saturday night live

[modage]

It's like, yes, the show underuses black comedians.  But that's not the reason the show is not funny.

[abuck1220]

if that guy really thinks morgan freeman was uncomfortable during that sketch, it's kinda hard for me to take anything he says seriously.

[MacGuffin]

Robert De Niro, Paul Rudd to Host 'SNL' in December
Source: THR

Oscar winner Jeff Bridges, Paul McCartney and Eminem also slated to appear on the live sketch comedy show.
Robert De Niro, Paul Rudd and Jeff Bridges are set to host Saturday Night Live in December, NBC announced Thursday.

De Niro, who can next be seen in Little Fockers (out Dec. 22), leads off the month on Dec. 4 with musical guest Diddy-Dirty Money. This would mark the Oscar winner's third time as host. Diddy-Dirty Money is Sean "P. Diddy" Combs' latest musical project.

Rudd returns as host the following week with musician Paul McCartney, who has appeared on the show twice before. Rudd will be promoting his latest project, How Do You Know (in theaters Dec. 17), co-starring Jack Nicholson and Reese Witherspoon.

Bridges returns to lead the show Dec. 18. He next stars in Tron: Legacy alongside Olivia Wilde and Garrett Hedlund, which opens the day before. Eminem is scheduled to perform "No Love" from the album Recovery with Lil Wayne.

Love and Other Drugs star Anne Hathaway hosts SNL on Nov. 20.

Previous hosts this season include: Scarlett Johansson, Jon Hamm, Jane Lynch, Amy Poehler, Bryan Cranston and Emma Stone.

[jerome]

can't wait to hear de niro say "ladies and gentlemen, diddy-dirty money!"

[Pubrick]

i can't wait to see de niro be awkwardly disappointed in himself for a whole hour.

YET AGAIN......

[polkablues]

God, De Niro was the worst host ever. Worse than Michael Phelps. I'm amazed they're bringing him back.

[ono]

If Cookie Monster hosted SNL...

[MacGuffin]

Jim Carrey to Host 'Saturday Night Live' in January
Source: THR

Jim Carrey will ring in the New Year on Saturday Night Live, the network announced Friday.

The I Love You Philip Morris star hosts the Jan. 8 episode and will be joined by musical guest The Black Keys, who will be making its first appearance.

Carrey last hosted SNL in 1996.

Jeff Bridges, who stars in Tron: Legacy and True Grit, closes out the year on SNL this weekend with musical guest Eminem.

[modage]

Jim Carrey to Host 'Saturday Night Live' in January

Every episode should be this episode.  Yes, some of the sketches were half-baked but it was funny and they were trying new things.  LOTS of new things!  Jim Carrey is great obviously and saved some of the weaker writing with great performances.  

The reason, for me, SNL isn't very good most of the time is that it feels SO lazy.  On an average episode every sketch involves either:

1. a reoccuring character.  (which is basically the same skit over and over)
2. a celebrity impression.  (usually a lot of them, usually random. and I'm not talking about the political sketches, I'm talking about "oh look, its Eddie Murphy" for no reason, for 15 seconds)

I'm more interested in the weird sketches that are actually sketches, where you're not sure where they're going.  Where you can actually be surprised by the outcome because it's not the same joke over and over.  And in this episode, more than any episode in recent memory, was full of them!  The only reoccuring sketch was Kenan's Grady Wilson and everything else was new and weird and good.  The non-political celebrity impressions were limited to Jim Carrey in the seance sketch which was good because it was ACTUALLY A PART OF WHAT MADE THE SKETCH FUNNY.  So, good job SNL.  I will prepare to be let down from here on out.

[polkablues]

The seance sketch would a good concept that would have been forgettable if not for the contributions of Jason Sudeikis.  "NOBODY DOES A THICKE!"

Jim Carrey always brings solid game to the show, if not quite as revelatory as this era's top three, Alec Baldwin, Jon Hamm, and Justin Timberlake.  Still, I'd rather he be hosting SNL than making more movies.

[modage]

I think he's better than those 3 because he has such range and mostly because he forced the writers into coming up with some new ideas.  The only reason he's not in the category with those 3 is because he hasn't hosted in 9 years.

[polkablues]

I disagree about the range.  Every character Jim Carrey plays, he plays Jim Carrey playing a character.

[cine]

The reason, for me, SNL isn't very good most of the time is that it feels SO lazy.  On an average episode every sketch involves either:

1. a reoccuring character.  (which is basically the same skit over and over)
2. a celebrity impression.  (usually a lot of them, usually random. and I'm not talking about the political sketches, I'm talking about "oh look, its Eddie Murphy" for no reason, for 15 seconds)

I'm more interested in the weird sketches that are actually sketches, where you're not sure where they're going.  Where you can actually be surprised by the outcome because it's not the same joke over and over.  And in this episode, more than any episode in recent memory, was full of them!  The only reoccuring sketch was Kenan's Grady Wilson and everything else was new and weird and good.  The non-political celebrity impressions were limited to Jim Carrey in the seance sketch which was good because it was ACTUALLY A PART OF WHAT MADE THE SKETCH FUNNY.  So, good job SNL.  I will prepare to be let down from here on out.

i'll chime in, as if that wasn't predictable.

the whole point of SNL is reoccurring characters and celeb impressions. so when you watch alumni auditions on youtube or dvd, this is why thats all you see. if you find that lazy of them, you've missed the entire premise of the SNL as a whole.

the reason they'll do a lot more creative stuff with the smarter, more versatile actors is because the cast and writers trust they can do the material. in addition to that, the hosts have influence over the content chosen and that's just what they favour as well when selecting the sketches with Lorne.

case in point: the merryville brothers sketch. you think the part Jim Carrey played could've been done by nascar driver Jeff Gordon? probably not, right? that's why they will have reoccurring characters. they're used as recognition for the audience but it's also so that a guest can be the foil for the characters that are well established on the show already.

i'm just defending the structure of the show. i'm not saying every sketch is funny by any means. i can be bored by a lot of it too. its built purposely to provide a little something for every kind of audience member. and its been that way for 36 years.

[Ravi]

Every episode should be this episode.  Yes, some of the sketches were half-baked but it was funny and they were trying new things.  LOTS of new things!  Jim Carrey is great obviously and saved some of the weaker writing with great performances.  

The reason, for me, SNL isn't very good most of the time is that it feels SO lazy.  On an average episode every sketch involves either:

1. a reoccuring character.  (which is basically the same skit over and over)
2. a celebrity impression.  (usually a lot of them, usually random. and I'm not talking about the political sketches, I'm talking about "oh look, its Eddie Murphy" for no reason, for 15 seconds)

I don't mind the celebrity impersonations when they are put to good use (like the Unstoppable parody), but its so lazy to just take some random celebrity and give them a talk show in which they act like an idiot in front of bewildered guests.

Recurring characters can be funny as long as the "character" doesn't only consist of some weird trait repeated over and over.  There needs to be something more to a recurring character than the fact that she has to one-up everything people say.  Some shows have used recurring characters with each iteration being different enough that it didn't feel like the same sketches over and over again.

Cine, for me the recurring sketches and celebrity impressions (besides the writing overall) are not conducive to watching every week.  For a little while, after not watching SNL for years, I DVR'd the show and fast-forward through 80% of episodes, which got depressing, so now I just DVR certain eps with certain guest hosts.  I also watch a lot of the digital shorts online.

The current cast is one the better ones they've had in a while, so I believe if they were allowed to write at their full potential, they'd produce a better show than they do now, even with the pressure to put on an hour of comedy every week.  Instead, the show feels dumbed down to some nebulous notion of "mass appeal," as if a funny show couldn't be popular as well.

I will say, however, that the Macgruber movie was undeniably hilarious.

[modage]

Agree on all counts.  Think the cast is great but the writing is not-so-much.  This weeks episode was great though.