sketch-comedy

Between the clock ticking down to air and a clattering jazz score, recorded live on set, this barely sits still. The casting is excellent. Gabriel LaBelle is very good as Lorne Michaels, but the standout is Cory Michael Smith, whose Chevy Chase manages to be charming and insufferable at once.

I can see why some found it self-indulgent, but for a supposed hagiography it spends a lot of time on the mess: Belushi won’t sign his contract, Chevy needles anyone within reach and Lorne is out of his depth for most of the night. Naturally pit’s Chevy who gets to say ‘Live from New York’.