Late Night with the Devil (Review)

 


   I watched the trailer for Late Night with the Devil a couple weeks ago through David Dastmalchian’s socials. At first I was just ecstatic he landed a leading gig after nailing it as a character actor in films such as Dune - Part One, The Dark Knight, Prisoners, Ant-Man, and the Suicide Squad; small parts but totally memorable.  I love the actor, and then something else about the trailer caught my attention… it looked really good. 

    I’ll vaguely give the synopsis as to avoid spoilers and you can enjoy the movie yourself. Jack Delroy is a host on the late night show Night Owls with Jack Delroy and is struggling with ratings in comparison to Johnny Carson. In addition to his show on the verge of getting the axe, he struggles with alcoholism and mourns the death of his wife. So he decides to throw everything at the wall for their Halloween episode. The big highlight of the episode is live broadcasting a demonic possession. 

    The unique thing about this film is that it’s a found tape of the live broadcast when the episode first aired, so the film is in real time, commercials and all. With grain and that 70’s aesthetic. When it hits a commercial break the film turns black and white and Jack Delroy’s persona drops and we see how it is behind the scenes. 

    I loved, loved, loved this movie! 

    It’s such a pleasure to find a movie that surprises you and Late Night with the Devil is such a fun ride and a perfect theater experience. The minor complaints I have is the special effects. The practical effects are great and effective. The CGI however is distracting. It seemed like it was going for an imitation of 70’s effects (think Star Wars’ lightsabers) and it comes across as bad in some cases. Especially in its usages of lightning. 

    The great parts? Everything else. David Dasmaltchian really shines here with the nervous energy of Jack Delroy and his desperation of getting higher ratings. It’s about time he was a leading man, and he really nails the late night host schtick down to a T. You totally buy how put upon he is with his life’s tragedies and how determined he is to be a great TV show host and no one, not even Johnny Carson, will get in his way. Ingrid Torelli as Lillie is also a highlight as the 13 year old girl who’s possessed by a demon. She carried a lot of the scares in this film and did so phenomenally. I also appreciate the humor and balancing it with the scares. It’s a very funny movie in the first two acts, and completely batshit bananas in the third act. Nearly akin to the Evil Dead franchise with a hint of Into the Mouth of Madness sprinkled in. I was completely invested in every minute here and was actually submersed in its narrative and its characters. 

    What a joy Late Night with the Devil was. 

    This is one of those films that must be supported and NEEDS to be seen in the theaters. I loved it so much, I really made this review as quickly as I could to tell you to see this movie in theaters while it’s still fresh and you have time to grab some tickets. So please, please, PLEASE watch Late Night with the Devil. You’ll have a devilishly grand time. 

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