Late Night

The "newbie deals with dragon-lady boss" story wasn't new when The Devil Wears Prada used it. It's certainly not new now that Late Night uses it, too. But, derivative though it may be, this TV studio-set comedy is a bit of a hoot, thanks both to national treasure Emma Thompson (as regally good as always and patently having a ball) and the subtler, star-making performance of Mindy Kaling, who also wrote the screenplay. Emma plays Katherine, the veteran British host of a long-running late night US chat show. But ratings are bottoming, and the boot beckons for the show's super-difficult diva. Enter Mindy's TV newbie Molly, arbitrarily hired simply to improve the ethnic and gender diversity of Katherine's otherwise all-white, all-male gag-writing team. Predictably, Molly's naivety, nous and gushing delight at being there gradually disarm the diva, and things turn around both for her and her show. An underused John Lithgow contributes some drama to leaven the levity a little. But this is essentially quality comic fluff to be relished and enjoyed when you just want something light and likeable to relax into.