CAGED - Late Night With the Devil and Television Terror

Note: Lukewarm spoilers for both films are present and account for.

LIGHTS! CAMERA! BLOODBATH!

Ratings aren't the greatest. Times are desperate. A decision is made to delve into the paranormal. On LIVE TV. All hell breaks loose.

Today's cage match bear hug will be between 1990's Tales From The Crypt classic, Television Terror, and 2023's cult classic-bound Late Night With The Devil.


THE HOSTS

T.T's host is a real ghoul, and no, I'm not referring to the cryptkeeper. Horton Rivers (Morton Downey, Jr) is a Geraldo-esque on-location TV man, who needs a boost in ratings. On the anniversary of a horrible mass murder/suicide, he opts to live broadcast the first glimpses inside the abandoned property, which is rumored to be haunted.
Horton's arrogance earns him the ire and collective eye-rolls of his crew, in particular Producer Sam, who was unfortunate enough to share a bed with him. Horton is hopeful that the Ada Ritter house of horror will be an ideal entry to his week's schedule, which also includes nude nuns, photographers capturing dead celebrities, and a special on breast implants. I'm not joking.

LNWTD's host, Jack Delroy (David Dastmalchian), is definitely the opposite end of the spectrum, if only on the surface. He has exhausted from coming up short in the ratings behind Carson time and again. Including his dying wife in a special still isn't enough to skunk the king. He's not without his horror charms, though. He has links to a Bohemian Grove-esque owl cult for the elite, and has an appropriately haunted demeanor, following his wife's passing.
Jack's hope lies in a very special child with a horrific backstory. A live halloween special could finally put him above Carson and save his failing show.

THE MAIN EVENT

Ada Ritter of Television Terror was pretty hardcore. She hosted a gang of seniors in her boarding house, and resorted to murdering them for their social security checks. She chainsawed up the bodies and buried them unceremoniously behind a hole in her basement wall, and committed suicide in the house. Cut to 5 years later, and Horton, along with trusty cameraman Trip, venture into the house, despite the warnings of a local psychic, whom he dismissed as too 'mortician' looking for his show.
The first 2 floors are pretty tame. It's not until the duo reach the top floor that things get spicy. Protip: when a disembodied voice calls out "help me!" In a sealed house, that should be your cue to get the fuck out.
Atypical horror tropes ensue, complete with J Peter Robinson's incredible score. Banging doors, electronic devices going bananas, and blood seeping from the walls. Upon discovering Trip's suddenly hanged body in the broadcast, the producer gets to deliver the money shot line, "Horton, who's holding the camera?!"

Late Night's Lilly is a bit of a sad case. Bred for the purpose of growing into a teenage virgin sacrifice for a satanic cult, Lilly even suffered the indignation of not even getting a prime time Anton Lavey cult, and kind of belongs to the Great Value brand version instead.
After police intervene and the church is burned down, Lilly is found to be the lone survivor.
Enter Dr June (Laura Gordon), the academic with a heart of gold, who has a protective hold on Lilly, especially when she's discovered to be possessed. Using his wits (and another part of his anatomy), Jack convinces June to bring Lilly on the show, despite June's pleas to call it off.
Lilly's appearance goes exactly as expected. Facial prosthetics, monotone voice tracks, and cryptic comments toward Jack ensue.

THE FOIL

What more horror could Horton encounter, after a dead cam jockey, a horde of pissed off dead seniors, and a chainsaw wielding ghost of a mass murderer? You guessed it, THE JILTED LOVER.
Sam, fresh off of getting publicly insulted by Horton, has a conundrum. Horton is pleading to be plucked from the house via a security team, however, the ratings are through the roof. She coldly makes the decision to leave him inside to fend for himself, and, well...

Jack's foils come in droves. June's pleas to pull the plug are a given. His sidekick Gus wishes to move beyond playing with the demonic. His producer just really, really, wants to suck up to the good people at Cavendish for further sponsorship. Most interesting is the wonderfully acted Carmichael Haig (Ian Bliss), who smugly declares his disbelief in all things paranormal, up to and including denouncing Lilly and June as frauds. His arc is very well done, and feels like a unholy cross between Houdini and Stephen Kaplan (of the Amityville Hoax fame). Watching Bliss play off of Dastmalchian's insecurely  objective Jack is a joy to watch.


THE AFTERMATH

Horton tangles with ghost of Lady Ritter long enough to spike the ratings. However, Nielsen is no match for Stihl, and it goes as expected. Nobody dares return to the house, and Horton's crew become unemployed.

Jack and company opt to disregard the warnings and proceed on with Lilly, resulting an a very flashy display of power. The buildup to tragedy is masterfully done, and the viewer is pulled right into the Night Owls nightmare. The final minutes are so perfectly done, I can even forgive the slight diversion from the found footage concept that worked so well.
Dastmalchian et al absolutely encompass their roles, and add depth that you wouldn't normally find so much of in a 90 minute ride. It also touches on some great notes of the price of fame, exploitation in the media, perception vs manipulation, and even casts a veneer of objectivity over the very topic it's using to frighten and entertain with.

Does evil exist? Can it be live recorded? And most importantly, can we exploit it for a profit?