Late Night review – Emma Thomspon and Mindy Kaling deliver grit and wit

Give Emma Thompson a clever script and you’re bound to get an honest, no-holds-barred performance from this veteran English actress.

Thompson is mesmerising as TV personality Katherine Newbury, who rules the late night American TV slot with an iron will and a sharp bent for comedy and whose straight-talking persona has made her a household name in the industry.

Masterly scripted by Mindy Kaling, who is also a co-star in Nish Ginatra’s production, Late Night, has a great deal to say about television and the people behind the scenes.

Emma Thompson in ‘Late Night’. Picture: Emily Aragones

Ruled by ratings and audience support, these talk shows are forced to jostle for prime-time viewership and those that don’t succeed get the proverbial chop.

Thompson’s character, a groomed and articulate individual, is in a tight position because the ratings of her acclaimed talk show have been in steady decline over the past decade.

The network’s president, Caroline Morton (Amy Ryan), tells Katherine to fix it or she will be replaced. In an attempt to revamp the show, Katherine hires Molly Patel (Mindy Kaling) as an additional writer, mainly on the basis that she is an Indian-American, while many of the writers are older white men.

Although Molly has little experience in comedy and initially struggles, she proves her worth by giving Katherine good material to work with and ideas on how to reach out to a bigger audience. The results are successful.

Mindy Kaling in ‘Late Night’. Picture: Emily Aragones

Things take a turn when Caroline is intent on replacing Katherine with a racist and misogynistic comedian, Daniel Tennant (Ike Barinholtz).

Late Night is at its best when Katherine and Molly interlock, exchanging banter at a rapid speed and squeezing laughter from some unlikely sources.

Both characters are well-rounded entities and firm in their belief in how the show should be structured. Their determination and grit constitutes the film’s driving force and their dialogue is sharp and witty.

In the workplace, Molly is pursued by the office gigolo, Charlie Fain (Hugh Dancy), whose charm is unsettling and she is in two minds about having a relationship with him.

Reid Scott plays an arrogant and racist fellow writer, Tom Campbell, who has difficulty accepting her on the all-male team.

Hugh Dancy and Reid Scott in ‘Late Night’. Picture: Emily Aragones

John Lithgow, is underused as Katherine’s long-suffering musician husband Walter, and Dennis O’Hare is Brad, the show’s producer and Katherine’s hatchet man.

Late Night is an entertaining romp and a well-made diversion from the violence in many films on release at present.

Info

Rating: ★★★☆☆
Cast: Emma Thompson, Mindy Kaling, Hugh Dancy, Reid Scott, Amy Ryan, John Lithgow, Dennis O’Hare
Director: Nisha Ginatra
Classification: 16DL

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