"Saturday Night," the movie by director Jason Reitman about the madness that immediately preceded the premiere of SNL in 1975, is now in theaters.
Everyone (especially true fans of the show) should avoid this poorly made, genuinely awful, and wildly inaccurate farcical nonsense film at all costs.
However, since it has generated some buzz, I thought I'd share a ranked list of the 11 "official" Saturday Night Live movies (yes, there were only 11, and 2 of them were sequels).
Awhile back, I went over these movies in detail on an episode of my podcast, "That Show Hasn't Been Funny in Years: An SNL Podcast."
These SNL-inspired movies were based on sketches directly from SNL or characters created by SNL writers or cast members specifically for the show. Some are classics, some are not, and some are underappreciated gems that deserve a second look.
In the podcast, I share extensive details on these films, their great casts, and the interesting directors. You can hear some cool clips and nice surprises, like how one of the movies was reportedly a favorite of Jack Lemmon's!
Below is a list of these movies (in order of preference) with a brief word about why I liked or disliked each. For more, check out the full episode, "The 11 'Official' SNL Movies."
SNL MOVIES RANKED
This is by far the best film in this category. It's tender, hilarious, authentically moving, and a huge surprise. It's a great movie.
2) MACGRUBER
Batshit crazy and unbelievably funny. Will Forte is a comic genius.
I've never been crazy about this movie (you can hear why on the podcast), but I can't deny that it is a classic, even though it's not that great.
4) SUPERSTAR
I adore Molly Shannon and I adore Mary Katherine Gallagher. Flawed? Yep. Often hilarious? OH YEAH!
Very funny and very underrated. It falls apart in the final 20 minutes but until then... it's gold.
Mike Myers and Wayne's World have never been my bag. This has a few laughs, but this is where the list starts to get bad.
Love the character. Love Tim Meadows. This is not good, but it does have a couple of moments.
8) CONEHEADS
It was a great sketch on the show, but it was a terrible movie that was roughly 25 years too late to matter. It's pretty brutal.
I didn't like the original, but this thing makes it look like "Duck Soup." Virtually unwatchable.
Except for the terrific concert scenes in the final third, this movie is absolutely horrible.
11) IT'S PAT
An abomination.
Give the episode a listen, and let me know what you think. While you're there, feel free to check out the other 90 or so episodes and subscribe. There's tons of "Saturday Night Live" fun, information, and entertainment packed into those shows.
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Thanks again!