Movies based on "Saturday Night Live" characters have a checkered history. They range from a cult hit ("The Blues Brothers") and super smash ("Wayne's World") to many misfires ("Coneheads", "A Night at the Roxbury", "It's Pat" and "Stuart Saves His Family"). Obviously, what plays well in short sketches cannot necessarily be sustained for a feature-length film.
Now comes "Superstar", which revolves around Molly Shannon's "SNL" character Mary Katherine Gallagher, a hyperactive Catholic schoolgirl who moves within her own mental force field. This character is definitely an acquired taste and, even then, unlikely to appeal to enough people for "Superstar", indifferently directed by Bruce McCulloch, to achieve more than cult status during its theatrical exposure. Mary, alas, appears destined to return swiftly to the small screen in video and various TV ancillary markets.
Shannon says she created the character on the spot during an acting class improv. What may have been instantly funny at that moment of inspiration -- and has been sustained throughout Mary's "SNL" career -- has never been examined in enough depth to qualify as a movie character.
Mary trips over objects, kisses sign posts and trees and is generally -- and for good reason -- disliked by her schoolmates. But what exactly is the joke here?
Presumably, SNL Studios hopes viewers will identify with Mary's teenage struggles to carve her own niche in the world. But when actors well past 30 -- including Shannon -- are playing teens and the "SNL" imprint decrees a certain semi-hipness, this won't wash. The SNL gang wants Mary to be cool and uncool at the same time.
The story concocted by Steven Wayne Koren gives Mary one goal in life: to be kissed. When Catholic Teen magazine sponsors a talent contest at her school with the grand prize being a trip to Hollywood to be an extra in a movie, she somehow believes this represents the opportunity to make her dream come true.
Clearly, this is barely enough plot to stretch over the 82-minute running time. While the filmmakers throw in lame musical numbers and movie parodies to pad the material, Mary drifts aimlessly through often repetitive scenes.
Will Ferrell as the school heartthrob and Elaine Hendrix as its Miss Popularity prefer broad acting styles more at home in TV sketches. But Harland Williams as the school psycho, Mark McKinney as its principal and Emmy Laybourne as a gawky basketball star all deliver characters with some depth.
And the presence of Glynis Johns adds a touch of class to any movie. But what a shame these filmmakers think that the utterance of the f-word by an actor of her stature is hilariously funny.
Below-the-line credits demonstrate a flair for the ordinary.
SUPERSTAR
Paramount Pictures
SNL Studios
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Director: Bruce McCulloch
Writer: Steven Wayne Koren
Based on a character created by: Molly Shannon
Executive producers: Robert K. Weiss, Susan Cavan
Director of photography: Walt Lloyd
Production designer: Gregory Keen
Music: Michael Gore
Co-producers: Erin Fraser, Steven Wayne Koren
Editor: Malcolm Campbell
Color/stereo
Cast:
Mary Katherine Gallagher: Molly Shannon
Sky: Will Ferrell
Evian: Elaine Hendrix
Slater: Harland Williams
Father Ritley: Mark McKinney
Grandma: Glynis Johns
Helen: Emmy Laybourne
Running time -- 82 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Now comes "Superstar", which revolves around Molly Shannon's "SNL" character Mary Katherine Gallagher, a hyperactive Catholic schoolgirl who moves within her own mental force field. This character is definitely an acquired taste and, even then, unlikely to appeal to enough people for "Superstar", indifferently directed by Bruce McCulloch, to achieve more than cult status during its theatrical exposure. Mary, alas, appears destined to return swiftly to the small screen in video and various TV ancillary markets.
Shannon says she created the character on the spot during an acting class improv. What may have been instantly funny at that moment of inspiration -- and has been sustained throughout Mary's "SNL" career -- has never been examined in enough depth to qualify as a movie character.
Mary trips over objects, kisses sign posts and trees and is generally -- and for good reason -- disliked by her schoolmates. But what exactly is the joke here?
Presumably, SNL Studios hopes viewers will identify with Mary's teenage struggles to carve her own niche in the world. But when actors well past 30 -- including Shannon -- are playing teens and the "SNL" imprint decrees a certain semi-hipness, this won't wash. The SNL gang wants Mary to be cool and uncool at the same time.
The story concocted by Steven Wayne Koren gives Mary one goal in life: to be kissed. When Catholic Teen magazine sponsors a talent contest at her school with the grand prize being a trip to Hollywood to be an extra in a movie, she somehow believes this represents the opportunity to make her dream come true.
Clearly, this is barely enough plot to stretch over the 82-minute running time. While the filmmakers throw in lame musical numbers and movie parodies to pad the material, Mary drifts aimlessly through often repetitive scenes.
Will Ferrell as the school heartthrob and Elaine Hendrix as its Miss Popularity prefer broad acting styles more at home in TV sketches. But Harland Williams as the school psycho, Mark McKinney as its principal and Emmy Laybourne as a gawky basketball star all deliver characters with some depth.
And the presence of Glynis Johns adds a touch of class to any movie. But what a shame these filmmakers think that the utterance of the f-word by an actor of her stature is hilariously funny.
Below-the-line credits demonstrate a flair for the ordinary.
SUPERSTAR
Paramount Pictures
SNL Studios
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Director: Bruce McCulloch
Writer: Steven Wayne Koren
Based on a character created by: Molly Shannon
Executive producers: Robert K. Weiss, Susan Cavan
Director of photography: Walt Lloyd
Production designer: Gregory Keen
Music: Michael Gore
Co-producers: Erin Fraser, Steven Wayne Koren
Editor: Malcolm Campbell
Color/stereo
Cast:
Mary Katherine Gallagher: Molly Shannon
Sky: Will Ferrell
Evian: Elaine Hendrix
Slater: Harland Williams
Father Ritley: Mark McKinney
Grandma: Glynis Johns
Helen: Emmy Laybourne
Running time -- 82 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 10/8/1999
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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