Saturday Night Live - 25th Anniversary

Saturday Night Live - 25th Anniversary
by Beth McCarthy-Miller, James Signorelli

Saturday Night Live - 25th Anniversary
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Category: DVD
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DVD Cover Information

Actor: Alec Baldwin, Candice Bergen, Dan Aykroyd, David Bowie, Garth Brooks
Director: Beth McCarthy-Miller, James Signorelli
Brand: LIONS GATE HOME ENT.
Writer: Al Franken
Writer: Anne Beatts
Writer: Conan O'Brien
Writer: Dennis Miller
Writer: Jay Mohr
Writer: Marilyn Suzanne Miller
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Color, DVD, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 160 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-02-24
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Lions Gate

Movie Reviews of Saturday Night Live - 25th Anniversary

Movie Review: Not worth it, Buy the Best Of's
Summary: 3 Stars

This was an uneventful anniversary. If you were expecting an entertaining reunion or funny new material, forget it. SNL legend Bill Murray's opening of the show is very inspired and warm as he is joined by Dan Aykroyd, Laraine Newman and Garrett Morris, evoking the great spirit the show once had. But this is where the fun stops.

The rest of the show is just compilations cobbled together from most of the series. They're mostly punchlines without the set-up. So they're usually funny only if you've seen the actual sketches. And before each batch of clips you get a lot of 1 to 2 minute intros that aren't very funny.

The tributes to the deceased castmates are just ordinary sketches where they were particulary amusing. But they could have found more somber, funny and appropriate tributes to the likes of John Belushi, Phil Hartman, Chris Farley and Gilda Ratner.

Lorne Michaels made sure to showcase the revolutionary show's most popular sketches and alumni but deny us the groundbreaking or controversial moments. He also chose quantity over quality. Its just a fastpace flipbook of moments, nothing too reflective or entertaining.

Summary of Saturday Night Live - 25th Anniversary

SNL: 25TH ANNIVERSARY (DVD MOVIE)
Like many of the clips that make up the bulk of its content, the Saturday Night Live 25th Anniversary special suffers from that malady specific to almost every SNL sketch: it starts out brilliantly, loses steam about halfway through, then slowly but gamely limps to the finish line with occasional spurts of humor. This special (which actually marks the show's 24th anniversary, but never you mind about those small details!) gathered almost all of the Saturday Night Live alumni--well, the funny ones, anyway--for a celebration of the show's entrenchment in the cultural landscape. It's basically an occasion to show a lot of clips, ranging in time from the Coneheads to Mary Katherine Gallagher, put together in a sprightly, rapid-pace manner and interspersed with occasional live audience-interaction bits. An hysterically funny Bill Murray kicks things off as a lounge singer at an Indian reservation casino who hobnobs with the celebrity audience members; Tom Hanks, a fave guest host, offers up a lively Q&A session (with a dryly funny Christopher Walken, among others); and Billy Crystal revives his Fernando persona to great effect. Dan Aykroyd, Laraine Newman, and Steve Martin provide the best cast tribute, warmly remembering John Belushi while wryly offering up memorabilia for online auction, and Jan Hooks introduces a heartfelt short film featuring her and the late Phil Hartman. Other cast members, with the notable absence of Eddie Murphy and the surprise appearance of Norm MacDonald, pop up for various intros of clips--some are funny (Dennis Miller), some are not (Adam Sandler), some are obviously uncomfortable (David Spade), but at about the halfway mark it all starts to wear on you, like most tribute shows. Still, the stable of classic skits (including a surprisingly strong showing from the current cast) make this worth sticking around for. And at least this time, unlike during the live broadcasts, you can fast-forward through the unfunny parts. --Mark Englehart

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