Film

Lemmings

Name: Lemmings
Genre: Music, Thriller, Comedy, TV Movie
Released: 1973
Cast: John Belushi, Chevy Chase, Rhonda Coullet, Christopher Guest, Paul Jacobs

Dark comedy
Strange

A wild, barely plotted 1973 sketch comedy filmed at a rock festival, packed with absurdist humour and early SNL energy. It's chaotic and occasionally brilliant—a time capsule of early-70s counterculture comedy at its most unhinged. For people who love sketch comedy, musical performances, and historical oddities.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy anarchic sketch comedy that treats a sold-out rock festival as a satirical battlefield, and you're happy to laugh at the audience as much as the stage.

Skip it if you want a tidy story or performers you can settle into, since this is a loose, scrappy sketch collage where the bits jump around and some land flat.

What it asks of you: Under an hour, so it demands little time, but it wants full attention from start to finish, since its jokes arrive quickly and rarely repeat themselves.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Saturday Night Live1975

The spiritual successor to Lemmings' sketch format, but with a tighter structure and bigger stars. If you loved the comedy bits here, SNL perfected the formula and ran with it for decades.

But Early SNL can be uneven—not every sketch lands, and some references have aged poorly. It's a massive time commitment to find the gems.

The Groove Tube1974

Another wild, anarchic sketch film from the same era, mixing musical numbers with absurdist TV parodies. Same energy as Lemmings but focused on television rather than rock culture.

But It's deliberately loose and shapeless, which works for some viewers and frustrates others. The humour is very specifically mid-70s and won't click with everyone.

The Kentucky Fried Movie1977

Zucker-Abrahams sketch comedy with the same anything-goes spirit—rapid-fire gags, musical numbers, and zero regard for narrative. A masterclass in sketch film done right.

But The humour can be juvenile and occasionally mean-spirited. Some sketches are brilliant; others fall flat hard.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Lemmings

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Phantom of the Paradise1974

Both are wild-eyed 1970s films obsessed with rock music and youth culture, but Phantom of the Paradise weaponizes that obsession into a sharp critique of fame and manipulation rather than scattering it across sketches.

A rock opera horror-comedy about a doomed musician and a corrupt Svengali. Same satirical energy about music industry excess, but channelled into an actual plot with horror stakes. Brian De Palma directing, Paul Williams composing and acting—it's genuinely wild.

But It's genuinely dark and weird, with gore and a genuinely sad ending. If you want Lemmings' chaos but don't want the surreal nightmare logic underneath, this will be too pointed.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail1975

Sketch-based comedy but with a loose narrative spine and absolute confidence in its own weirdness. Similar fearlessness about structure and absurdity.

But British sensibility and theatrical comedy—very different tone from Lemmings' raw American rock vibe. Requires patience with tangential humour.

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour1967

The godfather of sketch comedy on television, mixing music, political satire, and pure silliness. Direct ancestor of what Lemmings was trying to do on film.

But It's from the 60s, so it feels even more distant than Lemmings. The political commentary dates heavily.

The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour poster

SCTV1976

Live sketch comedy from the Chicago improv scene, filmed during the same era. Captures the jazz-like spontaneity and theatrical boldness of early alternative comedy.

But Production quality is rough. Without a laugh track, sometimes it's hard to tell what's intentional and what isn't.

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In1967

The template for fast-paced sketch comedy on television. Rapid jokes, music guests, and no patience for setup—precursor to everything Lemmings inherited.

But It's relentlessly upbeat and safe, even when trying to be edgy. The humour rarely lands as hard now.

Crime Wave1985

Both are films that understand sketch comedy as a form can carry real narrative weight. Crime Wave takes that lesson and builds an actual thriller around absurdist comedy logic, where consequences happen but the tone never normalizes.

A low-budget comedy thriller that feels like a sketch movie that accidentally became a real heist film. Absurdist humour, a genuine plot, and total commitment to ridiculous scenarios. If Lemmings had a plot, it might look like this.

But The production is visibly cheap and the humour is very 80s deadpan. It's obscure for a reason—most people have never heard of it, and not all of it works.