Saturday Night vs A Prairie Home Companion: Saturday Night Companion

Stop singing that Whigfield hit from 1994 and instead join us for a look at Saturday Night, the brand new feature film comedy from Jason Reitman about the first broadcast of US television institution Saturday Night Live. With its fairly soft plot, character based comedy, constantly moving camera and huge ensemble cast it looks a lot like a Robert Altman movie - which is a lucky coincidence, because we’re comparing it to Altman’s final picture, 2006’s A Prairie Home Companion, a gentle drama about life backstage at a long running radio show. It’s one of those weeks where the two films have so much in common that if feels like we’ve watched the same movie twice. But which film stars a character with a face for radio? Which film has more than one connection to I Used To Be Funny? Which film has some of the best sound we’ve heard in a long time? And which film obeys one of the great rules of screenwriting?

Plus a judging position on a Sri Lankan popstar lookalike contest, a look back at running a real comedy club, a brief requiem for John Belushi, a nod to BBC Radio Four’s Loose Ends, a visit to a midwestern lake of dinosaur poo, and a new real estate opportunity out at sea from our sponsor. It must be Saturday Night!

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