Late Night with the Devil is a 2024 demonic, found footage horror film distributed by IFC Films and Shudder among many other production companies who had their hands in this one, and is directed by Colin and Cameron Cairnes. Starring David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, Ian Bliss, Rhys Auteri, and Ingrid Torelli. The film follows a late-night talk show host in the 1970s by the name of Jack Delroy (Dastmalchian) on his quest to regain fame, fortune, notoriety, and ratings after personal troubles stunted his growth in the late-night game, and he’ll stop short of nothing (like say literally selling his soul to the under lord) to get it. He pulls out all the stops and hosts a late-night Halloween special on Halloween night in 1977 where he has on a psychic medium by the name of Christou, a magician who also serves as a debunker of the supernatural named Carmichael (Bliss), and a parapsychologist by the name of June (Gordon) who’s been working with a girl by the name of Lily (Torelli), who spent the first 10 years of her life living in a cult and who she believes may be harboring an evil entity within her. This ploy made up by Jack and the studio in an obvious attempt to spike ratings and hopefully get back to the big time takes a turn for the worst when weird things start to happen throughout the broadcast and it turns out, little Lily may actually be possessed after all, maybe.
I really enjoyed the way this movie was set up, it felt very original and unlike anything I’ve seen in the horror genre to date, while dealing with a very commonly used horror element with possession. The setting felt part like a found footage film as they set the movie up like we were about to watch the original broadcast of the events that took place that night and placing us directly into the talk show like we were viewing ‘Night Owls with Jack Delroy’ instead of watching a horror film. So, you were transported straight into the vibes of 70s late-night television, and as the broadcast went off air and to a commercial break the screen would turn to black and white, and we got the backstage peek into the off-air conversations and inside information they didn’t want to worry the live studio audience with. I thought that was a neat way to differentiate between the on and off air moments and a nice touch that wasn’t necessarily needed but definitely added something to the film. I like as well how this film didn’t waste much time giving us a rundown of things and got us straight to the talk show and the action, we got a briefing on Jack Delroy’s past in the beginning, and it was effective and left us feeling like we understood who this man was and what his motives were without having to drag it out unnecessarily. He was a tortured individual with a beaten past that drove him away from the scene and the fame for a while, but his hunger and need for the fame and attention is what got him wrapped up in his own self tragedy to begin with and whatever force does lie within Lily, he’s referred to by her as Mr. Wriggles, uses his past to their advantage.
I also enjoyed the way this movie was paced, for some more extreme fans of horror the pacing may not be your favorite, but this movie plays up the tension and subtility and I loved that. There are instances throughout the show where things really take off and get crazy, but it would chill back out and the show must go on as they say. There was also an unsettling tension in the air throughout the show as well with Cristou’s little episode on air and specifically from the moment Lily came onto the show. She was a sweet girl, but she gave unsettling vibes from the get-go and just generally kind of creeped you out. I’ve never heard of Ingrid Torelli before, but she did a wonderful job in this movie. I would say her and David Dastmalchian both pulled me in the most and were overall my favorite roles in the film, but they also played the most significant parts in the movie I would say as well so that is kind of to be expected, they both did a great job though, nonetheless. David Dastmalchian is such a well-rounded actor who’s in the absolute perfect positioning as a working actor, he’s been involved in multiple major motion pictures and been the lead role in multiple movies of his own and has made a great career for himself in the field, but isn’t too famous to where he’s going to be hounded by people anywhere he tries to go either. If you can’t tell by now, I really enjoyed this one so it’s hard for me to find much to complain about or say I didn’t necessarily like. There were parts that were slower than others, sure, but this movie kept me pulled in from the moment we got past what felt like the infinite number of production companies opening scroll and into the actual movie. This could very well end up being on my Top 5 Horror Movies of 2024 list, but we will just have to see how things shake out by the end of the year, only time will truly tell, but I would recommend any horror fan or anybody just looking for a new horror movie they haven’t seen to check out, to give this one a shot.
