Saturday Night honors SNL with a comedic thriller

Saturday Night sees the origins of SNL take center stage in a refreshing and thrilling biopic.

Director Jason Reitman (Up in the Air, Juno) assembles a cast of young no-names and thrust them into stardom.

Gabriel LaBelle (The Fabelmans) is the ring leader as a young Lorne Michaels, the longtime showrunner of the iconic sketch comedy series.

His character is sweating it from frame one as the anxiety is palpable with a jazzy, percussion beat droning in the background.

The film plays out in real time as the 90-minute leadup to the first live airing of the show.

Reitman gives the story and all its players a moment to shine despite the brief runtime. The segments between Michaels and his distant wife (played by Rachel Sennott) are the most endearing.

In different hands, say someone like Aaron Sorkin, this could have all been lost.

Out of the rest of the cast, Corey Michael Smith (May November) wins the Best Impression award for his portrayal of Chevy Chase.

The Fletch star has a notable Deadpool and Wolverine-style feud with John Belushi (played by Matt Wood).

Succession’s Nicholas Braun pulls a fabulous double duty as Jim Henson and Andy Kaufman.

It’s not all kids though, Willem Dafoe is a shark-like executive ready to pull the plug, and Reitman regular J.K. Simmons sinks right into television legend Milton Berle’s skin.

LaBelle announces himself as the most promising leading man of his generation with a second commanding performance of 2024 (see also the summer comedy Snack Shack).

Reitman keeps the camera moving non-stop in the busiest movie this side of Paul Thomas Anderson’s masterful Magnolia.

The result is an exhausting blend of humor and panic that makes for a solid tribute to a comedic touchstone.

8 out of 10