As Saturday Night Live enters its 50th season, it’s quite fun to revisit the day the first-ever episode went live. As so happens, I saw the film on the big screen exactly 49 years to the day it aired on October 11, 1975. Generally, I’m not a super huge fan of SNL and rarely see the show live. I usually watch clips or highlights of it on YouTube days, even weeks after the live show. Some of the stars of the shows have become big stars and I’ve considered a few of them my favorite comedians. Sketch comedy is a tricky thing to pull off, which makes Lorne Michaels’ idea of creating a late-night live sketch comedy variety show quite revolutionary.

I read in an interview that director Jason Reitman has always wanted to capture the experience of the first time he watched an SNL show go live. It’s a brilliant concept as the film mirrors the chaotic 90 minutes before the first episode where everything that could go wrong actually did. Reitman co-wrote the script with Gil Kenan (who directed the latest Ghostbusters movie) which aligns the runtime perfectly with the show’s actual countdown to air. There’s an intense ticking clock as soon as the movie starts, counting down to 11: 30 p.m. when the show is supposed to air.

The chaos at the NBC Studios at 30 Rockefeller Plaza is palpable from the start. From livestock delivery (fully llamas), set construction, rehearsals, and narrowing down the number of skits/sketches, to chasing down cast members, there were so many moving parts waiting to get into gear. A high-ranking NBC exec David Tebet (Willem Dafoe) keeps pestering Lorne (Gabriel LaBelle) about everything that is going wrong on set, casting doubts on his ability to pull it off. Meanwhile, VP of late-night programming Dick Ebersol (Cooper Hoffman) can’t seem to get an answer from Lorne as to what the show is actually about.

Despite looking really young (Lorne is supposed to be 30 at that time), 22-year-old LaBelle is able to capture his nervousness as well as tenacity. With everyone doubting him and betting on him to fail, his motivation, and creativity only grew stronger, powering the entire production. The brief scene where Lorne steps out of the studio to walk to the Rockefeller Center ice skating rink and a nearby bar is memorable given the legacy that came out of that.

The movie starts out with a feverish energy that never lets on. Reitman assembled a talented cast to portray the real-life former SNL cast members: Matt Wood (John Belushi), Cory Michael Smith (Chevy Chase), Lamorne Morris (Garrett Morris, no relation), Ella Hunt (Gilda Radner), Dylan O’Brien (Dan Aykroyd), Kim Matula (Jane Curtin), Nicholas Podany (Billy Crystal), and Andrew Barth Feldman (talent coordinator Neil Levy) are all terrific in their roles. Nicholas Braun particularly stands out in a dual role as Andy Kauffman and Jim Henson and I got a kick out of the chameleonic Welsh actor Matthew Rhys’s performance as George Carlin. J.K. Simmons’s cameo as Milton Berle is particularly memorable thanks to an NSFW scene involving prosthetic work.

The plot is structured well and effectively ramps up tension as it approaches airtime. As if it wasn’t suspenseful enough, there’s a likely chance the episode wouldn’t even make it on the air as Tebet has a backup plan to air an old, Tonight Show With Johnny Carson tape in case he decides to pull the plug on the live show at the last minute. The energetic score perfectly complements the hubbub that’s going on. Props to the multitalented Jon Batiste who did double duty as the composer and as an actor portraying the first musical guest Billy Preston.

Now, this movie isn’t designed to be a deep dive into the history of SNL and its major characters. There’s not much background about Lorne either, though there’s an amusing anecdote from his then-wife Rosie Shuster (Rachel Sennott) about how they first met. The enjoyment you get really hinges on how much you buy into this countdown idea as a way to amp up the drama and chaos behind the making of this legendary show.

I had a lot of fun with Saturday Night. It’s a wild, roller-coaster ride from start to finish, though the frenetic pace can be a bit tough to follow, especially for someone who’s not terribly familiar with the inner workings of the show. The retro world-building is spot-on and the vibrant vibe of 1970s NYC (thanks to DP Eric Steelberg) helps create an immersive experience. This is one of the most brilliantly edited films of the year, as its real-time concept depends on a flawless rhythm and flow to make everything come together smoothly. By the time the famous words ‘Live from New York, It’s Saturday Night!’ are heard in the end, I’ve gained an extra appreciation for SNL and what a game-changer it truly was.

Have you seen the SATURDAY NIGHT movie? I’d love to hear what you think!