Review of Mr. Saturday Night (1992) by Lee M — 01 Jun 2009

Tonight, I felt like getting in touch with my Jewish Borscht Belt roots and decided to check out a totally overlooked film from 1992: MR. SATURDAY NIGHT. Billy Crystal wrote and directed this film and, surprisingly, created a subtle and touching character study of a schlocky Catskills comedian who kills not only audiences but also his family, his respect, and his career. Crystal chronicles his spectacular rise and slow, sludgy sink to the very bottom.

Yes, you've seen this story before. Thousands and thousands of times. Yet what makes this unique are the deeply felt performances from both the movie's God: Crystal and, especially, my own God: David Paymer. Both actors do the best work of their careers in this film. Paymer is an absolute revelation, creating a closed-off individual who can only begin to express the burning passion firing up within him. Never in my wildest dreams did I think he would top his incredible work in the movie CARPOOL.

Crystal adds new dimensions to his standard public image as a wisecracking comedian. To this guy, everything is a wisecrack. His mind runs only in cheesy jokes. His brain constantly flaps his jaw, spewing out one-liners to everyone he meets and to everyone he loves. This is perhaps the one time I can say that a performance is like a never-ending comedy routine told by a giant pair of lips...and consider it a compliment.

The film also gets points for scoring the sadly departed genius that was Jerry Orbach for one scene.

Great, underrated film.