BY KAREN BOSSICK
Spend a “Late Night with the Devil” on Friday, courtesy of the Sun Valley Film Festival.
The festival is showing the spine-tingling movie at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at The Argyros in Ketchum as part of its monthly film screenings.
Attendees are encouraged to don their Halloween costumes to win door prizes. Among them: Sun Valley Film Festival film passes and a Yeti cooler.
Those 21 and over can top off the horror-filled night with a complimentary devilishly delicious Tito’s Handmade Vodka concoction.
“Late Night with the Devil,” set on Halloween 1977, revolves around the syndicated talk show “Night Owls,” which is hosted by Jack Delroy, who happens to be Johnny Carson’s rival.
Delroy, played by David Dastmalchian of “The Suicide Squad” and “Oppenheimer,” is bent on saving his sinking show. He interviews a parapsychologist and the survivor of a Satanic church’s mass suicide. And pretty soon his attempts to drive ratings up take a dark turn with what is called “the live television event that shocked a nation.”
The film crafted by Australian writer-director duo Colin Cairnes and Cameron Cairnes, offers an immersive experience, blending the live television with the dark undertones of 1970s exorcism movies. Presented in found-footage style, iIt examines the links between fame and cult of personality, modern technology and the supernatural.
“It’s absolutely brilliant,” said horror author Steven King. “I couldn’t keep my eyes off it.”
That said, be forewarned, cautions Heather La Monica Deckard, managing director of the Sun Valley Film Festival: The movie is not for the faint of heart. It contains some violence, horror and twisted demonic fun. Trim your fingernails before you come because you’ll be clutching your significant other.
Tickets are $20, available at www.sunvalleyfilmfestival.org or at the door.