Cinema Crazed

2006

Rated: Unrated

Genre: Documentary Comedy

Directed By: Sharon Bartlett

Running Time: 2:08

Review by: Felix Vasquez Jr.

Review Date: 4/14/07

Special Features:
Extended Interviews

SECOND CITY: FIRST FAMILY OF COMEDY

Ah, the second city. Where would Saturday Night Live be without it? Would Lorne Michaels be shitting money were it not for the second city? Probably. But he wouldn’t be as rich now. Let’s face it, as important as Saturday Night Live was, it’d be nothing without Second City Television. They invented the mock news broadcasts first, and Michaels continues to recruit Second City comedians to this day. “The Second City” is a wonderful documentary about the legacy behind The Second City, and what fantastic stars it garnered. From Eugene Levy, John Candy, Catherine O’Hara, and Alan Arkin, right down to Tina Fey, Mike Meyers, and Martin Short.

Not to mention it helped begin the careers of John Belushi, Bill Murray and Harold Ramis, as well as Kids in the Hall. Many will agree in this documentary that being cast on The Second City is still a great honor and helps to hone the difficult skill of comedy, and Bartlett outlines the dynasty from the very beginning of the troop right down to the modern era. There are sure to be some nuggets here that will surprise you including the fact that it was originally a club for drama that went bankrupt. The original founder started a coffee shop for friends which then transformed into a shop that began staging comedy shows and improv that relied on audience suggestions.

Most of the interesting segments rely on the origins of the SCTV show that formed to compete with SNL and prevent Michaels from buying out the best talent. Sadly, the show was always on the brink on cancellation, but is still a cult classic. And it’s not hard to see why. The Second City simply has an eye for priceless talent that has managed to flourish both critically and financially for years. I admit to not being a Second City fan at all, I just hated everything it had to offer, but “The Second City” inspired me to rethink my stance, and its interesting glimpse into this community is utterly fascinating to watch. One of the most heartbreaking explorations though is of Jennifer Candy, the daughter of the late great John Candy, who is also pursuing comedy at The Second City and hoping to live up to her dad’s legacy. But best of all, you don’t just learn of the origins of this troop, but of the continuous impact it provides to aspiring comedians and potentially great actors.

They did it first, and they did it best, and thanks to them we're graced with many of the best comedic talents from John Candy to Tina Fey. "First Family of Comedy" is an extensive and fascinating glimpse into the legendary troop that really showed that comedy is a skill and an art form.

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