— ladies and gentlemen, please stay tuned for a live television first...as we attempt to commune with the devil. but not before a word from our sponsors.

day eight of hooptober! late night with the devil blends found footage with faux-broadcast aesthetics in a way that feels both nostalgic and uncanny. the premise is simple but brilliant: a struggling talk show host tries to revive his failing career with a halloween night special…and accidentally opens the door to something darker. lowkey the time where i’m posting this is also very crazy given what’s going on with late night talk show hosts in america...but allow me summon all my energy to write these notes:

from the start, i love the journalistic introduction, which reminded me of the fantastic four: first steps with its loredropping methodology. i love the late 1970s and how it gave way to the whole satanic panic of the 1980s. the grainy television broadcast format absolutely works. the commercial breaks, the sponsor spots, the “this was recovered footage” framing all sell the perfect illusion. it felt like watching a cursed vhs tape someone bootlegged in 1977, which really added to the creeping dread. the way it immaculately curated the retro horror vibe reminded me of the love witch, which also does this successfully.

the lead performance is so strong. david dastmalchian (finally getting his flowers with a lead role) absolutely nails the smarmy, desperate charisma of a talk show host clinging to relevance. he’s both pathetic and magnetic, which makes the unraveling even juicier. i thought it was hilarious cos his name is jack (and that’s my friend’s name) and his wife’s name was madeleine (which is like my name)

i loved the way the practical fx and analog tricks were used to escalate the horror. there’s body horror, demonic possession, oozy gore, all staged with a flair that feels like a love letter to 70s horror while still keeping it modern enough to unsettle. i loved the scenes with the psychic medium, although it kinda employed the magic poc trope, which is a bit tired but also i’d take it over the sacrificial poc trope any day. but unfortunately, this did not pass the test for that either lmao (rip christou) i hated how barry was clowning on em. the edmond scene was touching though and i liked the inclusion of the skeptic for some depth of flavour and antagonism beyond the obvious antagonist of the film (reread the title if you don’t know)

thematically, it’s about media exploitation and ambition: what happens when you’ll do anything for ratings. there’s something chilling about how quickly entertainment crosses into cruelty, and how the camera never looks away. giving network by way of the exorcist. i could see this making a sick double feature with videodrome for media and consumption or even the love witch for its retro aesthetics

the third act goes off the rails in a way that some might find too much, but for me, that unhinged escalation was the point. television is spectacle, and this film leans all the way into it. i also LOVED the ending wowww

overall, late night with the devil is a wickedly clever slice of retro-vibed horror. it’s campy, creepy, and eerily relevant in an age where spectacle and exploitation still dominate screens, just on different platforms. this film was such an interesting take on the found footage genre, and i’m grateful to my uni ex for mentioning this one to me once upon a time.