Late Night with the Devil (MA 15+)

Delightfully dark, Late Night with the Devil proves possession horror isn't played out - and serves as an outstanding showcase for David Dastmalchian.

October 31, 1977. Johnny Carson rival, Jack Delroy, is the host of ‘Night Owls’, a once hugely popular syndicated talk show. A year on from the tragic death of Jack’s wife, ratings have plummeted, and sponsors are getting nervous. Desperate to turn his fortunes around, Jack pulls out all the stops for his annual Halloween special, booking a psychic, a professional skeptic, a parapsychologist, and a young girl allegedly possessed by the devil... What could possibly go wrong?

Writer-director duo Colin and Cameron Cairnes craft a suspenseful narrative that unfolds mostly in real time, as the ‘Night Owls' broadcast makes surprising turns from the amusing to the bizarre to the deliciously sinister. In his first major lead role, David Dastmalchian brings compelling charisma and gravitas to the character of Jack Delroy. At its core Late Night with the Devil is a tale about the cult of personality and the price of fame...with plenty of supernatural thrills along the way.

Cast: David Dastmalchian, Fayssal Bazzi, Laura Gordon, Ian BlissIngrid Torelli, Rhys Auteri, Josh Quong Tart, Georgina Haig

Directors: Colin Cairnes, Cameron Cairnes

★★★★½ "It’s Dastmalchian’s light touch which really makes it work." EYE FOR FILM

★★★★ "Horror addicts and nostalgia buffs will relish this spooky Aussie film" SMH

★★★★ "Australian brothers Cameron and Colin Cairnes deliver satire and shocks in this gleeful sendup of 70s network talkshows" GUARDIAN

★★★★ "Engrossing, twisted fun that somehow elicits an uproarious laugh during the climactic terror. It’s a compelling study of the sins people will commit for fame and fortune" FLICKERING MYTH

★★★★ "Throwing elements of the Watergate scandal, the Manson family and The Exorcist into the mix, the Cairnes suggest a United States so used to being manipulated, it has no idea who it can trust anymore." TOTAL FILM

★★★★ "The cheesy and nostalgic style of a seventies talk show is the perfect vehicle to deliver the dark story within" METRO UK "Taking the “found footage” subsect of the horror genre and giving it a healthy twist as to not fall too heavily on expected tropes, Australian filmmaking duo Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes have occasionally nasty, always unbridled fun." AU REVIEW

★★★★ "A spine-tingling and inventive found footage that grabs your attention and never lets go." SMASH CUT REVIEWS