Late Night with the Devil

dumasori 4/23/2024 9:11:50 AM 8.4

**Brilliant** In this day and age of AI scripted stories, it is refreshing to finally see a movie which is original. Late Night with the Devil is simply brilliant. Direction, acting, storyline, suspense, thrill, everything more than one could ask for. The story flows so meticulously that I kept wondering what’s going to happen next? This movie is sure going to keep you on the edge of your seat. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Very entertaining and thought provoking. Solid 8/10 from me.

MovieGuys 4/30/2024 7:07:22 AM 8.4

Late Night with the Devil demonstrates how much can be achieved with a quality script and exceptional acting. First off the performance by David Dastmalchian is simply excellent, in every sense. He beautifully and convincingly pulls off a Johnny Carson style, impression of a late night 70's interviewer. The man is wholly believable and to be honest, its his performance that drew me in and kept me watching till the end. The story is well rendered too. Its not exceptional but there's a decent amount of originality and a sense of ambiguity, especially surrounding the main character to create intrigue and interest. Has the interviewer already made a shadowy pact with the devil? What price will he pay? Tune in, to see. On the down side there are obvious budgetary constraints in play. That said, but there is so much quality on offer here in terms of performances from the cast and a solid story, its really not overly noticeable. In summary, a flick defined by exceptional performances and a quality, Faustian style, back story. A must watch if you like "quality" horror.

Brent Marchant 3/26/2024 12:48:39 PM 8.4

How far are you willing to go in realizing your ambitions? Would you be willing to make big sacrifices? Associate with shady beings? Sell your soul? Those are among the possibilities raised in the latest hair-raising smart horror/comedy from the writing-directing duo of Cameron and Colin Cairnes. This documentary-style offering presents the supposedly lost recording (complete with allegedly never-before-seen found footage) of a 1970s late night talk show hosted by comedian/TV personality Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) whose goal is to unseat Johnny Carson’s eminently popular Tonight Show as the premier after-hours choice of viewing. Delroy’s Night Owls broadcast is modestly successful, but it never manages to win the late night ratings race, so he desperately looks for ways to nudge his program over the top. When he decides to host a Halloween show with an array of occult/paranormal guests – capitalizing on a growing trend at the time – he believes he’s hit on the formula to achieve his goal. But, as the show progresses, he finds himself in over his head as events begin to spiral out of control. Viewers both on and off the screen are kept in suspense with a well-integrated blend of humor, high camp and unexpectedly spooky moments involving a hammy, self-righteous psychic medium (Fayssal Bazzi), an egomanical magician-turned-debunker (Ian Bliss), and an escaped teenage cult member (Ingrid Torelli) and her psychologist caregiver/surrogate parent (Laura Gordon). As things deteriorate, Jack tries to hold the show together with the aid of his producer (Josh Quong Tart) and flunky sidekick (Rhys Auteri). But, as the stakes are continually upped, that task grows ever more difficult, especially when supernatural influences begin to assert themselves in the studio, threatening both the broadcast and the fulfillment of the host’s long-cherished dream. Although occasional pacing issues, a periodically disjointed narrative and a somewhat overblown final act can get in the way of the smoothness of the story flow, these shortcomings are made up for by the film’s superb period piece production design, its clever writing and its fine performances, most notably that of the protagonist. And, in the end, it’s all served up with lots of laughs and a tidy moral of the story. Admittedly, “Late Night with the Devil” probably would have worked better as a Halloween release than a piece of springtime movie fare, but that doesn’t lessen the entertainment value of this inspired production, one thar shows horror flicks can indeed do more than just see how high it can make the final body count.