The new horror release,Late Night with the Devil, is set in a ’70s talk show TV studio, framed as a lost recording from a late-night show with devastating consequences.Diverting from the usual found-footage format, the movie doesn’t utilize shaky camera footage or limited visibility, instead creating a refined atmosphere and feeling of professionalism. However, this inversion of the found-footage expectations doesn’t take away from the essence of the subgenre.Late Night with the Devilretains its plausibility and has that feeling that you are watching something that really happened, which is crucial to the success of a found-footage feature.Late Night with the Devilis evidence that the subgenre doesn’t need to rely on conventions andshows there is space for originality and reinvention.
Late Night With the Devil
A live television broadcast in 1977 goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms.
Found-footage movies can be made on an extremely low budget as they don’t require highly stylized shots, and can succeed with just a single handheld camera. This means the subgenre has a low margin for box-office error and can reap large rewards. One of the most famous found-footage movies of all time,Paranormal Activity, wasoriginally made for only $15,000and made a staggering $193 million at the box office. Itchanged the business model of Blumhouseand became one of the most profitable movies of all time. The movie showcases the potential of found-footage, all shot on home video cameras and focusing on plausibility rather than action or gore. However, for all the success of the first movie, the franchise is now seven movies long andthe formula is turning stale. This ledParanormal Activityand its imitators to gather complaints aboutthe found-footage genre being seen as cheap and ineffective.
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However, there is no doubting the success of found-footage, and its effectiveness when done well. The limited set-up of the subgenre means it leans into its plausibility, which is most evident in the success ofThe Blair Witch Project.Released when the internet was in its early days,The Blair Witch Projecthad viewers uncovering the truth on forums and attempting to piece together whether the events of the movie actually happened.A genius marketing campaign partnered with cinematic techniquesthat leave the viewer’s imagination to spiral,The Blair Witch Projectshows how uncertainty and immersion are key to the success of found-footage. It showcased how consuming a successful found-footage movie could be and how much it can frighten audiences.
‘Late Night with the Devil’ Is Found-Footage - But Not How You’d Expect
Late Night with the Devilremoves the bad quality cameras and limited visibility of found-footage and replaces it with big studio cameras. It is framed as a lost tape recording from 1977 of the talk show “Night Owls.” The show sets the background of the 1970s as an era with increasing belief in the occult and the supernatural following conflict in the world and the public’s growing disillusion. Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) is the host of Night Owls, a show that has seen a massive drop in its ratings and is struggling to retain viewers. After losing his wife to cancer, Delroy’s show saw a slight increase, but that spike was not maintained, and it is clear to Jack and the producers that they must do something spectacular to keep the show going. The tape recording that makes upLate Night with the Devilis just that, a Halloween special that pushes the boundaries of live TV andends up being remembered for all the wrong reasons. Framing the movie as a lost tape recording means, by definition,Late Night with the Devilis found-footage, but its delivery breaks all the conventions of the genre.
Since the recording is not someone’s personal tape, it feels more archival and public. It isn’t filmed on a handheld camera and the footage isn’t grainy or shaky. Instead, the huge professional setting meansthe recording is polished and transparent in its delivery. Its believability isn’t in the natural and unrefined nature of professional camera equipment, it is in the structure and familiarity of the TV studio.The heightened moments of terror aren’t cut away from like what we usually see in found-footage movies, as the character behind the camera drops it out of fear. Instead, these terrifying shots are zoomed in on, capturing every detail.
‘Late Night with the Devil’ Still Retains The Fear Factor of Found-Footage
In saying all that, the directness of the wayLate Night with the Devilis shot does not take away from the film’s plausibility. Found-footage succeeds or fails in its believability, the audience has to see the recording as a real event.Late Night with the Devilachieves this in its creation of a familiar TV broadcast.It takes care in its set-up and doesn’t rush into the horror. From the cliché jokes between the host and the co-host, complete with a rim shot to signify the punchline, to the fast pacing, as Jack Delroy tries to get through the show and not overrun. When Christou, a psychic who is a guest of the show, appears to be getting ridiculed by an audience member, Jack quickly moves him on to see if he can hear any other spirits.It highlights his professionalismbut also makes the TV recording feel genuine.
The show also feels as though it is adapting in front of you, and production is deciding how to make the show the best it can be in real-time. The recorded footage inLate Night with the Devilis interspersed with behind-the-scenes shots, which is just as important in maintaining the movie’s momentum.These segments feel rushed and busy, with frantic moments and fleeting conversations. Everything is incomplete and relates to the short time in between being live when important decisions are made. You feel the weight of the mere minutes the producers have to tie up the incidents of the previous segment and keep the show rolling.
Late Night with the Devilproves that the found-footage genre doesn’t need to rely on dark environments with handheld cameras and limited visibility to succeed. Instead, the subgenre works when the audience is fully immersed and feels they are watching something factual, something that really happened.Late Night with the Deviltakes the essence of what makes found-footage so terrifying and does something completely new in its execution, proving thatthe subgenre is not limited to nighttime shots of woods and grainy bedrooms.
Late Night with the Devilis out now in theaters.
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