Director: Colin and Cameron Cairnes
Screenplay: Colin and Cameron Cairnes
Starring: David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordo, IIan Bliss, Fayssal Bazzi, Ingrid Torelli and Rhys Auteri
Country: Australia, United Arab Nations, United States
Running Time: 93 min
Year: 2024
To say that I have conflicted feelings on Late Night with the Devil would be one of the biggest understatements ever. When the film was initially announced a couple of years back and I heard that Lake Mungo director Joel Anderson was executively producing the film, that almost sold me then and there. I wasn’t too familiar with directors Colin and Cameron Cairnes’ work, but with the premise of a Ghostwatch-esque TV broadcast gone wrong, what could… well, go wrong?
All seemed well and good until the first trailer released and people were concerned that the film used generative AI for some interstitials but it’s a trailer, maybe that’s something that distributor Shudder included for promotional purposes. It happens, as seen with films like Alex Garland’s Civil War. Do I like it? Absolutely not, but as long as it wasn’t present in the film, it wouldn’t affect my enjoyment. Then the film was released in the UK. Letterboxd user (and overall cool person) based gizmo posts what’s now the most liked review for the film on the entire platform highlighting that it’s not a trailer issue and indeed, the film uses generative AI throughout the feature and social media goes wild. The directors issue a statement about how they only experimented with it before the SAG-AFTRA strikes and they didn’t know how big of an issue it would be for them, but they were sticking by their guns and not editing the film to please a few detractors. This entire ordeal made me lose interest in seeing, or more importantly, supporting the film.
It wasn’t until the film hit Prime a few months later, that I watched it at a friend’s house so I could experience the film and was left mostly underwhelmed but once Second Sight announced that they were releasing the film on 4K UHD and Blu-ray, I figured I’d request a screener to see if my opinions changed on the film as a whole. Well…
Late Night with the Devil follows talk show host Jack Delroy’s final late-night broadcast in 1977, an extremely controversial affair. If you’re familiar with the aforementioned Ghostwatch, a made-for-TV film that shocked UK audiences and tricked many into believing it was real, despite being part of the anthology series Screen One, you’ll have an idea on what Late Night is attempting to replicate. Throughout the broadcast, which starts out as you’d expect, strange events begin occurring and without getting into spoilers, things take a turn for the worst in ways you’d never expect.
Late Night with the Devil, AI usage aside is one of the most underwhelming horror films I’ve seen in quite some time. Is it terrible? Not really. But the missed potential throughout is excruciatingly painful. Despite trying to make the audience believe that we’re watching a real master tape, the entire presentation of the film is strangely glossy and modern, never feeling like something that was shot in the 1970s and more so something that was shot digitally with a light filter thrown on top, because that’s exactly what was done. There’s shots throughout that feel inauthentic to how a TV broadcast would be shot, specifically towards the third-act that break the believability even more than the digital sheen present throughout and even the audio mix feels more akin to a modern horror flick, which is greatly disappointing. Some people might think I’m nit-picking, but when there’s other examples out there of films that commit to the bit, it really makes the overall experience more impactful.
Still, I could forgive elements of the presentation if anything that was being shown truly shocked me, but the entire experience is mostly joyless and honestly, quite dull. Rhys Auteri’s performance as Delroy’s sidekick Gus is a favourite, given how authentically dorky Rhys plays the entire thing, and he feels like one of the few people to truly nail the assignment. Delroy himself is played by David Dastmalchian, a character actor who I’m a big fan of, despite his messy filmography. He always brings his A-game and while I don’t think he’s given a whole lot to work with here, he’s doing a fine job. Michael Ironside narrates the opening and elevates the otherwise forgettable prologue. Other supporting actors include Ian Bliss as Carmichael Haig, a ridiculous caricature of a sceptic that falls flat in almost every single scene, Ingrid Torelli as Lilly D’Abo, a young girl who’s the basis for the Halloween episode of the talk show and Fayssal Bazzi as Christou, a psychic who’s equally as unbelievable as Haig. I’m all for campy performance in films, but again, when you’re trying to sell me on the fact that this is an authentic 70s broadcast, make it believable!
The film has occasional moments that I enjoyed, particularly in the back half when things go completely off the rails and while it never feels completely fresh or original, it’s clear that there’s effort put into the haunted house-type vibes that the Cairnes brothers were going for. When practical effects are on display, they look alright but the light filter makes them look more digital than practical, which is a shame. Thankfully, there’s a behind-the-scenes extra included on this release that highlights some of the more practical aspects of the film, which only made me wish they looked as good in the final product as they do in the extras.
If you know me, it’s no secret that I despise the usage of generative AI in the film. Using it for interstitials that could have been created by a human person, for a couple hundred dollars at the most, instead of letting a machine squirt out something ghastly and horrific in all of the wrong ways, wouldn’t have been difficult. I don’t think it’s something that should be given a pass in any way and it only promotes the usage of it in the future. It’s something that made me shudder in ways that weren’t intentional and left a sour taste in my mouth during both of my viewings.
Would I have loved the film if AI hadn’t been used? If you’ve read my thoughts to this point, then I’m sure you can tell that it wouldn’t have but I’d have at least been rooting for the film more. Even if it didn’t win me over with its visual flair, the scares or many of the performances, it would have been a horror piece that was lovingly crafted by hand, by hundreds of people. That’s almost the case for the film, until it was decided to use the easy method to create something that any human being could have done, far better, might I add.
It may seem like I’m being overly harsh on Late Night with the Devil, but it’s something that feels derivative, lazy and most importantly, unsatisfying as a horror fan. It’s full of mostly unmemorable performances, scares that don’t work and again, uses artificial intelligence in a gross way that it affected both viewings for me. I know I’m in the minority on this one and if the concept sounds up your alley, you might have a great time with this one but as it stands, it’s one of the biggest disappointments of the year for me and my multiple viewings have only solidified my thoughts on it.
Film: 
Late Night With the Devil releases on Limited Edition 4K UHD and Blu-ray, as well as standalone Blu-ray and 4K UHD releases on October 28th. I viewed the 4K UHD release and found it conflicting. On the surface, there’s nothing inherently wrong with the release, it maintains fantastic bit-rates throughout and the 5.1 DTS-HD MA audio track is stellar but I can’t say that the UHD format benefits a film like Late Night. Given that the entire film is trying to recreate the late 70s talk show format, it doesn’t really get to show off the format’s best qualities outside of a nice Dolby Vision HDR grade. The Blu-ray will work for the majority of people and I can only recommend the 4K UHD for die-hard fans of the film. The following extras are included:
Special Features
Dual format edition including both UHD and Blu-ray with main feature and bonus features on both discs
UHD presented in HDR with Dolby Vision
New audio commentary by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson
Bringing Their ‘A’ Game: an interview with Directors’ Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes
Mind if I Smoke?: an interview with Actor Ian Bliss
We’re Gonna Make a Horror Movie: an interview with Actor Ingrid Torelli
Extremely Lucky: an interview with Actor Rhys Auteri
Cult Hits: Zoë Rose Smith on Late Night with the Devil
Behind the Scenes with the Devil
The Making of the Night Owls Music
South by Southwest 2023 Q&A with David Dastmalchian, Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes
Limited Edition Contents
Rigid slipcase with new artwork by Haley Turnbull
120-page book with behind the scenes images, storyboards and new essays by Kat Hughes, James Rose, Rebecca Sayce, Graham Skipper, Julieann Stipidis and Emma Westwood
6 collectors’ art cards
The brand new audio commentary by Alexandra Heller-Nicholas and Josh Nelson is a fun listen, as to be expected from the pair. It’s an analytical track, diving into the themes of Late Night, the director’s prior work and their influences, as well as Australian genre films and their inclusion of US actors, from Roadgames’ inclusion of Jamie Lee Curtis and now David Dastmalchian in Late Night. It’s a jam-packed audio commentary that’s highly worth your time.
Bringing Their ‘A’ Game is a brand new thirty eight minute interview with Late Night’s directors Colin and Cameron Cairnes who give an overview of their careers before Late Night, how Lake Mungo director Joel Anderson helped attract producers to the project and how David Dastmalchian became attached to the project. The pair go through the casting process for the other supporting characters too and the rules they had when shooting the late night segments. They touch on influences such as Network and The King of Comedy too. Unfortunately, but perhaps unsurprisingly, the pair don’t touch on the AI controversy in the interview. Overall, it’s a solid interview but there’s a few areas I wish were covered more, but it’ll please fans of the film.
Mind if I Smoke? is a brand new twelve minute interview with actor Ian Bliss, who plays Carmichael Haig in the film and he touches on how he became attached to the film. Initially, he was cast in a smaller role and ended up getting the far larger role of Haig in Late Night. He has nothing but praise for the directors and actors such as Dastmalchian and it’s a fairly breezy, fun interview. It’s always nice to see actors who don’t look down on horror, and it’s clear that Bliss understands the artistry of the genre. A solid interview.
We’re Gonna Make a Horror Movie is a brand new twelve minute interview with actor Ingrid Torelli, who plays Lilly D’Abo in the film. She talks about how she became attached to the production, her early work in television and short films and her love for playing weird people, which led to her getting the role in Late Night. D’Abo hadn’t seen much horror before the role and specifically decided to avoid watching many horror films before production so she wouldn’t have to base her performance on other people’s work, which was interesting. Overall, it’s another fun interview that’s worth watching!
Extremely Lucky is a brand new fifteen minute interview with actor Rhys Auteri, who plays Gus McConnell in the film and talks about how he got the role and how he didn’t believe he’d initially get cast. McConnell’s a delight to listen to and given that it’s his first feature film performance, you can tell how excited he was at the prospect of working on Late Night. By far my favourite interview on the disc!
Cult Hits is a 25 minute video essay, exclusive to this release where writer Zoë Rose Smith offers her perspective on the film, highlighting cult mentality in the 70s and how that fear is utilised to create tension in Late Night. I’ve seen a handful of Smith’s video essays before and this one’s equally as compelling as the Possessor video essay she did. Highly worth a watch!
Behind the Scenes with the Devil is a twenty one minute featurette which takes viewers behind the scenes with on-set footage of the cast and crew working to bring the film to life. There’s some great footage here, particularly when showcasing the practical effects used in the film. Fans will get a kick out of this.
The Making of the Night Owls Music is an eight minute fly-on-the-wall piece with composers Glenn Richards and Roscoe James Irwin in the studio as they work on the music for the film. It’s a really charming piece that highlights the effort and talent that went into creating the talk show’s music.
The South by Southwest 2023 Q&A with David Dastmalchian, Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes runs for around eight and a half minutes and it’s an alright watch. The quality of the Q&A is pretty lacklustre, with the person recording breathing and messing with the camera throughout the eight minutes and it’s slightly distracting, but it’s a neat inclusion for people who want to hear more from the team behind the film.
I wasn’t provided with the slipcase, book or art-cards so I can’t comment on those, but I assume they’re up to Second Sight’s typically excellent standards.While I wasn’t a fan of the film, even on a rewatch, Second Sight has gone all out, as you’d expect for their release of Late Night with the Devil. While it’s difficult to recommend the UHD release over Blu-ray, purely for how unnecessary it feels given the aesthetic of the film, either release contains a great assortment of extras and from the looks of things, the limited edition looks great too. Recommended for fans of the film, easily.
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