‘THE DEVIL COMES AT NIGHT’ (2023) – Review

Demons, cults, and cannibalism? I’m in. I first saw the trailer when PopHorror posted the news The Devil Comes at Night was coming soon. I was immediately intrigued by Uncork’d Entertainment’s new horror and Scott Leaver’s (Fare Trade – TV Series) directional debut.

The Devil Comes at Night Synopsis

A washed-up boxer searching for his inheritance must fight for his life when he is trapped in his deceased father’s farmhouse by a local cannibal cult.

The Devil Comes at Night is a Horror Thriller that stars Ryan Allen (Midnight at the Paradise), Adrienne Kress (American Gods – TV Series), and Jason Martorino (Bad Blood – TV Series). It will be available on June 6, 2023.

Let’s see the poster art!

The Setup

The Devil Comes at Night centers around a house on just one night. After a sudden fatal car crash, Ben inherits his father Arthur’s house. Ben wasn’t close with his father, so no one in town recognizes him, but he doesn’t plan on staying long. Ben is just in a pinch and needs his money. He wants to find his father’s safe and lay low. Ben isn’t your conventional protagonist, he’s more of an antihero that has a problem with alcohol. Ben was in a bar fight on his way into town and the details are hazy of what happened. Ben’s closest friend Jack is an ex-trainer who taught Ben to box over the years. Jack is the one who got Ben out of the bar fight just in time and brought him to his father’s house, however, it’s a small hillbilly town, and Ben stands out.

When Ben gathers his wits after recovering from the bar fight, he has as many unwanted guests as he does confrontations on his front porch. And they’re relentless. One bizarre caveat is the people who show up looking for Ben never step foot inside his father’s house. Along with looking for his dad’s safe, Ben discovers more history of the house he inherited in the basement. Ben’s grandfather converted the house from a church that burned down in a failed exorcism. 

The Payoff

The Devil Comes at Night establishes quickly that nothing as it seems. Ben believes he’s being targeted with a hate crime because he is the only black person in town, but once he meets his father’s friend Amy the town librarian hiding in the house, she informs him that Arthur was researching demonic literature just before his sudden passing. Bens’s story changes along the 80-minute runtime as well, leaving you to guess who can you trust.

The Devil Comes at Night(2023) Final Thoughts 

What made The Devil Comes at Night a fun watch was the unpredictability. I couldn’t guess where the film was taking me, or how our characters were gonna end up. It wasn’t the strongest script, but the characters were believable and I like a good cult cannibal story. What can I say? I’m a sucker. The tension was clear, direct, and overall made for a fun, unsuspecting horror thriller.

You can get The Devil Comes at Night on DVD and digital on June 6th. Check out the trailer below.