Saturday Night Live at 40 - A Brit tries to understand an American institution

Saturday Night Live to me is a lot like getting my car serviced.  I know that it's important, but I don't really understand it.

Saturday Night Live (SNL) is an American late night sketch and variety show which has just celebrated it's 40th year with an anniversary show.  The online hype leading up to it has been huge, with fans excitedly anticipating the return of past favourite cast members, their characters and recurring sketches.

Being British, SNL is not something I've grown up with.  To Americans it's as much a mainstay as Coronation Street is here - you would struggle to imagine it not being there, because it always has been.

Whilst I have not been brought up with SNL as a TV show I am aware of it's influence.  SNL characters have been put directly in to their own films, some wonderful examples being 'Wayne's World' and the utterly sublime 'Blues Brothers'.  Also, films made by former cast members with original characters, such as 'Anchorman' and 'Bridesmaids'.

To try and school myself then, I decided the watch the 40th anniversary special.  See if I could 'get' it.

It opens with Jimmy Fallon and Justin Timberlake doing a rap tribute to the various recurring characters that have appeared on the show.  To me, of course, this means nothing, as I don't know much of the history.

It soon becomes apparent that this is going to be a problem, as the anniversary special is all about the history.  This is a big nostalgia trip, but like looking through someone else's family photo albums, these memories may be treasured, but they are not meant for me.

Hey look, it's that guy who tried to destroy 'Community'

Following the rap opening we have the title sequence itself, with the cast listed in alphabetical order with the live band playing in the background.  As it's such a special show they have invited on a lot of people.  And I mean a lot!

The sequence goes on for so long its hilarious, but, it's not meant to be.  It's just giving everyone a doff of the cap, but it feels utterly surreal.  For those who have seen the viral spoof sitcom commercial "Too Many Cooks", it reminded me of that.

But where-as that is intentionally surreal, descending in to gory, murderous insanity, this has no point.  No punchline.  It's not a joke.  In the end you're just glad we get to 'Kristen Wiig' and the credits can end.

That is at the heart of the problem with this special.  It tries to fit everyone and everything in.  Instead of just doing a really good show including some old cast members, it descends in to a bit of a cluster fuck.

It reminds me of Comic Relief where, in a bid to garner an audience for the charity, they bring together a significant and diverse selection of celebrities and entertainers.  They are then mashed together, almost at random, in to different sketches and scenarios.  'Eastenders' meets 'Doctor Who', won't that be hilarious?

No.  It never is.

If anything, it's an insult.  If you want us to give money at least have the decency to actually try and produce something funny.  Instead it's just a mess.  Yes, lots of people may have given their time, but that means nothing.  It would be like having an entire breakfast menu all served on one plate.  An unappetising mess.

After the insane credit sequence we are greeted by the legendary Steve Martin.  He does something of an opening monologue that has a few good laughs in it.  He says about the different people who have hosted, then other former hosts comes on stage to ask why they are not being mentioned.

Again, this is quantity over quality.  What could be a funny bit is diluted to nothing as former host after former host enters the fray.  By the end of the bit, on stage with Steve Martin is Tom Hanks, Peyton Manning, Billy Chrystal, Chris Rock, Alec Baldwin, Miley Cyrus, Melissa McCarthy, Paul Simon and Paul McCartney.

One of the bits that is funny in that 'monologue' by Steve Martin is him remembering former cast members who have passed away, including Gilda Radnor, John Belushi and Jon Lovitz.  Cut to shot of Jon Lovitz sat in the audience gesturing 'what the hell?'

Very funny joke.  However, I wouldn't have known before watching that who Jon Lovitz is.  I recognise his face, because he has been in an awful lot of second rate comedy films.  It acted as a reminder of how many former cast members, instead of achieving greatness on a global scale, instead just produce mediocrity.  People like David Spade, Jim Belushi and, lest we forget... Rob fucking Schneider.

Martin Short with Maya Rudolph as Beyonce.  Genuinely hilarious.

But then, in terms of SNL history, many of those are still revered, even if their later work hasn't amounted to much.

During the special there was a passionate and heart felt piece from Chris Rock to introduce Eddie Murphy to the stage.  He explained how wonderful he was, how important he was, even saying that without Eddie Murphy SNL would probably have been cancelled.

With a introduction like that it isn't that surprising that Eddie Murphy walked out to receive a standing ovation.

After the crowd had settled he said some bland stuff about how good SNL was and how he enjoyed his time on the show, then there followed a delightfully cringe worthy bit where he says to the camera that he thought they were going to cut there.  He talks a bit more before it fades out.

Seriously, Chris Rock says you're the best and you can't even bust out one funny?

But then, why should it be surprising?  Eddie Murphy isn't funny, and hasn't been for well over 20 years.  Comedy is like a muscle, it needs to be exercised.  He was without doubt a great and influential act in his time, but he's spent too long just doing mediocre family movies.

Doug Stanhope, who is certainly a brilliant comedian, did a bit when he played in Manchester years ago about being compared to Bill Hicks.  He said of Hicks (as best as my memory serves):

"They say he was great because he never sold out, but who knows what would have happened if he had lived.  He might have sold out.  Just imagine all the great things we'd be saying about Eddie Murphy if he had died after doing Beverley Hills Cop 1."

Funny, sad and true, all at the same time.

One other annoying thing about the SNL 40th Special were the amount of montages they did.  The show was 3 and a half hours long!  If they had just done sketches and produced a proper show, they could easily have done it in 2 hours.

But then, these montages did serve a purpose.

They painted a broad picture about the effect this show must have had on generations of Americans.  Eddie Murphy may be very much a fallen star now, but without him on Prime time, would Chris Rock have considered comedy as an option?  Maybe not, and the same can be said of many comics over the years influenced by the SNL alumni.

As I said before, this show wasn't really for me.  This was someone else's family memories, not mine.

Did watching this 40th year anniversary special convert me in to a fan of the show?  No.

Did it get across how important SNL is for the development of comedy as an art form in America, and there-fore across the world?  Yes.

SNL picked up writers and performers from improv and sketch troupes such as Second City and beyond and gave them the best platform TV can give you.  This process developed them and on they went in to the wider world of TV and film.

Aside from the films already mentioned, former cast members have made 'Animal House', 'Austin Powers' and 'Trading Places'.  Many of the writers went on to write for 'The Simpsons'.  When it was good!

"It's right here Ray... It's looking at me..."

But, forget all that.  Without SNL would we have had 'Ghostbusters'?  If we are talking about treasured memories, there are few films more important to my childhood than that.

So, whilst the show has never directly been a part of my life, it's influence certainly has.  Happy 40th birthday Saturday Night Live!

(but maybe for the next anniversary special, turn it down a notch eh?)