Amazon.co.uk Review
Comedian Billy Crystal invested a life's worth of experience into his directorial debut, starring in and cowriting it as well.
Mr. Saturday Night is a fascinating alternate biography of the career he never had. From the 1920s to the 90s, the movie uses flashbacks to follow a comedian's turbulent journey from making the family laugh, to stardom, to retirement. Buddy Young Jr (Crystal) and his brother Stan (David Paymer) show us the decidedly unfunny behind-the-scenes family events that can bolster or destroy an act. It's unfortunate that the flip side of Buddy's comic face is a viciously cruel streak. Distanced from his daughter and with Stan's need to move on, the contemporary segments are tinged with tragedy. They're assisted immeasurably by some impressive old-age make-up (which so often fails), transforming Crystal into an unrecognisable cantankerous creature. The gags come thick and fast; there are numerous cameos and the good-natured tone of the movie make it universally appealing. If only more acts from
Saturday Night Live had been handled as well.
On the DVD: Mr. Saturday Night is a standard transfer with no frills in 4:3 and stereo. The extras package offers a series of mini-interviews that are interesting in themselves, but inexplicably repeated in the accompanying five-minute featurette. --Paul Tonks
From the Back Cover
Creating Buddy Young Jnr. ("the comics comic") for his special A Comics Line, Billy Crystal then spent a decade honing and moulding the character. A regular on Saturday Night Live, it soon became clear that Buddy needed more scope to grow
Starring Billy Crystal (Americas Sweethearts) and Academy Award winner Helen Hunt (As Good As It Gets) in this humorous and deeply touching tale as Buddy looks back on his career as a stand-up comic and his struggle to the middle!
Running Time: 113 mins approx.