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Mindy Kaling’s Molly Patel, a new hire to the writing staff of Katherine Newbury’s late-night talk show, accuses Katherine (Emma Thompson) of viewing her as a “diversity hire” at a pivotal point in the film “Late Night,” which she also wrote and co-produced with her sister, Mindy Kaling, who also stars in the film. Katherine’s response is direct and to the point: “You have been hired because of your diversity. However, the fact that you are here is significant.” And, now that Molly has entered “the room where it all happens,” how will she ensure that she remains in the same room?
Comedians frequently refer to “tough crowds,” which are audiences who are grudgingly accepting their laughter. Comedians, on the other hand, are the most difficult audience to work with. A feel-good movie in the best sense of the word, “Late Night,” directed by Nisha Ganatra (whose television credits are extensive, including Mindy Kaling’s The Mindy Project), contains subversive commentary that is so subtly woven into the story that you might miss some of it. “Late Night” has a lot to say about diversity, not only in terms of “diversity” as represented by Kaling walking into a writer’s room full of all white males, but also in terms of diversity in terms of class, gender, age, and sexual orientation. As part of a diversity initiative, Kaling was recruited to write for NBC’s “The Office.” She had previously gained national attention for her performance in “Matt & Ben,” an off-Broadway play she co-wrote with Brenda Withers in which she played Ben Affleck in a hilarious cameo role. The song “Late Night” was inspired by Kaling’s own personal experiences. This is a heartfelt and amusing comedy with razor-sharp edges to it.
Despite the fact that late-night television is notoriously male-dominated, Kaling imagines a world in which the King of Late Night is actually a Queen in “Late Night.” (This is a satirical choice with a lot of bite.) Tonight has been hosted by Newbury for more than 30 years. Her Emmy Awards are arranged neatly on a shelf in her office. She has refused to compromise her standards (as she sees them), and she has disavowed the use of social media, memes, viral videos, and other forms of viral marketing. The fact that she is British does not bother her in the least when she is accused of being a “elitist.” However, the fact that her ratings are plummeting is something that she is concerned about. The majority of Katherine’s writing staff is comprised of men. She has never had the opportunity to get to know them, and many of them have never even heard of her before. The president of the network (Amy Ryan) wants to replace Katherine with a Dane Cook-type (Ike Barinholtz), whose “provocative” routines might give the show some oomph. However, Katherine is against the idea. Katherine (Katherine Heigl) is in a panic and orders her right-hand man Brad (Denis O’Hare) to hire a woman immediately. Katherine is well-known for not liking women. It’s the most blatant example of “tokenism” you could imagine. Molly Patel, who happens to be interviewing with Brad on the same day, happens to be there as well. She has no prior experience, but you can see Brad weighing the pros and cons, ticking off the boxes that she is a woman of color and a woman of color of color. She has been hired.
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When Molly walks into that writer’s room, she finds herself in the middle of a hostile environment. The only thing available to her is an overturned trash can, which she has to sit on to get any work done. Reid Scott portrays Tom, who is constantly reminding everyone that he is the one who writes Katherine’s monologues and speeches. Despite the fact that Tom is a “legacy hire,” he perceives himself as superior to Molly’s status as a “diversity hire.” It’s a different story in his head. The only guy who appears to be somewhat open to Molly is Charlie (Hugh Dancy), but it turns out that he’s a Ladies’ Man who has his sights set on Molly’s conquest. Molly has been placed in an interesting position by Kaling, who has made some interesting choices. Molly is not out there working in comedy clubs, performing with improv groups, or otherwise getting her hands dirty in the rat race. Molly previously worked in Quality Control at a “chemical plant” (she corrects people who refer to it as a “factory”), where she entertained the workers on the floor with an ongoing “comedy routine” broadcast over the loudspeaker system. She is, without a doubt, an outsider. The fact that Molly is still young and naive enough to be overjoyed by the opportunity she’s been given gives Kaling plenty of room to work with. She is completely oblivious to the situation. She arrives at work on her first day with a box of cupcakes in hand. While walking to work, she repeats the following lines from William Butler Yeats’ poem “Cloths of Heaven,” which she finds particularly moving:
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However, because I am poor, all I have are my dreams, which I have spread out beneath your feet.
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You must tread carefully because you are walking on my dreams.
Molly brings her Quality Control expertise to the table, offering suggestions for ways to improve the show (ingratiating herself with no one). Kaling is well-versed in this territory, which includes the lack of diversity in writers’ rooms as well as the general boys’ club mentality that pervades the comedy industry in general. Joan Rivers, a trailblazer in the field, spoke and wrote about it for years. The scene in which she walked onto the stage at Second City in the middle of a group improv was interrupted by all of the guys holding their arms out to her, as if to say, “Come on in!” “Keep your distance. We don’t want you to be a part of this scene “) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) The fact that much of this is toxic doesn’t stop Kaling from taking a light-hearted approach, and she has an excellent sense of the absurd. There are no villains in this story. Even the men who have made it clear that they do not want her in their midst are simply beneficiaries of a system that was in place long before they arrived. Amy Ryan’s character appears to be a witch in high heels at first glance, but she is not entirely incorrect in her assessment of Katherine as being out of touch and arrogant. Something has to be done to make a difference.
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This is some of Emma Thompson’s most accomplished work (and that is saying a great deal). During one particularly subversive sequence, Newbury finds herself embroiled in her own #MeToo moment, which calls into question a number of commonly held beliefs about men, women, and power. That it depicts the complexities behind the scenes, the pain, and the human frailty is subversive, but how does one even address these complexities in such a savage “off with her head” environment is also subversive. It is addressed by Kaling. It’s a risky move. Katherine’s husband (John Lithgow) is kind and forgiving, despite the fact that he is suffering from a debilitating illness. There’s always more going on than meets the eye in any given situation. It gives Kaling an opportunity to not only critique how things work, but also – in some of the smartest sequences – to examine why jokes work, what causes a joke to go viral, and the subtleties of comedy itself as Molly gets sucked into the rhythms of her job.
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On one level, “Late Night” is a straightforward film. Everything happens exactly as you would expect it to, and everything happens on time. However, on a deeper satirical level, the level at which the film truly succeeds, it’s a rollercoaster of surprises after surprises. Keep an eye out for how Molly’s “romance” with Charlie is dealt with. A more conventional film would have prioritized it in a completely different way, giving it significantly more importance than it deserved. Charlie is a perfect example of proportion. He is not the focus of the film. Keep an eye on how the relationship between Molly and Tom develops. Due to the fact that it occurs almost invisibly, the payoff – once realized – is significantly more satisfying than it would be otherwise. Furthermore, the relationship between Molly and Katherine – which develops in fits and starts through scene after scene with Kaling and Thompson – depicts two women struggling to find a foothold in an environment that does not welcome them, struggling – at first separately and then collectively – to remain “in the room where it happens.”
Miriam Bale, Senior Programmer (and now Artistic Director) of Indie Memphis, delivered a speech at the festival last year in which she discussed what made the festival unique and what made it so special for her. The quote from Bale is memorable: “When there’s enough diversity, you don’t have to be concerned about diversity.” You can devote your time to art!” “Late Night” illustrates how this process can take place in its own way. It’s not an easy task. It’s possible that you’ll have to sit on a couple of trash cans that have been thrown over. However, when more voices are heard, it is to everyone’s advantage.
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