Most of us are familiar with Mary Katherine Gallagher, Molly Shannon's popular Saturday Night Live character. She now joins the ranks of the many SNL sketch characters on the big screen, with disappointing results. Most of the sketches that have been made into movies suffer from a fairly simple problem: taking five minutes of sketch material and stretching it to an hour and a half. Some writers are able to develop the character and surround them with an interesting plot, but this film fails on both counts.
Superstar revolves around Mary Katherine Gallagher, a Catholic high school girl with big dreams and a serious lack of social skills. An outcast at her school, Mary dreams of getting kissed just like she sees in movies, and the only way she can envision it happening is by becoming a superstar. The object of her affection is Sky (Will Ferrell) the most popular guy in school, and the best dancer. Standing in Mary's path is Evian (Elaine Hendrix), Sky's girlfriend: blonde, bitchy, beautiful, and a great dancer. Mary's opportunity for stardom and popularity arises when her school hosts a talent competition, with the winner getting the chance to be an extra in an upcoming movie. In some comedies predictability is comforting, but in Superstar it turns into annoyance; anyone who has seen Flashdance knows the story already. The characters are fairly standard as well: Tom Green as Sky's sidekick, Helen (Emmy Laybourne) as Mary's nerdy friend, Slater (Harland Williams) as the cute mysterious guy with a Harley. Mary even has a wheelchair bound Grandmother. Will Ferrell's character Sky is the only one who offers something new.
Those familiar with SNL know how funny Ferrell is, but he is a surprisingly good actor as well. Sky is different from the normal 'Mr. Popularity' role, and the change is refreshing. Instead of being an insensitive jock, Sky is very feminine and sensitive, with hilarious results. When asked who was the most naturally funny comic on SNL, Shannon immediately said "Will" Molly Shannon wrote all the material for Superstar involving Mary Katherine Gallagher and Steve Koren (SNL, Seinfeld, and A Night at the Roxbury) created the rest of the story and the other characters. Shannon's talent shines through in the solo scenes; without having to worry about plot or other characters, her comedy is at its best. A scene with Mary talking to her own breasts is extremely funny, and shows the potential Superstar has. By the end of the movie though, Mary's character is too pathetic, and the audience ceases to care whether she gets kissed at all. The problem with Superstar is in the writing. As opposed to a good SNL spin-off, such as Wayne's World, Superstar takes on a cheesy sitcom feel as the movie drags on. By the end of the film the viewer is bombarded with Cosby show values on having dreams, being yourself, and knowing who your friends are.
Essentially, Steve Koren dilutes Shannon's edgy comedy to make it appeal to a wider audience, but in the process takes away the heart of the movie. When asked whether she wanted to do movies or television in the future, Shannon said it didn't matter because, "what's most important is working with good writers." Obviously the writing team for Superstar wasn't good enough. Kids in the Hall fans may see hope in Bruce McCulloch directing Superstar, but aside from a few dance scenes McCulloch cannot inject anything into the weak script. Shannon notes that "Bruce McCulloch is really into the robot...and would would keep adding scenes with the robot dance." It seems his addition is simply based on his membership in the Lorne Michaels SNL family.
Hopefully in the future Shannon can throw the SNL monkey off of her back and make comedies that challenge the viewers instead of simply making them drowsy.
Superstar revolves around Mary Katherine Gallagher, a Catholic high school girl with big dreams and a serious lack of social skills. An outcast at her school, Mary dreams of getting kissed just like she sees in movies, and the only way she can envision it happening is by becoming a superstar. The object of her affection is Sky (Will Ferrell) the most popular guy in school, and the best dancer. Standing in Mary's path is Evian (Elaine Hendrix), Sky's girlfriend: blonde, bitchy, beautiful, and a great dancer. Mary's opportunity for stardom and popularity arises when her school hosts a talent competition, with the winner getting the chance to be an extra in an upcoming movie. In some comedies predictability is comforting, but in Superstar it turns into annoyance; anyone who has seen Flashdance knows the story already. The characters are fairly standard as well: Tom Green as Sky's sidekick, Helen (Emmy Laybourne) as Mary's nerdy friend, Slater (Harland Williams) as the cute mysterious guy with a Harley. Mary even has a wheelchair bound Grandmother. Will Ferrell's character Sky is the only one who offers something new.
Those familiar with SNL know how funny Ferrell is, but he is a surprisingly good actor as well. Sky is different from the normal 'Mr. Popularity' role, and the change is refreshing. Instead of being an insensitive jock, Sky is very feminine and sensitive, with hilarious results. When asked who was the most naturally funny comic on SNL, Shannon immediately said "Will" Molly Shannon wrote all the material for Superstar involving Mary Katherine Gallagher and Steve Koren (SNL, Seinfeld, and A Night at the Roxbury) created the rest of the story and the other characters. Shannon's talent shines through in the solo scenes; without having to worry about plot or other characters, her comedy is at its best. A scene with Mary talking to her own breasts is extremely funny, and shows the potential Superstar has. By the end of the movie though, Mary's character is too pathetic, and the audience ceases to care whether she gets kissed at all. The problem with Superstar is in the writing. As opposed to a good SNL spin-off, such as Wayne's World, Superstar takes on a cheesy sitcom feel as the movie drags on. By the end of the film the viewer is bombarded with Cosby show values on having dreams, being yourself, and knowing who your friends are.
Essentially, Steve Koren dilutes Shannon's edgy comedy to make it appeal to a wider audience, but in the process takes away the heart of the movie. When asked whether she wanted to do movies or television in the future, Shannon said it didn't matter because, "what's most important is working with good writers." Obviously the writing team for Superstar wasn't good enough. Kids in the Hall fans may see hope in Bruce McCulloch directing Superstar, but aside from a few dance scenes McCulloch cannot inject anything into the weak script. Shannon notes that "Bruce McCulloch is really into the robot...and would would keep adding scenes with the robot dance." It seems his addition is simply based on his membership in the Lorne Michaels SNL family.
Hopefully in the future Shannon can throw the SNL monkey off of her back and make comedies that challenge the viewers instead of simply making them drowsy.