Customer Reviews

Saturday Night Live - The Best of Molly Shannon

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Molly Shannon's presence is sorely missed on "Saturday Night Live" but not you can relive some of her finest moments with this DVD. Although I personally would have chosen some different sketches , this DVD is sure to put a big smile on even the grumpiest of faces.

Included are:

"Mary Katherine Gallagher"- Mary auditions for the school variety show and sings "Sometimes When We Touch" and does a Meredith Baxter Birney tv movie monologue. (with Gabriel Byrne)

"Helen Madden, Licensed Joyologist"- "I love it! I love it!" Helen appears on "Pretty Living", hosted by Ana Gasteyer. (with Matthew Broderick)

"The Courtney Love Show"- Courtney's got a talk show, and she interviews Julie Andrews (played by Christine Baranski)

"Elizabeth Taylor"- Elizabeth picks the winning lottery numbers on Weekend Update ("Gladiator!")

"Jeanne Darcy"- the very unspontaneous and over rehearsed comedienne makes an inappropriate appearance at a nursing home.

"Monica Lewinsky"- Monica addresses court, with Hillary watching.

"Sally O'Malley"- Sally auditions to be a Rockette! "I'm 50 years old! And I like to kick! Stretch! And kick!" (with Danny DeVito).

"Veronica & Co."- The European supermodel has a talk show whose set is located in the middle of a fashion show runway (with Val Kilmer).

"Delicious Dish On NPR"- Molly & Ana Gasteyer as the very low-key hosts of a radio cooking show. This is the famous "Schweaty Balls" episode (with Alec Baldwin).

"Leg Up!"- Molly as Ann Miller, and Cheri Oteri as Debbie Reynolds. (with Phil Hartman as a very cranky Frank Sinatra)

"MTV FANatic"- Molly as Anna Nicole Smith (with Ben Affleck as an obsessed fan who looks to Anna Nicole for a mother figure).

"Mary Katherine Gallagher"- Mary meets the real Tina Turner by hiding in her dressing room. (with Alec Baldwin)

"Rae Murphy"- an awkward blind date at an airport bar goes horribly wrong (with Will Ferrel and Chris Kattan).

"Dress Rehearsal Sketch"- that was cut from the final broadcast features Molly as an odd, accent loving girl who brings home date Bill Paxton to meet her parents (with Ana Gasteyer and Horatio Sanz).

Also features a photo gallery of Molly in different costumes, outtakes: Molly as Xena, Princess Warrior (with Brendan Frasier), as Helen Madden (with Ben Stiller), NPR's Delicious Dish (with Alec Baldwin), 70's Ladies In Bar (with Calista Flockhart), Dog Show! (with Will Ferrell- it's just a teeny blooper clip), and Jeanne Darcy on Weekend Update.

Two more goodies: two appearances on Conan O'Brien. On the first one she discusses how Courtney Love didn't seem pleased to be parodied and how Gary Coleman once trapped her in his hotel bathroom and tried to put the moves on her; the other appearance is with Will Ferrell and she talks about dating and a new sketch she was working on called "Hot Cocoa Girls."

Great collection! I would have given it five stars had it included some "Goth Talk" and "Dog Show" sketches on it. My absolute favorite Mary Katherine Gallagher sketch isn't here either (Gwenyth Paltrow was the host that week)- but it'd be nearly impossible to include everyone's favorites. I'd say that Molly Shannon definitely deserves a second "Best Of" DVD!

For seven years Molly Shannon ignited the "Saturday Night Live" stage with a comedic falir not seen in any female cast member since Gilda Radner. Whether performing one of her memorable recurring characters, impersonating an annoying figure in the news perfectly or engaging in intense physical comedy reminiscent of Farley and Belushi, Molly could always be counted on to garner gargantuan laughs from the audience.

"The Best Of Molly Shannon" captures all of her best moments from those seven years, focusing, as most of the best - of's do, on her famed recurring characters. And what a gas they are - from Mary Katherine Gallagher to Helen Madden to Terri Rialto (in the classic "Schwetty Balls" sketch with Alec Baldwin), they are all hilarious and adorable, just like Shannon herself. Also, four great impressions of her are here. There's her famed Courtney Love imitation in which the Hole singer hosts her own talk show with hysterical results. There's her as Elizabeth Taylor hilariously reading the lotto numbers on "Weekend Update". Anne Miller and Debbie Reynolds (played by Cheri Oteri) interviewing Frank Sinatra (played by Phil Hartman, another "SNL" all time legend) on "Leg Up". Then there's Anna Nicole Smith on "FANatic". Well, I personally think there's a better sketch with her as Anna out there, but this one is pretty funny.

This dvd is not perfect. For starters, two of her most popular recurring characters are missing. They are Circe Nightshade from "Goth Talk" and Miss Colleen from "Dog Show". They could've cut out "Jeannie Darcy At St. Joseph's" and "Veronica And Co." in favor of these two much funnier sketches. (To be fair, there's a great "Goth Talk" on "The Best Of Chris Kattan, but "Dog Show" has been a hold out for all the best - of's, appearing in only a 10 second clip on "The Best Of Will Ferrell", which incidentally is also hilarious). And they definitely could have cut out the airport bar date sketch at the end and replaced it with either her Meredith Vierra impression on "The View" or a complete Monica Lewinsky sequence (there's only a 50 second clip shown in the beginning of the disc).

Overall, a great sampling of Molly's work on "SNL". Other than the two Conan O'Brien interviews and the Margaret Healy bit, the extras are nothing great. What would have been nice is if they included Molly's audition tape. But still, it's hilarious.Molly is a cast member who deserves a volume two. But until then, this will so do.

I believe that most people buy a "Best of" title mainly to see some of their favorite skits. Don't set your expectations too high here. This is just 76 minutes long, which includes outtakes, tv interviews, a dress rehearsal, and some recognizable skits. One can always argue about what should be on a "Best of", but this is so limited as to leave one convinced that this was made short to allow for other "Favorites" to be bundled up by producers for other DVD's to be released later. Disappointing.

I must say that honestly, this is one of the funniest collections of comedic characters ever. Molly Shannon is pure genius when it comes to her characters and their development. Reading other reviews, it occurred to me that her humor is best saved for those of intelligent standing. Her comedic style and timing are overtly funny and perfectly maneuvered by those of higher intellect. In an era of people that enjoy mainstream mediocre comedy movies, like Wedding Crashers and Old School, Molly Shannon's comedy stands above the rest. Her humor is best appreciated by those that think Joey from "FRIENDS" is nothing compared to the wit of Chandler. Molly Shannon never goes for the lowest common denominator (unfortunately not like some of her colleagues on SNL sometimes) in her humor. The more I watch this DVD, the more I laugh. Jeannie Darcy is by far one of the most quotable characters in television comedic history. Her impressions of Courtney Love and Elizabeth Taylor are uncanny. This CD is a must for the intellectual viewer, whose sense of comedy exceeds the slapstick and idiotic nature of mainstream comedy today. In short, "I Luv it... I Luv it... I Lu-----v it!

I would like to know who chooses the 'best' moments for all of these 'best of' collections! This collection for Molly definitely doesn't show a LOT of her funniest moments on SNL. Where is Goth Talk and Dog Show??? I was disappointed, and usually am, when I purchase these 'best of' SNL collections. The only decent ones so far would be that of Will Ferrell (the 1st one) and Jimmy Fallon. It really makes me angry that whoever chooses the skits to put on these DVDs makes some very poor choices. In reading some other reviews, I know I am not alone here.
Let ME do the job!!

For seven years, Molly Shannon was one of "Saturday night Live's" most popular castmembers, with her wild assortment of hilarious impressions and inspired original characters. "The Best Of Molly Shannon" captures some of her most popular moments. It leaves out some classics, but overall it's very funny.

"The Best Of Molly Shannon" centers solely on her recurring characters and impressions, including nervous Catholic high school girl Mary Katherine Galllagher, licensed joyologist Helen Madden, proud 50 - year - old Salley O'Malley, Courtney Love, Anna Nicole Smith and Anne Miller. The funniest sketch is the "Delicious Dish" sketch (with Molly as Terry Rialto). It's the classic "Schwetty Balls" sketch with Alec Baldwin as raunchy cook Pete Schwetty. The only bad sketch is the dating sketch at the end. Also, though they're watchable, "Jeannie Darcy" and the "Veronic And Co." sketches could've been left off to include "Goth Talk" (with Circe Nightshade), "Dog Show" (Ms. Colleen), "The View" (Meredith Vierra) and a complete Monica Lewinsky sketch (preferably the one with the 4 - way phone chat with Lewisnky (Shannon), Bill Clinton (Darrell Hammond), "Sadaam Hussein (Will Ferrell) and Tim Meadows).

These minor complaints aside, this is a highly enjoyable collection of Molly's finest moments as an "SNL" castmember. I highly recommend it.

This DVD is, of course, hilarious. Molly Shannon is one of the most talented performers to grace the SNL stage. I think they could have chosen some different skits, though. I can't understand why they chose something like the Blind Date skit over one of the Dog Show episodes or even the teen Goth show, I forget the title. Even though the DVD lacks, somewhat, it's a worthwhile purchase if you enjoy her work.

Saturday Night Live -- The Best of Molly Shannon is a worthwhile look back at Molly's fine stint on the show. Most of Molly's best characters are highlighted (Mary Katherine Gallagher, Sally O'Malley, Veronica) but the show's missing something. As many of the SNL Best Of programs, some of the artists' best, edgiest sketches are left out in favor of safer, sometimes boring material. How did the Dog Show sketches (with Will Ferrell) not make the cut?

The DVD "extras" are good. Check out Molly's two appearances on Conan. Funny stuff.

This DVD was pure torture. It made me more and more angry as the minutes ticked by. I was so dissapointed that I wrote this review even though I rented it in the first place. While Shannon was great on SNL, the producers somehow managed to cobble together all of her least funny material for this DVD.

A great and funny DVD! I am very pleased with my purchase. She is so talented, and so enjoyable to watch. Specifically Mary Katherine Gallegher and Sally O'Malley. That's why I bought this DVD! I highly reccomend it!