Saturday, March 08, 2014
SNL -- MAR 8, 2014 -- HOST: LENA DUNHAM with musical guest THE NATIONAL
-- SNL --
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
MAR 8, 2014
HOST: LENA DUNHAM
with musical guest
THE NATIONAL
http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/
THE NATIONAL ON AMAZON
Here are links to some other SNL stories on QPORIT:
SNL-- JAN 18, 2014 -- HOST: DRAKE with musical guest DRAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2014/01/snl-jan-18-2014-host-drake-with-musical.html
SNL -- DEC 21, 2013 -- HOST: JIMMY FALLON with musical guest JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-21-2013-host-jimmy-fallon-with.html
SNL - DEC 14, 2013 -- HOST: JOHN GOODMAN with musical guest KINGS OF LEON
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-14-2013-host-john-goodman-with.htm
SNL - DEC 7, 2013 -- HOST: PAUL RUDD with musical guest ONE DIRECTION
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-7-2013-host-paul-rudd-with.html
SNL - NOV 16, 2013 - LADY GAGA with musical guest LADY GAGA
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/11/snl-nov-16-2013-lady-gaga-with-musical.html
SNL -- FEB 9, 2013 -- HOST: JUSTIN BIEBER with musical guest... JUSTIN BIEBER
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/02/snl-feb-9-2013-host-justin-bieber-with.html
SNL -- JAN 26, 2013 -- ADAM LEVINE with KENDRICK LAMAR (Great show! & lots of clips!!)
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/01/snl-jan-26-2013-adam-levine-with.html
SNL -- JAN 19, 2013 --JENNIFER LAWRENCE with THE LUMINEERS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/01/snl-jan-19-2013-jennifer-lawrence-with.html
SNL -- DEC 15, 2012 -- MARTIN SHORT WITH PAUL MCCARTNEY
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/12/snl-dec-15-2012-martin-short-with-paul.html
SNL -- DEC 8, 2012 -- JAMIE FOXX WITH NE-YO
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/12/snl-dec-8-2012-jamie-foxx-with-ne-yo.html
SNL -- NOV 10, 2012 -- ANNE HATHAWAY WITH RIHANNA
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/11/snl-nov-10-2012-anne-hathaway-with.html
SNL -- OCT 20, 2012 -- BRUNO MARS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/10/snl-oct-20-2012-bruno-mars.html
SNL -- SEP 22, 2012 -- JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT WITH MUMFORD & SONS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/09/snl-sep-22-2012-joseph-gordon-levitt.html
SNL -- SEP 15, 2012 – SEASON PREMIERE! -- SETH MACFARLANE WITH FRANK OCEAN
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/09/snl-sep-15-2012-season-premiere-seth.html
Lena Dunham, of course, is the creator and star of GIRLS on HBO.
The National is a Brooklyn based, indie rock band.
RECAP:
This was a better than average show. Lena Dunham was quite excellent in her ability to play diverse characters honestly, performing unusually complex dialog without seeming to read it much at all, doing impressions, and appearing in a huge number of sketches.
Had all the scripts been at the same level it would have been a great show.
However, one sketch in particular was mean spirited and unpleasant misandy (that's like misogyny, but against men). Had the genders been reversed, the outcry would have been strong. The sketch wasn't funny, either.
COLD OPEN - Obama gets Liam Neeson (the real one), a man outraged that Crimea could be "taken," to craft a Hollywood image for Obama -- riding horseback bare chested, fighting a bear bare handed -- to counter Putin's press photos. (I call it the Obamimage.) Amusing. Short. Always fun when there's a surprise guest. (NOTE -- No surprise: Liam's NON-STOP ran several ads during the show.)
MONOLOG: Amusing riffs on people coming up to Lena and asking questions or talking about sex.
SINGING IN THE CAR: A strange sketch. Four people in the car singing. Whenever Lena sings the GPS voice interrupts and gives traffic directions. When they reach their destination, a fifth person, bound and gagged, is revealed. Amusing, but it didn't make any sense.
SCANDAL: Hilarious sketch parody of Scandal. The team dispatches every task with unbelievable efficiency and speed. Lena, as a new team member, just wants simple answers to her follow-up questions: For example, she is supposed to go to Mexico, plant a bug, and return in a few hours; she just wants to know how to get the ticket.
MTV2 - WHAT'S POPPIN? : A bad rap group on a bad show about rap (in a bad sketch).
ADAM AND EVE: Lena and Adam Driver in a preview for a prequel to NOAH, "ADAM & EVE" (a film about Adam & Eve, of course, but with a modern sense of trying to understand the situation). As one reviewer says, "There's a lot of nudity, even for Adam & Eve." A bit confusing, but gutsy, interesting, and funny.
WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING, YOU'RE BEING CRAZY: Two Jr High girls doing the stupid talk show. Some cute and funny moments (including another guest: Jon Hamm), but it made even less sense than is usual for this type of sketch.
AMY POEHLER in an efficient, short and funny. (real) commercial for Old Navy.
THE NATIONAL: One of the better musical interludes. They have a nice sound. Mostly kinda soft, except for a couple moments at the end. A highlight was when they turned an instrument upside down and tapped it on the floor, to create a kind of percussive yet musical sound.
WEEKEND UPDATE: One new, one old anchor. The jokes were sharp. MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY was hilarious. But VLADIMIR PUTIN'S CHILDHOOD FRIENDS (with a guesting Fred Armison) was incoherent.
JEWELRY PARTY: I hated this sketch. It spoiled the show. It was not funny. It was mean spirited, and seriously unpleasant misandry.
PIMPIN' PIMPIN' PIMPIN: The THIRD sketch in this evening built around a bad interview/variety/TV/web show. The better moments included an ad for "weed that your hair smokes so it can relax." Liza Minnelli was very good; Harrison Ford was fair.
E-MAILS: An amusing parody of how office e-mails can be misused. There was a great sketch idea here that, sadly -- in the writing, directing, and acting -- didn't quite get realized into something better than a pretty good sketch.
The show seemed to almost go over its time: I don't think they had time for the whole usual list of credits after the last batch of commercials.
All in all, "amusing" seems to be the word that describes most of the sketches. But ADAM AND EVE and SCANDAL were clear highlights. And Lena was a fine Host, taking on more sketches -- and more complex sketches -- than most Hosts, and performing them very well.
LINKSThis was a better than average show. Lena Dunham was quite excellent in her ability to play diverse characters honestly, performing unusually complex dialog without seeming to read it much at all, doing impressions, and appearing in a huge number of sketches.
Had all the scripts been at the same level it would have been a great show.
However, one sketch in particular was mean spirited and unpleasant misandy (that's like misogyny, but against men). Had the genders been reversed, the outcry would have been strong. The sketch wasn't funny, either.
COLD OPEN - Obama gets Liam Neeson (the real one), a man outraged that Crimea could be "taken," to craft a Hollywood image for Obama -- riding horseback bare chested, fighting a bear bare handed -- to counter Putin's press photos. (I call it the Obamimage.) Amusing. Short. Always fun when there's a surprise guest. (NOTE -- No surprise: Liam's NON-STOP ran several ads during the show.)
MONOLOG: Amusing riffs on people coming up to Lena and asking questions or talking about sex.
SINGING IN THE CAR: A strange sketch. Four people in the car singing. Whenever Lena sings the GPS voice interrupts and gives traffic directions. When they reach their destination, a fifth person, bound and gagged, is revealed. Amusing, but it didn't make any sense.
SCANDAL: Hilarious sketch parody of Scandal. The team dispatches every task with unbelievable efficiency and speed. Lena, as a new team member, just wants simple answers to her follow-up questions: For example, she is supposed to go to Mexico, plant a bug, and return in a few hours; she just wants to know how to get the ticket.
MTV2 - WHAT'S POPPIN? : A bad rap group on a bad show about rap (in a bad sketch).
ADAM AND EVE: Lena and Adam Driver in a preview for a prequel to NOAH, "ADAM & EVE" (a film about Adam & Eve, of course, but with a modern sense of trying to understand the situation). As one reviewer says, "There's a lot of nudity, even for Adam & Eve." A bit confusing, but gutsy, interesting, and funny.
WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING, YOU'RE BEING CRAZY: Two Jr High girls doing the stupid talk show. Some cute and funny moments (including another guest: Jon Hamm), but it made even less sense than is usual for this type of sketch.
AMY POEHLER in an efficient, short and funny. (real) commercial for Old Navy.
THE NATIONAL: One of the better musical interludes. They have a nice sound. Mostly kinda soft, except for a couple moments at the end. A highlight was when they turned an instrument upside down and tapped it on the floor, to create a kind of percussive yet musical sound.
WEEKEND UPDATE: One new, one old anchor. The jokes were sharp. MATTHEW MCCONAUGHEY was hilarious. But VLADIMIR PUTIN'S CHILDHOOD FRIENDS (with a guesting Fred Armison) was incoherent.
JEWELRY PARTY: I hated this sketch. It spoiled the show. It was not funny. It was mean spirited, and seriously unpleasant misandry.
PIMPIN' PIMPIN' PIMPIN: The THIRD sketch in this evening built around a bad interview/variety/TV/web show. The better moments included an ad for "weed that your hair smokes so it can relax." Liza Minnelli was very good; Harrison Ford was fair.
E-MAILS: An amusing parody of how office e-mails can be misused. There was a great sketch idea here that, sadly -- in the writing, directing, and acting -- didn't quite get realized into something better than a pretty good sketch.
The show seemed to almost go over its time: I don't think they had time for the whole usual list of credits after the last batch of commercials.
All in all, "amusing" seems to be the word that describes most of the sketches. But ADAM AND EVE and SCANDAL were clear highlights. And Lena was a fine Host, taking on more sketches -- and more complex sketches -- than most Hosts, and performing them very well.
LENA DUNHAM ON WIKIPEDIA
LENA DUNHAM ON IMDB
LENA DUNHAM ON AMAZON
THE NATIONAL ON WIKIPEDIA
Here are links to some other SNL stories on QPORIT:
SNL -- JAN 25, 2014 -- HOST: JONAH HILL with musical guest BASTILLE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2014/01/snl-jan-25-2014-host-jonah-hill-with.htmlSNL-- JAN 18, 2014 -- HOST: DRAKE with musical guest DRAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2014/01/snl-jan-18-2014-host-drake-with-musical.html
SNL -- DEC 21, 2013 -- HOST: JIMMY FALLON with musical guest JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-21-2013-host-jimmy-fallon-with.html
SNL - DEC 14, 2013 -- HOST: JOHN GOODMAN with musical guest KINGS OF LEON
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-14-2013-host-john-goodman-with.htm
SNL - DEC 7, 2013 -- HOST: PAUL RUDD with musical guest ONE DIRECTION
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/12/snl-dec-7-2013-host-paul-rudd-with.html
SNL - NOV 16, 2013 - LADY GAGA with musical guest LADY GAGA
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/11/snl-nov-16-2013-lady-gaga-with-musical.html
SNL -- OCT 5, 2013 -- HOST: MILEY CYRUS with musical guest MILEY CYRUS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/10/snl-oct-5-2013-host-miley-cyrus-with.html
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/10/snl-oct-5-2013-host-miley-cyrus-with.html
SNL -- MAY 18, 2013 -- HOST: BEN AFFLECK with musical guest KANYE WEST -- SEASON FINALE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/05/snl-may-18-2013-host-ben-affleck-with.html
SNL -- MAY 11, 2013 -- HOST: KRISTEN WIIG with musical guest... VAMPIRE WEEKEND (Fun Show!)
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/05/snl-may-11-2013-host-kristen-wiig-with.html
SNL -- APR 13, 2013 -- HOST: VINCE VAUGHN with musical guest... MIGUEL
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/04/snl-apr-13-2013-host-vince-vaughn-with.html
SNL -- MAR 9, 2013 -- HOST: JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE with musical guest... JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/03/snl-mar-9-2013-host-justin-timberlake.html
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/05/snl-may-18-2013-host-ben-affleck-with.html
SNL -- MAY 11, 2013 -- HOST: KRISTEN WIIG with musical guest... VAMPIRE WEEKEND (Fun Show!)
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/05/snl-may-11-2013-host-kristen-wiig-with.html
SNL -- APR 13, 2013 -- HOST: VINCE VAUGHN with musical guest... MIGUEL
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/04/snl-apr-13-2013-host-vince-vaughn-with.html
SNL -- MAR 9, 2013 -- HOST: JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE with musical guest... JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/03/snl-mar-9-2013-host-justin-timberlake.html
SNL -- FEB 9, 2013 -- HOST: JUSTIN BIEBER with musical guest... JUSTIN BIEBER
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/02/snl-feb-9-2013-host-justin-bieber-with.html
SNL -- JAN 26, 2013 -- ADAM LEVINE with KENDRICK LAMAR (Great show! & lots of clips!!)
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/01/snl-jan-26-2013-adam-levine-with.html
SNL -- JAN 19, 2013 --JENNIFER LAWRENCE with THE LUMINEERS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2013/01/snl-jan-19-2013-jennifer-lawrence-with.html
SNL -- DEC 15, 2012 -- MARTIN SHORT WITH PAUL MCCARTNEY
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/12/snl-dec-15-2012-martin-short-with-paul.html
SNL -- DEC 8, 2012 -- JAMIE FOXX WITH NE-YO
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/12/snl-dec-8-2012-jamie-foxx-with-ne-yo.html
SNL -- NOV 10, 2012 -- ANNE HATHAWAY WITH RIHANNA
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/11/snl-nov-10-2012-anne-hathaway-with.html
SNL -- OCT 20, 2012 -- BRUNO MARS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/10/snl-oct-20-2012-bruno-mars.html
SNL -- SEP 22, 2012 -- JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT WITH MUMFORD & SONS
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/09/snl-sep-22-2012-joseph-gordon-levitt.html
SNL -- SEP 15, 2012 – SEASON PREMIERE! -- SETH MACFARLANE WITH FRANK OCEAN
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2012/09/snl-sep-15-2012-season-premiere-seth.html
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Labels: Lena Dunham, Saturday Night Live, SNL, The National
