The Reel Review
The life and career of Chevy Chase, one of the original 1975 cast members of the now iconic TV sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live, whose insult jokes and deadpan delivery led to a successful movie career in the late 1970s and 80s, is chronicled in this “warts-and-all” documentary.
Fact: nearly everyone who has worked with Chase over the course of his career thinks he’s a difficult asshole, some even calling him homophobic, sexist and racist. Not only do we hear details about the assholery, we see it in real time as he insults his own documentary writer/director Marina Zenovich within the first few minutes of the film. It’s truly astounding.
Typically, a documentary is a warm, “This is Your Life” celebration by family, friends and former colleagues. The fact that so few participated in this film is telling. Even so, family and some celebrities do speak well of him – namely, Three Amigos co-star Martin Short, Ryan (why is he here?) Reynolds, Vacation movie franchise co-star Beverly D’Angelo and Goldie Hawn, who co-starred with Chase in 1978’s Foul Play and 1980’s Seems Like Old Times. Dan Ackroyd and Lorne Michaels are the only original SNL colleagues to appear, but even their comments aren’t so complimentary. The film’s third act explains the source of Chase’s difficult personality, detailing his struggles with drug addiction and depression which he says stemmed from a physically abusive childhood. The documentary ends with Chase’s beef about not being invited to perform in last year’s SNL 50th anniversary special, but ultimately this solidly-made but whiny documentary just makes us glad WE are not Chevy Chase.
REEL FACTS
• Steve Martin, Christopher Guest and the entire cast of the TV series Community (where Chase was fired in 2012 after four seasons for using the “n” word) were among those who have worked with Chase who declined to be interviewed for this film.
• I’m Chevy Chase and You’re Not writer/director Marina Zenovich is no stranger to dealing with complicated celebrities, having done documentaries about Lance Armstrong, Roman Polanski, and Richard Pryor.
• Chase got into a fistfight with Bill Murray in 1978 on the night he returned to host Saturday Night Live, which he had quit two years prior. Harold Ramis got the two to reconcile to co-star in the 1980 hit comedy Caddyshack.
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