Forgive me for boiling down the new NBC comedy "Up All Night" into such a trite high-concept -- oh, like TV shows themselves aren't pitched like this at least sometimes. But please do not let that proclamation give you the impression that I did not like the pilot episode -- I did, far more than I expected to! But the best parts of "Up All Night" are when they don't try to shoe-horn the "30 Rock" elements into the story, and instead let co-stars Will Arnett and Christina Applegate just be their sincere, foul-mouthed (albeit bleeped), selves.
The basic premise of "Up All Night" is that a thirty-
mmmmph high-powered couple have just had an unexpected baby, and must rearrange their lives to deal with the new arrival. This rearrangement includes lawyer Arnett temporarily quitting his job to be a stay-at-home dad while his wife works at a TV production company (where the shades of "30 Rock" start
creeping trampling in), and the two of them learning not to stay out all night drinking and performing questionable karaoke. So good to see Will Arnett not play an asshole here (though admittedly it is enjoyable watching him portray an asshole as well), and Christina Applegate is great. Their characters are totally believable and natural, and their interactions with the baby are definitely touching but never quite saccharine (in particular I'm thinking of a reoccuring scene where they are so enthralled with their adorable spawn that they cannot stop cursing -- it plays out far better than my meager description illustrates).
 |
| *sigh* more emblems of my generation |
Maya Rudolph's character -- which I assume is supposed to be Oprah but feels more like Ellen crossed with Tyra -- is just way too over-the-top in this pilot, and drowns out the subtlety of the scenes with Arnett/Applegate. This is anything but a Rudolph hate-fest here, as I've loved her in SNL and especially in the movie "Away We Go" with John Krasinski. But it's obvious "Up All Night" is trying to repeat the magic of "30 Rock," with the actress playing a cross between demanding and shrewd Jack Donaghy and demanding and childlike Tracy Jordan. Rudolph is an amazing actress and there's no reason for her to ham it up here; she's more than capable of creating her own unique foil for Applegate's character (which is the theoretical Liz Lemon in this arrangement). As I've only seen the pilot, I'm sure there's going to be time for all the actors to get more comfortable and define their roles. I just don't want to see "Up All Night" lose its unique charm and end up as something more slapstick a la "30 Rock."
 |
| we love you "Ava," but take it down a notch |
Anyway, the NBC pilot for "Up All Night" is available now on Hulu Plus, as well as
on the official site until October 20; the show itself premieres September 21. I'm going to add some clips of Arnett on Jimmy Fallon, as that's the sort of sad Arnett-junkie I am:
 |
| ta-da! |
No comments:
Post a Comment