Awash in controversy and nail-biting scares alike, 2023’sLate Night With The Devilis a frightful entry into the found-footage canon. Its chaotic runtime is led byDavid Dastmalchian’sbone-chilling performance asJack Delroy, the charismatic late-night host who is harboring dark secrets behind his camera-ready smile. The film remains a fresh take on the “Lost Television” trope popularized by the onlineCreepy Pastafandom. But beforeLate Night With The Devilterrified audiences, an online horror series paved the way in the analog horror genre.Gemini Home Entertainmentis an ongoing YouTubeanalog horrorseries created byRemy Abode. Considered a seminal work in the analog horror genre,Gemini Home Entertainmentconquersbody horror,extraterrestrial threats, and the looming doom of an apocalypse. The series presents its initial tapes in a playlist entitledFull Boxset, with a spin-off series calledThe Library. Told through an anthology of loosely related tapes, the series follows a variety of human characters who either fight or succumb to the ongoing invasion of human-impersonating monsters and aliens that threaten the world ofGemini.
Late Night With the Devil
A live television broadcast in 1977 goes horribly wrong, unleashing evil into the nation’s living rooms.
What Is ‘Gemini Home Entertainment’ About?
Distributed, in-universe, by the titular entertainment company, each episode in the initialFull Boxsetseries presents itself as seemingly normal educational content. But it is evident even from its pilot episode, “WORLD’S WEIRDEST ANIMALS,” that something is amiss in the world ofGemini Home Entertainment. Something is impersonating humans, burrowing itself into the very crust of the Earth. And what’s even more eery is that something has come from beyond.Gemini Home Entertainmentconnects several stories: A wildlife expert named Jack “Wylder” Dean, notices changes in the local fauna and is amongst the first to resist the invasion. The deal struck between Moonlight Acres Family Camp’s administration and the so-called “well-dressed men,” aliens who look like men-in-black types that threaten the camp’s residents. And the scientific advancements of Harbinge Technologies, a shadowy corporation with mysterious motivations. The anthology series presents no traditional over-arching narrative; instead, it expertly and slowly reveals the horror at the core of its story. Perhaps not immediately comprehensible at first, secondary viewings of the series reveal deeper horrors and tragedies than what is immediately obvious. And where traditionalfound footageventures can often feel long and drawn out, the episodic format ofGemini Home Entertainmentallows it to take its time while not boring audiences.
‘Late Night With the Devil’ Conjures Up Spooky Blu-ray Box Set
The Shudder found-footage horror film stars David Dastmalchian.
Human-impersonating monstersand body horror isn’t allGemini Home Entertainmenthas to offer, though. The series also explores theextraterrestrial horrorat the center of this invasion, as well as humanity’s willful ignorance at theirimpending end. It isn’t a question ofifhumanity is doomed, butwhendoom will arrive. The few characters in the series that do fight back are destined to meet their end at the will of the very parasitic beast plaguing the Earth, to begin with. And though all of this is revealed through a very unconventional form of storytelling, the series does not pull its punches.
‘Gemini Home Entertainment’ And ‘Late Night With The Devil’ Tackle Similar Themes
Audience members craving more ofLate Night With The Devil’spossession storyline can rest easy (or uneasy), as they can jump right intoGemini Home Entertainment. Not only do the humans of the series run the risk of being infected with the likes of “Deep Roots Disease” and having their bodies completely taken over by an extraterrestrial parasite, but they also risk being victimized by so-called “Fake People.” While the monsters ofGemini Home Entertainmentmight come from beyond, rather thanthe demonsofLate Night With The Devilcome from within, the series still manages a very similar kind of terror. Abode’s library of work explores not just the horror of the human body being twisted into something it was never meant to be, but also the horror of being stuck in a body that is no longer your own.
LikeLate Night With The Devil, Gemini Home Entertainmentalso surrounds the horror ofdeals with the devil, also known as Faustian bargains.Gemini’sentities are less demonic andmore alien, but the series dives into how different human factions react to the impending threat. Not every tape in the series is a warning to humanity. Some episodes function as communication between the various entities threatening the world. And, like how the aforementioned Jack Delroy sacrifices his wife’s life for the success of his television show, many human characters in the series make bargains with the creatures responsible for humanity’s doom. Some make these bargains to survive, some for profit, and some in thepursuit of scientific progress.
WhereLate Night With The Devilbreaks the immersion key tothe found footage genrethrough its use of more traditional storytelling techniques like expository narration and behind-the-scenes footage,Gemini Home Entertainmenttrusts its audience. There is no outside context given to the tapes inThe Boxset,and even less those present inThe Library. But the genius ofGemini Home Entertainmentlies in how comprehensible the horror is, even when the details of the plot get a little murky. Enabled by its cryptic medium, the audience participation in unveiling the mystery at the core of the series imbues watchers with the same horrifying passivity as many of the characters. You, the watcher, can no more save this world than its characters can. But like them, you can bear witness.
Full of twists and surprises,Gemini Home Entertainmenthas far more to offer. Even a single viewing of the original series taps into fresh, yet familiar, horrors. The full body of workmight not be for everyone. Some audience members might very well grow tired of trying to decipher the story at the core of the series. But for those who adored the more cryptic aspects ofLate Night With The Deviland other found footage features,Gemini Home Entertainmentrests beautifully atthe intersection of audience participation and heart-racing horror.
Gemini Home Entertainmentis available to watch on YouTube.
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