Part of moving onto the future of 2025 movies is honoring what came before. Early months on the calendar make it easier to do just that, as the new stuff isn’t as prevalent just yet. Which means revisiting a recent favorite like director Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night is always in the cards, especially when the world of streaming makes it easier to do just that.
After doing just that, I wanted to share some feelings about what I consider one of 2024’s most uplifting movies. More specifically, I feel like it’s time to discuss why, no matter how many times I watch it, one piece of Saturday Night is bound to always work my tear ducts.
Saturday Night's Most Heartbreaking Scene Involves Gilda Radner Trying To Predict Her Own Future
If you haven’t seen Saturday Night, don’t worry: if you have a Netflix subscription you can correct that quick enough. It’ll help, because what I’m about to discuss is a pivotal scene in which Gilda Radner (Ella Hunt) and John Belushi (Matt Wood) share a moment of bittersweet existentialism.
The drama of Reitman and co-writer Gil Kenan’s script focuses on getting the first episode of what would eventually be called Saturday Night Live on the air. But one of the constant sticking points is how Belushi won’t sign his contract, and is willing to disappear at the mention of a razor.
As Lorne Michaels (Gabriel Labelle) searches frantically for his star, a tender moment sneaks in amongst the chaos. Upon finding John Belushi ice skating at 30 Rock’s rink, Radner waxes metaphysically about “nostalgia for a moment while you’re still in it.” Rather than try to describe this Saturday Night moment with mere words, I’ll instead include that moment for your review:
20 years is a long time, no matter the circumstance; but at this moment, that mile marker on the road of time is particularly bittersweet. Though we were still talking about John Belushi and Gilda Radner in 1995, their tragic histories would sadly take their genius from us way before their time.
Saturday Night's Ice Rink Scene Is A Bittersweet Contrast To John Belushi And Gilda Radner's Tragic Passings
What’s particularly brilliant about Saturday Night’s ice rink scene is the fact that Belushi and Radner are paired together at this moment. As one of the roughest cast members interacts with one of the sweetest, the fact that they’re bound by their untimely deaths makes it a moment of true sadness.
For John Belushi, the Blues Brothers star would die of an overdose in 1982 - a day after visiting the set for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Meanwhile, Gilda Radner would pass in 1989, due to Ovarian Cancer. For all of the pleasant times Saturday Night’s version of Gilda Radner saw ahead, for herself and John Belushi, none of what she predicted came to pass.
Historical record has helped reveal the truth behind Saturday Night’s key moments, and this is one of the stories that never happened. But that doesn’t matter, because I don’t think this historical dramatization of SNL’s inception was ever meant to be textbook accurate. While Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan did interview numerous surviving members of the cast and crew, it never seemed to be aimed at bringing “history to life.”
That being said, Saturday Night is a lot of things. It’s a love letter to New York. It’s a tribute to the chaos that live television brings. Above all else, it’s a chronicle of the first lineup of “Not Ready For Prime-Time Players” that made comedy history. And in this moment, it makes us wish more than ever that John and Gilda had made it to 1995, and beyond.
John Belushi and Gilda Radner were two of the practitioners who helped achieve it, not only making a dent in the world through their brief lives, but also in their ever present legacies. Saturday Night may not have landed among the class of 2025 Oscar nominees, but this scene is one of the reasons I think it’s one of 2024’s best movies.
Much like SNL’s 1975 debut, time will tell if the world catches onto the brilliance of Jason Reitman’s hat tip to the past. For now, I’d like to make a deal with the readers out there who are still skeptical about this underrated gem: go and watch this picture in the next week or so, and then we can meet back here in 20 years to discuss it.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
