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Late Night (film)

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Late Night
Theatrical release poster
Directed byNisha Ganatra
Written byMindy Kaling
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMatthew Clark
Edited byEleanor Infante
Music byLesley Barber
Production
companies
Distributed byAmazon Studios
Release dates
  • January 25, 2019 (2019-01-25) (Sundance)
  • June 7, 2019 (2019-06-07) (United States)
Running time
102 minutes[1][2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$249,654[3]

Late Night is a 2019 American comedy-drama film directed by Nisha Ganatra from a screenplay by Mindy Kaling. It stars Emma Thompson, Kaling, Max Casella, Hugh Dancy, John Lithgow, Denis O'Hare, Reid Scott, and Amy Ryan. The plot follows the host of a late-night talk show who teams up with one of her new staff writers in an attempt to save the show.

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2019, and was theatrically released in the United States on June 7, 2019 by Amazon Studios.

Premise

Legendary talk-show host Katherine Newbury (Emma Thompson) is a pioneer in her field. The only woman ever to have a long-running program on late night, she keeps her writers’ room on a short leash ― and all male. But when her ratings plummet and she is accused of being a “woman who hates women,” Katherine puts gender equality on her to-do list and impulsively hires Molly Patel (Mindy Kaling), a chemical plant efficiency expert from suburban Pennsylvania, as the first and only female on her writing staff.

With rumors swirling that Katherine is being replaced by a younger, hipper male host, she demands that the writers make her funny and relevant again. A lifelong fan, Molly is determined to prove she’s not just a diversity hire, but the one person who can turn her idol’s career around. Going against everything Katherine has staked her reputation on, she urges her to make the show more contemporary, authentic and personal, a move that could make Molly’s career ― or send her back to the chemical plant for good.

Cast

Production

In September 2016, it was reported that Fox 2000 had bought the rights to the project, which was written by Mindy Kaling, who was also set to costar in it alongside Emma Thompson.[4][5] In November 2016, Paul Feig signed on to direct the film.[6] However, in August 2017, Nisha Ganatra was announced to direct the film when Feig dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.[7]

In February 2018, it was reported that, in a pre-2018 Berlin Film Festival movie, 30West and FilmNation Entertainment would co-finance the film and sell distribution rights.[8][9] In April 2018, John Lithgow, Hugh Dancy, Reid Scott, Paul Walter Hauser, Denis O’Hare, John Early, Max Casella and Megalyn Echikunwoke joined the cast, with filming commencing April 23, 2018 in New York.[8][9][10][11][12] Amy Ryan joined the cast in May.[13]

Release

Late Night had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2019.[14] Shortly after, Amazon Studios acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film for $13 million, the largest sum paid for U.S.-only distribution at the festival.[15]

The film was released in the United States on June 7, 2019.[16] In May 2019, it was announced the film would begin with a limited run in Los Angeles and New York City on the planned June 7 date before going wide the following week.[17]

Reception

Box office

In its limited opening weekend the film made $249,694 from four theaters, for a per-venue average of $62,414, the second-best of 2019.[18]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 82% based on 130 reviews, with an average rating of 6.81/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Smart, timely, and brought to life by a terrific cast, Late Night is a workplace comedy with a lot of heart – and just as many laughs."[19] On Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, the film has a normalized score of 72 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[20]

Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly praises Emma Thompson's performance, saying her "gravitas holds the center" and that "the best scenes in Late Night are consistently the ones where the movie’s main stars spar and banter and intermittently connect". Greenblatt praises director Nisha Ganatra for refreshing and classic rom-com tropes but that the tone is at times "scattershot and sometimes too sitcom-ish."[21] Alissa Wilkinson of Vox.com says "Late Night is a workplace comedy that feels like a cousin of The Devil Wears Prada, and its greatest strength is its two lead characters". Wilkinson says: "Late Night feels underwritten in some spots, but it’s surprising in others — an unfussy, entertaining comedy with some serious matters on its mind."[22] Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair calls it "a genial, funny movie, not a mile-a-minute behind-the-cameras gag-fest (hyphens!) like 30 Rock, but an amiable workplace comedy that finds personal definition in its influences.[23] Sheila O'Malley of RogerEbert.com gives the film 3+1⁄2 out of 4 stars, describing the film as "An earnest and funny comedy, with very sharp teeth."[24]

References

  1. ^ "Late Night". Sundance Film Festival. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
  2. ^ "LATE NIGHT (15)". British Board of Film Classification. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  3. ^ "Late Night (2019)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  4. ^ "Fox 2000 Nabs Mindy Kaling's Hot Late-Night Talk Show Script (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  5. ^ Kroll, Justin (28 September 2016). "Mindy Kaling, Emma Thompson to Star in Late-Night Talk Show Film (EXCLUSIVE)". variety.com. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  6. ^ Lang, Brent (3 November 2016). "Paul Feig in Talks to Direct Mindy Kaling Comedy (EXCLUSIVE)". variety.com. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  7. ^ Rebecca Ford (4 August 2017). "Mindy Kaling Comedy 'Late Night' Taps 'Transparent' Director (Exclusive)". hollywoodreporter.com. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  8. ^ a b McNary, Dave (6 February 2018). "30West, FilmNation Back Mindy Kaling-Emma Thompson's 'Late Night'". variety.com. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  9. ^ a b JEREMY KAY (6 February 2018). "Mindy Kaling, Emma Thompson to star in 'Late Night' for 30WEST, FilmNation". screendaily.com. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
  10. ^ N'Duka, Amanda (16 April 2018). "John Lithgow, Hugh Dancy & Others Join Mindy Kaling-Emma Thompson Comedy 'Late Night'". deadline.com. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  11. ^ Hipes, Patrick (24 April 2018). "Denis O'Hare & More Round Out Cast Of 'Late Night'". deadline.com. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  12. ^ McNary, Dave (24 April 2018). "Film News Roundup: Denis O'Hare, John Early Join Mindy Kaling's Comedy 'Late Night'". variety.com. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  13. ^ Andreas Wiseman (May 2, 2018). "Amy Ryan Joins Mindy Kaling And Emma Thompson In FilmNation-30West Talk Show Comedy 'Late Night'".
  14. ^ Debruge, Peter (November 28, 2018). "Sundance Film Festival Unveils 2019 Features Lineup". Variety. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  15. ^ Fleming Jr, Mike (January 26, 2019). "Amazon Closing Sundance Record $13M U.S. Rights Deal For 'Late Night'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  16. ^ Lang, Brent (February 28, 2019). "Mindy Kaling's 'Late Night' Opening in June". Variety. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  17. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 28, 2019). "Mindy Kaling's 'Late Night' Will Go Wide A Week Later". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 28, 2019.
  18. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (June 9, 2019). "'Secret Life Of Pets 2' Seeing $47M+, But 'Dark Phoenix' Up In Smoke With $32M+ In Lowest Opening For 'X-Men' Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  19. ^ "Late Night (2019)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  20. ^ "Late Night reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved June 9, 2019.
  21. ^ https://ew.com/movie-reviews/2019/06/06/late-night-review/
  22. ^ https://www.vox.com/culture/2019/2/4/18204837/late-night-review-mindy-kaling-emma-thompson
  23. ^ https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/01/late-night-movie-review-emma-thompson-mindy-kaling
  24. ^ https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/late-night-2019
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