In a world where we are besieged with remakes, reboots, sequels, prequels, franchises and continuing sagas, it is so nice--and rare--to see an original film to come along, especially it being a comedy. I have to say, "Late Night" is probably one of the best films so far this summer, and one of the best comedies I've seen in a while.
Katherine Newbury (Emma Thompson) is a pioneer and legendary host on the late-night talk-show circuit. When she's accused of being a "woman who hates women", she puts affirmative action on the to-do list, and--presto!--Molly Patel (Mindy Kaling) is hired as the one woman in Katherine's all-male writers' room. But Molly might be too little too late, as the formidable Katherine also faces the reality of low ratings and a network that wants to replace her, specifically by network executive, Caroline Morton (Amy Ryan). Wanting to prove she's not merely a diversity hire who's disrupting the comfort of the 'brotherhood' which includes Charlie (Hugh Dancy), Tom (Reid Scott), Brad (Denis O'Hare), Burditt (Max Casella) and others, Molly is determined to help Katherine revitalize her show and career--and possibly effect even bigger change at the same time.
Others to round out the cast are John Lithgow as Walter Lovell, husband of Katherine, Paul Walter Hauser as Mancuso, a writer, John Early as Reynolds, another writer, Ike Barinholtz as Daniel Tennant, a stand-up comic and Luke Slattery as Hayes.
Even though this director has been directing for a number of years, she has a vast amount of TV to her credit. Nisha Ganatra ("Chutney Popcorn" '99, "Fast Food High" '03, "Cosmopolitan" (TV movie) '03, "Cake" '05, "The Hunters" (TV movie) '13, "Pete's Christmas" (TV movie) '13) plus tons of TV and shorts, has honed her talent as a very delineating director out there. Her characters come across as real people even though this is a comedy, which sometimes can house characters that are a bit over-the-top. Even though she is a female director--a position that traditionally accompanies males--I can't help but think that she isn't better than her male counterpart, but rather came across as a direct equal, whether she is a female or male. It was wittingly and cleverly written by virtual newcomer to feature films, Mindy Kaling ("Mindy and Brenda" (TV movie) '06) plus an ample amount of TV. Other than a couple of very small places of inconsistencies, this storyline and script simply soared. It was a tight, well thought-out screenplay coupling this young, green writer (Kaling) with her personal and professional life with pathos and realness. If I was to akin this with any other film, it would be that of "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" '02--not the storyline, but that this film was written and starred the same person as did the other film-- Nia Vardalos writing and starring in that film, plus they both are young newer writers to feature films. This was a smart, slickly written story about the pitfalls and politics of behind the scenes of talk shows whether night or daytime. If Kaling ever decided to leave acting, she could write full time easily and we, the audience would be better for it.
If a smart, slick comedy is something you are into, this film is definitely for you. It certainly beats the so-called comedies that are inane, banal and takes its audience by the juggler to shock them into laughing--which isn't funny. This is fresh and original which should woo any filmgoer that's tired of reboots, sequels and franchises.
Out of 4 Stars: 3.5 Rated: R 102mins.
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