Late Night with the Devil (2023) Old Standard Freshened In Engaging and Thrilling Ways (Review)

It’s no secret that found-footage is an often-derided format for horror films, and aside from some very good exceptions (Blair Witch, Cloverfield, Chronicle, etc), the whole gimmick of a family member or friend recording every strange occurrence until they drop the camera out of terror is extremely played-out. Inevitably, eyes will roll when fans find out there’s yet another found-footage horror film coming out, but there are a lot more elements to the subgenre than just its tired framing device. Late Night With The Devil is billed as a found-footage film, but instead of being scrappy camcorder video, it’s an unearthed live episode of a 1970s American talk show’s Halloween special, where they dive deep into themes of the supernatural – so of course it will go well.

The whole concept of a live show going horribly wrong has been done before, from the BBC’s infamous live-show Ghostwatch, to Dead Line, 3 By 3, and Inside No.9‘s own take on it with their sublime fake-out episodes. However, Late Night With The Devil proves itself as a really strong horror film that might not be consistently scary, but does deliver a discomforting feeling for just about its entire runtime.

Where Wandavision generated uncomfortable paranoia out of old styles of sitcom, Late Night with The Devil does it for the overly rehearsed and scripted American talk shows. From the moment proceedings start, there’s a palpable level of cringe to the overly delivered chat show dialogue, but whether that’s due to its inherent banality or the foreknowledge that, for the want of a better phrase, shit’s about to hit the fan, is somewhat ambiguous. I certainly felt a combination of both – a testament to how well directors Cameron and Colin Cairnes accurately make their vision feel authentic.

What definitely helps with this is the cast, and David Dastmalchian has all of the mannerisms of a talk-show host down to a T, but there’s a real tragedy to his character that’s always bubbling just under the surface, making for a really unique performance. Ingrid Torelli is also a really good find, playing the role of a young girl called Lily who’s supposedly possessed by a being called Mr Wriggles. It’s easy to compare any evil young girl in a horror film to Linda Blair’s iconic turn as Regan in The Exorcist, and while there’s definitely some of that here, I think Torelli manages to give this role something new to make her stand out.

The premise of the talk show is to explore whether supernatural occurrences (such as possession by evil spirits or ghostly apparitions), are real or not, and as a result the fictional host called Jack Delroy has brought on both believers and sceptics to discuss those themes. It sounds like a really interesting idea to explore on live TV, but in reality it’s a desperate attempt by Delroy to get a ratings boost, having constantly been floundering under the almighty Carson.

As we all know in horror movies, if you’re a cynical man in dire need of success and desperate for attention then it probably won’t end well for you, and indeed, things aren’t calm in Late Night With The Devil. There are some really spooky moments right off the bat, as well as discussions about the truth or falsity of what’s going on. We’ve heard these conversations many times before, but the talk show format makes them feel all the more riveting as both believers and sceptics put their convictions to the test.

One thing that surprised me while watching this was how far the Cairnes brothers were willing to go with the gore, and there are some very well-done practical effects that stuck out to me, taking me off guard since I wasn’t expecting the film to have as much gross-out horror as it did. It’s especially notable in the last fifteen minutes or so when things get properly insane and we come to a terrifying conclusion. Obviously I won’t give away any spoilers, but if you love the mad, bloody imagery of Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy or John Carpenter’s The Thing, then some moments in Late Night With The Devil will really appeal to you.

If there’s anything that threatened to take me out of the film, it’s some of the direction, as I adored the idea of a horror story being filmed in the format of a talk show. While those bits are filmed superbly and get the feel of the TV format spot-on, it’s when we cut to behind-the-scenes that I think the film takes the easy way out by filming it “normally” (and when I say normally, I mean the traditional way: single-camera, cutting between characters saying their lines, etc). Yes, this is how most movies are filmed, but Late Night With The Devil is unique in the way that it uses the talk show as its framing device, and I think that the film could’ve been more creative in the way that the “off-camera” events are handled.

I’m reminded of the completely unique techniques that Inside No. 9 used on the Dead Line episode, with CCTV footage being used and cameras drifting away when our characters are fleeing in terror. Even Wandavision has some cool changes in camerawork and tone whenever we’re not watching the ‘sitcom’, and if those shows found ways to elevate the “TV gone wrong” concept, then Late Night With The Devil could’ve gone a bit further in that regard.

Also, towards the end there’s an increased reliance on CGI that feels a little jarring, especially after the stripped-back presentation of the rest of the film. It wasn’t particularly bad CGI, but it did bother me that the opportunity for more amazing practical prosthetics and effects was missed.

However, those flaws could just be me as when I see a film like this doing something in a different format, I normally like it when they go all the way. Even though this only goes 70-80% of the way, that 70-80% is still damn good. Late Night With The Devil is a real treat for fans of horror (and those who are chronically obsessed with live TV going wrong – like me), with its great retro feel, consistently excellent cast, superb escalation in tension, and balls-to-the-wall madness. If you get a chance to see it in cinemas I get the feeling that you’ll be sucked into the story and the atmosphere no matter what. And if you miss it in Cinemas, it’s dropping on Shudder next month – so you have no excuses to miss this one.

Alex’s Archive – Late Night with the Devil