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S50.E12: Timothée Chalamet

Trini

By Trini
in Saturday Night Live

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JeanJean

JeanJean

(edited)

This has been  a pretty fun show. 

Update was mostly on fire. I always like Ego and I enjoyed Andrew's bit.

The dog park sketch was funny, especially Kenan's bit.

I thought the podcast/doctor sketch was really inventive. I 

I find it hard to watch the comic version of trump, as there's nothing remotely humorous about him.

Edited by JeanJean
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Galileo908

Galileo908

Cold Open: We almost had a Hamilton sketch with Lin-Manuel, and...yeah, shit sucks. I do enjoy the fourth wall breaks of mentioning Lin being frozen on stage, or how no one in the cast can pull off Pete Hegsheth. "Plenty of Mark Zuckerberg options, though."

3 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

I don’t hate JAJ. I just feel that any impersonations of You-Know-Who follow a rule similar to the Weeping Angels on Doctor Who. Much as any interpretation of an Angel can become an Angel in itself, any portrayal of Trump becomes as detestable as the real thing. Does that make sense?

He has that "I don't like this either" tone in his performance these days. He, like all of us, hoped he'd be free from it.

Monologue: Yes, Gary Busey is the only other non-singer host to also be the musical guest. I liked the award snub bit, and how Kenan won the fake award anyway. 

Bungee Class: I was just thinking that no one flies on harnesses on this show anymore. I was watching old Chris Farley bits. I wasn't feeling this until the Jimmy Carter pose. That one got me.

Medcast: A doctor's appointment that feels like a podcast to get men to visit the doctor is an actual good idea. 

New Barista Training: Timothee sounded too much like Adam Sandler. I get he was channeling a Def Jam comic, but the sketch was saved when Kenan's character came in.

Oedipal Arrangements: Mikey Day playing a cucked husband, name a more iconic duo. Frankly, I feel like this didn't get creepy enough. 

AI Textbook: I did like the intentional stilted delivery of the AI, but I wasn't feeling it. 

Timothee Chalamet 1: Huh, Adam Sandler was there. Well, that was certainly...different. The poor mic was too high up for him. And I couldn't even understand him during the second half.

WU: "This a dark Update" understatement of the year. Ego's bit was great. I got a kick out of Dismukes's puppet dad.

Jost's childish "NO!" at the oatmeal joke got me hard. Also loved the Pop Culture Jeopardy reference.

Dog Park: Huh, people as dogs sketch. Kenan's bit killed me. 

Timothee Chalamet 2: Properly channeling Bob Dylan in this one. Much better than the first one.

Grandma: Sarah Squirm playing an old lady who has a heart attack and Timothee Chalamet plays a doctor who performs CPR by farting in her face. She definitely wrote this one.

SNL Animated Short: This was fun, people pitching things to God. Nice, creepy artwork on the kangaroo babies. And the frog bit was cute.

Weird SNL came to play, but I think there were more misses than hits. See you in February for the 50th anniversary show.

3 minutes ago, JeanJean said:

I find it hard to watch the comic version of trump, as there's nothing remotely humorous about him.

It would be funny if he wasn't the president, and then was almost the president again, and then became president again.

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Dirge

Dirge

(edited)

i thought this was pretty good. I liked the beginning where Timothée still lost the award. Of course I wish Lin-Manuel Miranda had had more to do. Did Timothée mispronounce his name at the end, or have I been mispronouncing it?

Locally we had SO many AAA commercials! I don't know if they were national. 

Edited by Dirge
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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

I can't do the political cold opens so I skipped that and the first part of the weekend update.

Overall, I enjoyed the episode.  It was weird but I appreciate weird.  The medcast skit was clever. 

I loved the chaos of the bungee jump exercise class because you just didn't know where anyone would go.  Chalamet's wig was amazing.

I liked the just slight offness of the AI skit because that is how AI often is.  It seems like it makes sense, but the more you dive in or know about a subject, the more subtle inaccuracies start to jump out. 

I thought Timothee did a good job as a musical guest but the sound system, like it often is on SNL, was wonky.  For both performances, the first part came out pretty clear, but then something happened where it sounded like the sound started to get muffled, and it felt more equipment-related than voice-related.  I wouldn't be surprised if the performances, once uploaded, come out clearer than they were in the broadcast.  I'm kind of surprised they let him essentially do 3 Dylan songs that weren't his most well-known. 

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mikem

mikem

My big issue with JAJ's Trump impression is that it's really more of an imitation of Trump than a comic version of him.  JAJ is very talented, and his Trump sounds and acts just like the real thing.  The problem is that the real thing is Not Funny.  At. All.   Alec Baldwin's Trump was not a particularly impressive imitation, but Baldwin was great at giving us a comically exaggerated version of Trump that fit right into a comedy like SNL.  

How did Timothée Chalamet pronounce Lin-Manuel Miranda's name at the end?  Miranda says his own name several times in this clip:  

Did Chalamet say it the same way?

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MediaZone4K

MediaZone4K

(edited)

JAJ is the best Trump imitation on TV since since the real man started running for president in 2015. Miles ahead of Alec Baldwin.. I appreciate that JAJ doesn't give an over done caricature and gives a close imitation. It makes a performance less corny.

I know people have said they don't like the comedic version because the real Trump is not funny, but for years Saturday Night Live has done comedic sketches of villainous historic figures like Saddam Hussein. IMO sketches like these are needed because satire allows us to hold up a mirror to our leaders and takes away the power they have over our minds.

Obviously many of Trump's policy matters are not funny, but the man himself does so many exaggerated gestures and says so many crazy things it's hard not to shake your head and laugh sometimes.

Edited by MediaZone4K
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peeayebee

peeayebee

I didn't notice how Timothee pronounced 'Miranda.' Can someone type it phonetically for me?

I really want the writing about Trump to be harder. There are always some good lines, like when he said Barron's always bumping his head on doorjambs, like when Gandalf went to Bilbo's house. Also, saying the Nazi salute that Musk did was a cross betw "Hi" and "Hello", so "We're calling it a heil." But I wish the writers would work in some jokes that also address the horrible things Trump is doing. It might be challenging to be funny AND informative about what's going on, but it can be done. Frankly, I would prefer they err on the side of not-so-funny, and more truth-telling.

The monologue was ok. I liked all the clips, real and edited, of him hearing he didn't win the awards. BTW, what did Kenan say before he left the stage?

Are there really workouts with bungee cords? I can see that being fun, and actually when they were doing the frog hop (or whatever it was), it looked like it would be a good workout. But overall, this wasn't much. And the joke about Jimmy Carter was appropriately groaned at. Yes, too soon. If they had to make such a joke, they could have picked someone not so beloved. Kissinger, Epstein, Anita Bryant.

The Medcast sketch was good. The way the two guys spoke was excellent, and I loved that they had six fingers.

I kind of liked the barista training one. Timothee was amusing.

In WU I loved when Colin responded, "NO!" after reporting that you can live longer by eating oatmeal. I also liked when Che said egg prices were caused by new laws in red states forcing chickens to carry their eggs to term. I thought Ego's bit was pretty good. I'm not all that knowledgeable about black hair and extensions, but this seemed fact-based and also funny. I wonder if the prices for hair extensions really will go up because of tariffs. 

I wasn't so enamored of Andrew's puppet bit. It went on too long.

I liked the dog sketch. Bowen's zoomie bit was funny. Loved Kenan's dog eating grass, throwing up, and continuing to eat and throw up. Also the dogs stopping suddenly and just staring at whatever made a noise was great. And the pom (Marcello?) barking about getting up on the bench by himself was funny.

Grandma's birthday? Meh. The best part was Kenan. Oh, and I loved that Mikey said his birthday present every year was giving her a kiss at 3:15 because that's what time it was when he first kissed her. Awww.

I didn't particularly like the animated short. I think it would have been much better as a live sketch.

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SoMuchTV

SoMuchTV

(edited)
1 hour ago, peeayebee said:

I didn't notice how Timothee pronounced 'Miranda.' Can someone type it phonetically for me?

I think the question was about the “Manuel” part - he pronounced it like a manual transmission, where we usually hear it pronounced man-WELL. 
 

My station cut off the beginning of the animated sketch. Did anyone catch the first title card?

Edited by SoMuchTV
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Dirge

Dirge

3 hours ago, peeayebee said:

The way the two [AI] guys spoke was excellent, and I loved that they had six fingers.

Oh yes, how did I forget this? The way AI can't do fingers correctly! 

As others have said, yes, I was questioning the way that Chalamet said "Manuel" with 3 syllables. I guess that in the rush to give credit to everyone, he probably just read it that way off a cue card. 

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

4 hours ago, peeayebee said:

It might be challenging to be funny AND informative about what's going on, but it can be done. Frankly, I would prefer they err on the side of not-so-funny, and more truth-telling.

The problem is I don't think they do either thing particularly well in these bits.

There have been many examples of SNL's portrayal of a president that made the president look worse than he actually was in terms of physical or cognitive ability.  At best it comes off as a neutral portrayal. This one does feel like it's overall more of a positive depiction than the reality. 

 

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DEL901

DEL901

(edited)
45 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

The problem is I don't think they do either thing particularly well in these bits.

There have been many examples of SNL's portrayal of a president that made the president look worse than he actually was in terms of physical or cognitive ability.  At best it comes off as a neutral portrayal. This one does feel like it's overall more of a positive depiction than the reality. 

 

Like with all those cheap shots they took when Biden was leaving office.   He was a good man trying his best.  And trying to be president for everyone not just those who voted for him.  That always left a bad taste.  Trump just looks like a buffon, not the threat to US democracy he is.  

Edited by DEL901
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iarwain

iarwain

1 hour ago, peeayebee said:

Yes, I understand. It's just that sometimes I feel like people are seeing Trump as a silly clown rather than a threat to democracy.

That is your opinion, and not one held by everyone.  I doubt that whether or not people think Trump is a threat to democracy is influenced by how he is portrayed on a comedy show. 

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iarwain

iarwain

29 minutes ago, ruby24 said:

It definitely could be. Maybe not this one, but in general, media portrayals and depictions matter.

Okay, but I find the idea that a comedy show should refrain from trying to make people laugh, because it might not inspire enough hatred or disapproval toward a particular political figure, to be ridiculous.

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heatherchandler

heatherchandler

(edited)
3 hours ago, DEL901 said:

Like with all those cheap shots they took when Biden was leaving office.   He was a good man trying his best.  And trying to be president for everyone not just those who voted for him.  That always left a bad taste.  Trump just looks like a buffon, not the threat to US democracy he is.  

But Biden is bumbling, and Trump is a buffon.  They are just over exaggerating what is already there, not sway public opinion or have a stance.  That’s why it is funny, or supposed to be.. they go after everyone equally.  

 

 

3 hours ago, peeayebee said:

Yes, I understand. It's just that sometimes I feel like people are seeing Trump as a silly clown rather than a threat to democracy.

I remember when Bush was called a war criminal, but Will Farrell never got flack for portraying him as a human being.  He just took his malaprops and dialed it up. 

Edited by heatherchandler
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Galileo908

Galileo908

18 minutes ago, heatherchandler said:

But Biden is bumbling, and Trump is a buffon.  They are just over exaggerating what is already there, not sway public opinion or have a stance.  That’s why it is funny, or supposed to be.. they go after everyone equally.  

Yeah, they've been doing that day 1. Take an aspect about them that seems funny, then exaggerate it. Ford tripped in public once, and then Chevy Chase made that the basis of his imitation.

But these imitations do influence public perception, regardless of who those people actually are. Ford was clumsy, HW said "nah gonna do it," Clinton was horny, W was dumb, Biden's a doddering old man, Trump's a buffoon, and so on.

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SomeTameGazelle

SomeTameGazelle

I enjoyed the Podcast checkup and the AI lesson (although I might have framed that one slightly differently -- the real classroom didn't add much IMO), and the Oedipal Arrangements was a clever idea that was most of the way there. But I skipped a lot of the rest of the sketches as Not For Me.

In the bungee workout, did it seem like they were getting out of breath even though it was supposed to be not much of a workout?

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MediaZone4K

MediaZone4K

(edited)
5 hours ago, DEL901 said:

Like with all those cheap shots they took when Biden was leaving office.   He was a good man trying his best.  And trying to be president for everyone not just those who voted for him.  That always left a bad taste.  Trump just looks like a buffon, not the threat to US democracy he is.  

Like @heatherchandler said, whether or not Biden was a good man his stumbling, bumbling, and forgetfulness made for good comedic material to rip on. The same thing with Donald Trump's outrageous statements, caricature-esq appearance and exaggerated gestures. 

I'm not saying both men are equal, but thinking that the show should make fun of one man and not the other indicates viewpoint bias.

There is a point to what other people are saying. The comedic portrayal of Trump shouldn't soften him too much that we see him as a clown over a threat to democracy, but I haven't felt that way from watching SNL.

Edited by MediaZone4K
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peeayebee

peeayebee

52 minutes ago, SomeTameGazelle said:

I enjoyed the Podcast checkup and the AI lesson (although I might have framed that one slightly differently -- the real classroom didn't add much IMO)

Yes, I meant to comment on that, too. For some reason, so many of the sketches have characters within the sketch make observations or give opinions on what's going on, giving me the impression that the writers feel we the audience need help in seeing what's funny. Kind of like adding a laughtrack. I wish they'd give us some credit in getting the jokes. 

LennieBriscoe

LennieBriscoe

On 1/26/2025 at 1:12 PM, The Solution said:

Man, Timothee Chalamet is mad funny! I didn't think anyone could be funnier than Dave Chappelle until I saw those two Bob Dylan bits. Why didn't anyone say that movie was supposed to be a comedy? (The twink boyfriend sitting on Grandma's face bit was pretty good too!)

I sure hope your post is sarcastic because no, "A Complete Unknown" is not "supposed to be a comedy." 

I'm not sure what Timothée hoped to convey with his monologue, because his award losses must hurt. 

Milburn Stone

Milburn Stone

On 1/27/2025 at 10:25 AM, Irlandesa said:

But wasn't Hitler dead and defeated at the time?  I think making fun of historical figures hits a bit differently.

Just as a "data point," Jack Benny and Charlie Chaplin both made comedies ridiculing Hitler when he was alive and well. Both movies were highly regarded in their time and remain so. The Benny movie is To Be or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942) and the Chaplin movie is The Great Dictator (1940).

proserpina65

proserpina65

There was a few amusing bits (Podcast doctor and the AI guys) but mostly this episode was a big waste of time.  The appeal of Timothee Chalamet continues to be a mystery to me, and now he thinks he can sing.  I mean, come on, Bob Dylan isn't famous for his voice.

On 1/26/2025 at 7:10 PM, heatherchandler said:

But Biden is bumbling

He misspoke sometimes, but he was not bumbling and definite not as mentally impaired as SNL portrayed him to be.  For months "Joe Biden's old and feeble" was their only joke.  It's not only damaging, it got tiresome and unfunny.

On 1/26/2025 at 8:33 PM, possibilities said:

I think good writing does both.

SNL hasn't had a lot of that in quite awhile when it comes to political comedy.

13 hours ago, LennieBriscoe said:

I sure hope your post is sarcastic because no, "A Complete Unknown" is not "supposed to be a comedy." 

I assumed it was commentary on the quality, or lack thereof, of Chalamet's performance.

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iarwain

iarwain

5 hours ago, Milburn Stone said:

Just as a "data point," Jack Benny and Charlie Chaplin both made comedies ridiculing Hitler when he was alive and well. Both movies were highly regarded in their time and remain so. The Benny movie is To Be or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942) and the Chaplin movie is The Great Dictator (1940).

I've seen the Great Dictator.  The Jack Benny movie sounds familiar, but I can't remember if I've seen it or not.  It would have been a long time ago.  Chaplin made some truly amazing movies.  I get the impression Benny is probably largely forgotten among the younger crowd, which is a shame.

 

5 hours ago, possibilities said:

I thought it was uniquely whiny to complain about having multiple nominations for awards. I thought it made him and the entire writing and production team that approved it look like smug, self-entitled, over-privilged, self-indulgent, sore loser assholes.

Chalamet's a young guy, and maybe hasn't learned that just getting nominated is an honor.  Plus he's probably an ambitious fellow, and wants the big award to seal his career.  Maybe he's thinking "I keep playing these '60s icons so I can win an award, what do I have to do?".

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