Telluride Film Review: ‘Saturday Night’ is a Blast and Jason Reitman’s Phenomenally Effective Tribute to the Miracle of Crafting Live Television

For the amount of work that goes into making a film or a television show, it’s a literal miracle that anything gets completed. That there’s also live television in this world speaks to talented men and women doing the impossible. Jason Reitman‘s Saturday Night is a loving tribute to that, looking at the creation of the first ever Saturday Night Live episode in near real-time. High energy, hilarious, and full of the spirit of creativity, this is one of the Telluride Film Festival’s best and most fun movies not just this year, but in several years.

Saturday Night perfectly captures the insanity of putting on SNL. The lunacy of the production, as well as the cast and the crew, is depicted with love, but also without pulling punches. The comedy obviously comes together by the end, but there’s no shortage of drugs, egos, fights, and setbacks that should have kept the show from ever airing in the first place. The affection Reitman has for Saturday Night Live is clear, but he’s not afraid of the warts that came with night one being produced.

On October 11th, 1975, the first episode of what would be Saturday Night Live is set to premiere at 11:30pm. Around 10pm, we’re introduced to producer Lorne Michaels (Gabriel LaBelle), the man tasked with getting the show to air. In nearly real-time from then to air, we see Lorne dealing with all sorts of issues. The crew is basically revolting having to work a weekend night, the cast is truly not ready for primetime, and his boss Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman), is skeptical yet supportive, asking him to define an undefinable show.

As the minutes tick away we see the issues being handled by Michaels. We’re introduced to his wife and show writer Rosie Shuster (Rachel Sennott), head writer Michael O’Donoghue (Tommy Dewey), as well as all of the cast. There’s cocky Chevy Chase (Cory Michael Smith), high maintenance John Belushi (Matt Wood), plus the likes of Dan Aykroyd (Dylan O’Brien), Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt), Garrett Morris (Lamorne Morris), Laraine Newman (Emily Fairn), Jane Curtin (Kim Matula), and Billy Crystal (Nicholas Podany). There’s also guests like George Carlin (Matthew Rhys), Billy Preston (Jon Batiste), Andy Kaufman (Nicholas Braun), and Jim Henson (Braun too). All of these personalities are clashing, with one problem after the next. NBC honcho David Tebet (Willem Dafoe) wants to bump the show, but Michaels is determined. History would declare him right, but the bumps along the way are hilarious and stressful in equal measure.

This ensemble cast is absolutely aces. Whether they look like their real-life counterparts or not, they find the spirit of these geniuses. As our guide throughout the madness, Gabriel LaBelle is a steady hand, showing cracks but also trying to make everything work. Lorne Michaels was about to change the TV landscape forever, but in the moment, he just wants to make it to 11:30. Everyone is so good, but the standouts do include Lamorne Morris, Dylan O’Brien, Rachel Sennott, Matt Wood, and especially Cory Michael Smith. J.K. Simmons steals his few scenes as Milton Berle, unsurprisingly. The massive cast also includes Andrew Barth Feldman, Tracy Letts, Naomi McPherson, Paul Rust, and Finn Wolfhard, plus so many more. The ensemble has an energy that just goes on for 90 minutes plus without letting up.

Jason Reitman pours every ounce of his filmmaking bravura into this flick. The script he wrote with Gil Kenan is sharp, hysterical, and absolutely crackles with energy. Reitman’s direction leans into that brilliantly, from the score from Jon Batiste to in particular the cinematography from Eric Steelberg. The film is made up of long takes and shots where the camera follows around the cast throughout the set, making for what had to be an incredibly complicated production. That Reitman and company pull it off so spectacularly shouldn’t be surprising, but is a terrific testament to the talents of all involved. Visually and technically, this is Reitman’s most accomplished movie, as well as his funniest.

Saturday Night is one of the most purely entertaining films in some time. As far as just laughs and enjoyment value, this is one of the year’s best works. My heart raced as the clock ticked, and given that the outcome was already certain, that’s some magic trick by Jason Reitman. Kudos. Not only will audiences love this movie, the Academy could easily go for it in several categories. This is a crowd-pleaser and a winner, plain and simple. I loved every second of it. Bravo!

SCORE: ★★★★