With top-notch performances, stellar scares, a dose of humor and fun, and a pitch-perfect ‘70s atmosphere, “Late Night with the Devil” is likely to go down as a new horror classic. The inventive film follows the fictional talk show host Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) as he tries to revive his failing show with a Halloween-themed episode, with guests including a girl supposedly possessed by a paranormal entity. The film is framed as the rediscovered master tapes of the doomed show, interspersed with handheld, black-and-white footage of the backstage proceedings.
In a documentary-style opening, the stage is quickly set. Michael Ironside, the voice of Darkseid in many DC projects, narrates the rise and fall of Delroy against the backdrop of the 70s. Delroy, a former radio host and member of the mysterious men-only club “The Grove,” emerged as a competitor to Johnny Carson before his famed stage actress wife died of lung cancer, despite never smoking. As his ratings entered freefall, his show attempted to improve ratings by courting controversy and pushing boundaries, including the aforementioned Halloween episode featuring a lineup of supernaturally affiliated guests.
The characters are few, but this gives each of them space to develop both on set and backstage. Dastmalchian portrays Jack Delroy with an interesting blend of on-camera charisma and offstage hollowness and desperation, a man whose driving belief is that “the show must go on.” His bandleader, Gus McConnell (Rhys Auteri), plays the role of Delroy’s pragmatic sidekick. While he’s not extremely important to the plot, he’s a fun character that provides some comic relief.
The guests of the show are unique and interesting characters, a cast of people you might see on a late-night show like this. Fayssal Bazzi plays Cristou, a cheesy and over-the-top stage psychic who gives us the first clues that something is going wrong with what seems to be an actual premonition, rather than the trickery he displayed earlier. Carmichael Hunt (Ian Bliss) is a former magician turned skeptic, offering $100,000 to anyone who can prove the existence of actual magic and another great character, one that plays off the other actors with some great snappy dialogue. The dynamic of the guests feels like something a producer might assemble to create conflict and drive ratings up, with Haig denying the supposed abilities of Cristou and the third guest.
That third guest, Lilly, is the girl possessed by the entity mentioned earlier. She survived the mass suicide of a Satanic cult, though not unharmed. She appears to be possessed by a demon she calls “Mr. Wriggles” and only retains the memory of her first name. The actress playing her, Ingrid Torelli, is unnerving both in her “possessed” state and as an empty, smiling young girl. She’s captivating and delivers one of the best performances in the movie alongside Dastmalchian. Dr. June Ross-Mitchell, a self-proclaimed “parapsychologist,” is the author of a book about Lilly. Her backstage conflicts with Delroy, who refuses to listen to her claims that communing with the entity through Lilly is dangerous, and Hunt, who attempts to disprove the supernatural happenings, are some of the better scenes in the film before the climax takes things up to 10.
The design of the film, from the set to costuming to the camera angles, feels like you’re transported to the 70s. There’s one scene with charmingly obvious practical effects, and the film feels like a loving homage to the bygone era of talk shows like this and possession horror classics. There are clear homages to “The Exorcist” throughout the film in the design of Lilly under possession, projectile vomiting, and even the name the young girl gives to the thing inhabiting her body is reminiscent of Regan’s “Captain Howdy.” While the film could be considered gimmicky, it fully embraces the tone and feel of the era in which it’s set.
While not a horror comedy, the writing and directing team of Colin and Cameron Cairnes do manage to inject doses of humor in the banter between the guests. It’s not a relentlessly dark horror, and you can feel the love for the genre emanating from almost every frame. While the film is a slow burn, it’s never boring and runs a brisk 92 minutes.
However, the film generated controversy with generative AI art for brief title cards before and after commercials. The designs, as stated by the directors, were used as an experiment by the graphics team and were touched up after the fact. No jobs were replaced, but the use of AI as supplemental tools is something that the film industry must confront.
The excellent performances and meticulously crafted tone elevate this movie to what will likely be a yearly Halloween viewing for me and many others. The originality of the concept and the love for the genre from everyone in the crew make this one of the best horrors of the year.
“Late Night with the Devil” is out now in theaters and will be streaming on Shudder April 19. It is rated R.
