Australian cinema is in the middle of an unprecedented run of innovative, entertaining, and globally successful horror films. Late Night with the Devil, from writer/directors Colin and Cameron Cairnes, is the one of the more recent examples. It offers a relatively unique experience to audiences, and has been developed with a smart sense of cultural pastiche. While some elements are more successful that others it is clear, on balance, that the film’s strengths outweigh those weaknesses. For horror enthusiasts it is a hell of a lot of fun.

In the early 1980s television personality Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian) hosts a late night talk show suffering from declining ratings. He has recently returned to the job after the death from cancer of his celebrity wife. During a Halloween-themed episode, and in a desperate attempt to build his audience, Delroy hosts parapsychologist June Ross-Mitchell (Laura Gordon) and her subject: a seemingly possessed young woman named Lilly (Ingrid Torelli).

Late Night with the Devil‘s greatest strength is honestly also its greatest weakness. The film is presented as found footage, combining an alleged videotape of the broadcast episode with behind the scenes material shot during advertising breaks. While it impressively developed and designed, it does mean that for much of the film’s first half it resembles a slightly tedious variety show packed with corny banter. On the one hand it is a credit to the Cairnes that their film replicates an old age of popular television so effectively. That said, an accurate reproduction of a tiresome chat show is, for the audience’s purposes, rather tiresome to watch.

It is only once Delroy pushes June and Lilly to demonstrate possession that the film picks up and the tension builds. As is often the case with found footage cinema, it begins to cheat a little by the end, but not so much that it spoils things. While the first half could definitely benefit from being a little shorter, the remainder of the film more than makes up for the wait.

David Dastmalchian is superb as Jack Delroy. As the film’s protagonist, and with a tragic back story, he easily gains the audience’s affections. As the film progresses, however, he begins to lose our trust: Dastmalchian plays the character smoothly over the course of the film. That nuance and consistency is a highlight of the film.

Gordon and Torelli are also excellent in their respective roles, however Ian Bliss is a distraction as the overly theatrical and hammy Carmichael Haig; a stage magician turned professional skeptic. It is a part inspired by a real-life personality James Randi from Australian television. Regardless of its roots the character jars in context.

One of the surprises of the film is its humour. There is a deliberate absurdity to the piece, one that encourages the audience to laugh from time to time. It is particularly of use during the early scenes, where the fastidious recreation of 1970s television lends itself to comedy. It also allows for a fairly strong contrast in tone once the supernatural elements begin to emerge.

Imperfect but inventive, Late Night with the Devil is another excellent example of Australia’s horror renaissance. It is a great time to be a horror enthusiast down under.