to “try for next week” in a passive-aggressive whisper. Almost matching him is Simmons whose “Uncle Milty” swings his “BDE” as he clings to his past glories. While they aren’t “perfect doppelgangers” for the original “Not Ready for Prime Time Players”, all of the ensemble can suggest them via subtle voice inflection and gestures especially the aforementioned O’Brien who captures the aggressive super-focused nerdiness of Ackroyd as he rattles off the specs of a pistol in one breath along with Morris who conveys the inner-conflict and turmoil inside Garrett as he fears that all of his schoolings may be in service of TV “tokenism” (“I’m an opera singer, now I’m a pimp?”). Kudos also to Robert Wuhl as bemused journeyman director Dave Wilson and Tracy Letts as grizzled comedy guru Herb Sargent, who outlines Chevy’s future (Smith’s terrific as the swaggering comic “alpha”). But the MVP may be Braun doing delicious “double-duty” as the strange Kaufman and the quietly eccentric Henson.
And who’s the talented filmmaker that imbues a vibrant vitality to a tale so familiar to TV fans and historians? Why, it’s none other than Jason Reitman, who himself is part of a comedy dynasty that mixed with many SNL vets ( he and his late father directed Ghostbuster flicks with Ackroyd). He also co-wrote the film with Gil Kenan, and sure some of it is probably “dramatically-altered” embellishments to the legends (certainly no live show would bring in the audience with only minutes to spare as the set floor was still being built), but it’s a movie, not a TV mini-series (which would be pretty cool, too). More important than 100% accuracy is the immediacy Reitman gives this fable, which at times seems to be a fever dream from Michaels who is constantly “spinning plates”. This takes the “walk and talk” trope of Aaron Sorkin to dizzying heights as the always-in-motion- producer is cornered by questioners from the left and right (30 Rock has some long hallways). Several bits from much later sketches are referenced (did these comic ideas gestate for years), but it adds to the manic footloose frenzy. It’s all given a gritty smoke-filled haze (so much chain-smoking) thanks to the 16mm cinematography by Eric Steelberg and accented by the score from Jon Batiste, who doubles as “musical guest” Billy Preston. And let’s give ‘props” to the prop department along with the art and design teams and the funky period costuming of Danny Glicker. Yes, the pace is a bit overwhelming at times, but this film takes its place amongst the great films set around classic TV shows both real (BEING THE RICARDOS) and fictional (MY FAVORITE YEAR) as it balances the emergence of the new “raised by the tube” creators and the zeal of the Judy and Mickey “let’s put on a show” flicks. Best of all it reminds us of that magic time hanging out with your school pals hunkered around the TV (not too loud since the folks are in bed) waiting for the clock to hit 11:30 (10:30 central) to finish the big lazy day with some laughs and music on SATURDAY NIGHT.
4 Out of 4
SATURDAY NIGHT is now playing exclusively in theatres everywhere
