Customer Reviews

Red Lights [DVD]

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This movie both pleasantly surprised me and greatly disappointed me. Going in I wasn't expecting much due to the small amount of publicity for the film but held hope because of the cast (Robert De Niro, Sigourney Weaver, Cillian Murphy, Toby Jones; to name just a few).

The direction throughout the film is brilliant and the acting is near-perfect throughout - as to be expected from such great actors. The actual storyline of the movie is where there is unfortunately less consistency throughout.

The first two thirds are very, very good and build tension excellently. Few films have such an excellent platform to build from for the third act. Unfortunately, though, the third act is very important in itself - and with this movie it disappointed greatly. In this review I'll refer to the point where I feel the movie suddenly tails away as 'the toilet bit' (not a spoiler for anybody who hasn't seen it and at the same time if you have seen it you'll know what I mean). From that point on the movie just gets worse and worse until eventually (and very unfortunately) the lowest point of the movie which is the ending. It was one of those endings where you think "Wait, is this thing finishing now? Really?" Which is a real shame - because it really was very good for well over an hour.

I would (albeit after some long thought) recommend this movie; the first two thirds are almost a masterclass in building up tension in a thriller. The ending is a huge let-down (for me at least, and I know that some others feel the same) but it's one of those cases where the ending could never have been such a let-down if it wasn't for the beginning and middle being so good and raising expectations so much in the first place.

I guess the best way to sum this movie up in one sentence is that it has the first two thirds of a very good movie and the ending of an average movie - I've seen many movies with much worse endings but few with endings so much worse than the rest of the film.

Red Lights wasn't given much attention on release which is a shame, because it's one of the most gripping psychological thrillers to be made in many a year. It also features the best performance from Robert De Niro I've seen in nearly a decade - which is just as well, because both Sigourney Weaver and Cillian Murphy deliver stunning turns, too. Lovely supporting character (a gullible ESP-investigating professor) for Toby Jones to play, likewise.

The plot follows a pair of underfunded college professors who specialise in parapsychology de-bunking, and the relationship between the two scientists, mentor Weaver and her protégé Murphy, is beautifully portrayed. It would spoil the film and your enjoyment to say too much about the plot... but things take a sinister turn when De Niro's character enters the scene as a returning stage psychic, one whose critics have a habit of dying in mysterious circumstances.
Red Lights is spooky, chilling and unsettling right from the start with the action taking place in an artfully created atmosphere of uncertainty. It beautifully captures the conflict between science and superstition with a tip of the hat to many other movies and TV shows (look out for an 'I Want To Understand' poster in the science lab!)
The emphasis of the film changes part-way, with Weaver playing a bigger role in the first half and then De Niro steps into the limelight during the second, when the sinister sensation of indeterminate threat ratchets upwards. There are a couple of 'boo!' scares but in the main the tension is all intellectual - it's all in the mind. (Or is it...?) The mystery and resolution are very reminiscent of A Certain Director; I can't reveal who, but you'll understand once you've watched Red Lights.
The finale is intensely satisfying and rewarding. Overall this is a magnificent mix of a compelling and clever plot; tight direction (and some sneaky misdirection too); emotionally taut performances and near-perfect pacing. definitely worth seeing on a big screen if you can - and we'll watch it more than once, to pick up on all the little details which we missed first time around.

Superb film. Can't wait for director Rodrigo Cortez' next effort. A real shame that Red Lights didn't get more attention on first release!
9/10

I am a big fan of Cillian Murphy and so decided to give this a punt. It is about some cutting edge paranormal psychic investigators, they are Sigourney Weaver (Dr. Margaret Matheson) and the afore mentioned Mr Murphy as her trusted side kick Tom Buckley. They work at a University where they are having their funding cut whilst fighting the good fight against fake mediums and psychics. Then the mysterious, enigmatic and blind television super psychic comes back into the limelight after a thirty year absence, this is Simon Silver. He had dropped off the radar after a mysterious death in his audience of one of his most out spoken critics. He is played by Robert De Niro, who as ever is good value for money.

Meanwhile things start to go wrong around Cillian, lights explode, computers go wrong and things just get smashed, so obviously it is Mr Silver warning him off from investigating his new show. Then things get nasty very quickly and an ultimate show down is all but inevitable. The `red lights' are a reference to things that are so out of place they act as warning signals, like helpers of the psychic going through the audience before hand to glean information that can be fed to the main man. This can be quite atmospheric and has real quality in the mood department and was entreating for the most part, however it does not keep up the good work.

So where does it go wrong, well there are loads of hints at things, like why does a blind man wear a watch etc. We are shown some of their pasts but essentially the characters are all pretty much formed and the love interest is more or less shoe horned in, but still kind of works. It is the ending where you realise that this is a just a film of plot holes and that is a bit insulting to the audience; I actually thought this was psycho, babble schmaltz at one point. Either way I was left feeling unfulfilled and for the simple reason that it was so badly written. The acting is all fine as you would expect, but seriously 'Scooby Doo' would not get away with such a false ending. Whilst I am still a fan of the actors, I hope they never commit to anything from this production company again. To throw away a `good' film for the formulaic need for a plot twist is plain wrong, only see if you are a fan of the actors

In the film a psychologist and paranormal investigator, played by Sigourney Weaver, and her physicist assistant, played by Cillian Murphy, investigate a famous psychic.
This movie attacks the tired old idea of 'is ESP real? With those who need to believe as opposed to those that see naivety at best, or a down right con at worst' with new dynamism, new concepts and explanations. Not a single shot of the movie is redundant or a 'filler' shot. There are none of the 'excessive scary movie' theatrics to keep you on edge of your seat.
It has the right narrative, with what I believe to be the right actors and the right scenes to take you where it wants to take you. There is misdirection and the odd McGuffin peppered here, and there has some clever twists in the tale.
This is a 'clever' movie, doesn't spell out everything for you, and makes you want to watch it carefully so as to not miss a thing. I had not heard much about this before it came out, and I was enticed by the actor set-up, as I had recently been watching lots of Cillian Murphy films. So I decided based on this to go see this film, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised if you liked, and hate to sound clichéd here, the film inception - with the whole playing with your mind thing, then you will like this movie, for me it is a thriller worthy of at least 4 stars.
I have seen and read a number of very negative reviews where people didn't get or felt cheated, I do not wish to sound sarcastic, but I'm not sure they watching the same movie as I was.
For more of a plot over view please see Ms R Hoseason's review, that describes it very well.
All in all great story, which really kept me in captivated, I will be checking out the DVD when it is out, and look forward to the extras. If the film is still out release then I would recommend seeing on the big screen

Very good film, enjoyed the story very much and would recommend to others to watch this.

Will not give away the story.

Great trailer, dreadful movie. Robert de Niro lost his mojo long ago but what has happened to Sigourney Weaver? A bland and boring film with an awful ending, please don't waste your money.

An OK thriller that pit's Robert De Nero's medium against Cillian Murphy and Sigourney Weaver's sceptical scientists, employed to try and debunk fraud mediums.

As others have stated, and judging by reviews, this is a film that will split opinion, and rightly so if you can accept the plot twists at the end.

That said, it's enjoyable, well acted, stylishly filmed and moves at a reasonable pace.

Not perfect, but by no means bad, it seems with the cast and story expectations may have been too high, but take it as a twisty paranormal thriller with very few scares and it's actually a decent thriller come drama.

The trailer I saw for this film made me want to watch it - a successful trailer then. The cast was also a very good reason for me to watch too, especially with Weaver in it. However, it was all something of a charade. The idea was good but the execution distinctly mediocre. It was a slightly confusing story, especially the ending - was there a twist or did I imagine it ? And the acting was a little under whelming too. Ms Weaver was coasting and even Mr Jones who put in such a stunning performance as Hitchcock in That Girl on TV over Christmas disappointed. It was interesting to see Mr Di Nero in an unexpected role and perhaps he was the strongest character. Mr Murphy is forgettable in this and Ms Richardson, in a minor role continues to under whelm too - possibly the weakest link in the Redgrave/Richardson acting dynasty. The director's previous offering, ~Buried was tighter and more exciting to watch.

With a great central pairing, the movie hits a home run in the casting stakes. Sigourney Weaver and Cillian Murphy are terrific as Margaret and Tom, the two academic investigators whose stock in trade is exposing psychic phenomena that are actually the work of egotists or the misguided. Their dialogue sparks off each other and they seem to have a genuine repartee.
They seems to be firmly in control of events, and pretty much closed to the idea of genuine supernatural abilities, as demonstrated in a very amusing card-reading scene with an overly credulous fellow professor. However when DeNiro's reclusive psychic Simon Silver announces he's emerging from retirement, Tom can't understand why Margaret won't seize the golden opportunity to study this potential holy grail of fraudsters. Tom's obsession threatens to put their safety in danger as he begins to question whether Silver is a fraud, or actually a very dangerous genuine article...
Weaver is very good as expected, but Murphy lifts much of the weight with a strong central performance. DeNiro is decent but never excels.
A lot of the later shocks are decently handled, but the character behaviour gets a little silly, and the twist isn't too tricky to see coming. Unfortunately the ending is also slightly mishandled, resulting in a mash of badly conveyed information that almost fails to make its point and highlights rather a lot of missed opportunities.
Fun and involving, but never anything more.

Great film with a twist at the end. Well worth watching - it keeps you in suspense all the way through.