Late Night with the Devil

Late Night with the Devil (2024)

96% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 142 reviews)

Runtime: 93 minutes

Directed by: Cameron Cairnes/Colin Cairnes

Starring: David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon, Ian Bliss, Ingrid Torelli, Rhys Auteri

From: An absurd amount of companies

Warning: this movie was like catnip for my particular tastes! Note that this will be a longer review than typical; a big reason is that the 800 pound demon in the room has to be addressed, and that is a trio of AI images that were used as interstitials during the faux program they presented. Now, I am NOT endorsing the filmmakers deciding to create those images when they otherwise had nice production design where human beings brought the 1970’s to life. At the same time… as far as I can see, this was only discovered when some random person on Film Twitter used a computer program (the irony) to determine that an image from the movie even was AI. 

From there, a massive overreaction happened, with too many-and not just on Twitter, admittedly-frothing at the mouth, calling for boycotts and bootlegging, as if the filmmakers had sacrificed a baby to Satan! I can comprehend that not everyone reading this will agree, but I am still baffled at all those people wanting to burn the print of the film just because of THREE images in a misguided effort on the filmmakers’ part.

If someone would discard my opinion on this topic, offense won’t be taken. It is a fact that the film interested me when info first appeared online last year. A faux broadcast of a late-nite talk show that competed w/ Johnny Carson which featured a possessed girl on Halloween, 1977… already you had me sold. Never did I think it’d be something I could witness on the big screen, let alone it receive wide theatrical release in the United States.

However, a key character as an obvious haughty, arrogant version of the late magician turned skeptic James Randi—the film was keyed in just for me. Some deep Randi lore was used also… I might be the only one who has ever heard of the Stanford Research Institute; no, they are not connected with Stanford University (I’m sure they were mortified at the implied association) but instead were a pseudoscience institute. It was like they injected this movie straight into my veins!

Heck, none other than Michael Ironside narrated the opening which explained the backstory of Jack Delroy, host of a network late talk show that competed with The Tonight Show and thus lost in the ratings battle. The rest of the film was found footage of a show from Halloween 1977 mixed with footage that wasn’t during the commercial breaks. The fuse slowly burned as the characters were presented, including the goofball band leader Gus, Not James Randi (i.e. Carmichael Haig), possessed teen Lilly and her handler June. Other hallmarks of the period appeared, including a Satanic cult.

The movie isn’t without nitpicks. After all, the digital effects sometimes looked unrealistic, and the movie takes a turn in the final 5 minutes which left me flummoxed until the purpose of that turn was revealed. I am still not 100% with that decision but as Late Night with the Devil looked the part, was paced like a 70’s film, escalated well, featured some hilarious-looking people who had a 1970’s appearance, and for those that like the WNUF Halloween Special but wish for more graphic moments…

The film will be on Shudder next month. I was happy for this unexpected theatrical experience. At home, I can determine the exact amount of production logos that appeared before the movie began. It was somewhere between eight and eleven! Independent movies by their nature will have a few different companies involved. However, I’d never seen a film with so many; some in the crowd laughed & I’ve heard others at different screenings felt the same way.