A Service of The Arrow           Thursday November 4, 1999 7:52 PM

By: Scott Bennett

ARROW STAFF

“Sometimes, when I get nervous, I stick my hands under my arms, and smell them like this!” is the catch phrase of popular Saturday Night Live (SNL) character Mary Katherine Gallagher, also the protagonist of the latest big screen effort from SNL Studios. While the skit may be a hit, the movie is too drawn for for even the talented Molly Shannon to save. The bigwigs behind Saturday Night Live need to realize the success story of Wayne's World was just a lucky break. Keep the comedy where it can't fail, in ten-minute intervals on Saturday nights.

Superstar is still far from bad. At times, it's uproariously funny, and even sweet, but hardly worthy of a motion picture, even at its relatively short 82 minutes.

The protagonist is Mary Katherine Gallagher, a love-hungry, geeky Irish Catholic high schooler. She keeps the whole flick watchable, whether funny or not. Early in the movie, Mary relates just how and why she became a superstar: to get that one, passionate kiss.

Mary retreats into the world of made-for-TV movies to escape those who reject her. She is hired as the rewind girl at a local video store, and a fair amount of genuinely funny jokes come out of her love for movies, especially the mediocre ones.

The film's poorly woven but nonetheless enjoyable plot centers around a talent contest at Mary's high school, in which the winner will be flown to Los Angeles and get a chance to appear as an extra in a movie with “positive moral values.” Mary's heart beats a little faster every time she dreams of winning, but her grandmother tells Mary she must be a businesswoman instead.

The other reason Mary wants to wow the school with her talents is her unrequited love for the school jock and best dancer, Sky Corrigan, who busts the strangest moves, like “the peppermill,” and “the fax machine.” The only thing in Mary's way is the evil Evian, head cheerleader and Sky's girlfriend.

From making out with trees to causing property damage throughout her high school, Mary Katherine Gallagher can't help but be a sweet, winsome heroine. Her antics make the seemingly meaningless movie genuinely enjoyable. Molly Shannon's incredible energy and talent make her the film's Superstar. Mary's “special” friends also deserve credit, especially the brace-ridden girl jock, Helen. Surprisingly, Will Ferril offers very little entertainment or humor, aside from his erratic dance moves.

Even if Superstar is a blatantly obvious attempt to feed off the success of its forebearer, Saturday Night Live, it remains entertaining and funny, thought at various times, only mildly so. But it takes more than the talent of Molly Shannon to make an hour and a half of flimsy material great.

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