Review of Red Lights (2012) by Dawdlingpoet — 28 Nov 2021

I found this is to be quite a spooky movie, it uses menacing classical music or muzack in the background along with the noise of heavy downpours and other typically claustrophobic type unsettling music used for dramatic effect. Most of the scenes feature dark light conditions, with seances etc. held in particularly dimly lit rooms, some featuring the red lights as mentioned in the title - you certainly can't claim this isn't atmospheric or emmersive, however it brings different issues I felt, the main being a feeling of confusion, trying to keep track of what precisely was going on with different characters and moreso the hidden technical setup present at different stages.

I thought the basic concept was quite good - it certainly tackles, or questions, an old issue which probably intrigues many people. When it comes to supposed magic or healing, there can be alot of strong views on the subject and certainly paranormal abilities, or people claiming to have 'extra abilities' anyway is something treated with alot of scepticism, yet there are those who may be seen as vulnerable (such as those with terminal health conditions) and wanting to believe in their apparent 'healing powers'. Religion vs science is a topic centuries old but its nevertheless still quite intriguing.

Back to the movie and it does require you to pay attention, in order to follow the plot well - I'd say that there's more in the way of dialogue than real action or special effects and indeed its more of a thriller, or mystery/thriller even, than any other genre, even drama really. Some of the characters I felt were a bit more substantial, or developed, than others I suppose - I'd say that Sigourney Weavers character, that of Margaret Matheon, the University professor, somehow stood out the most, although primarily the movie concentrates on her friend and assistant of sorts, Tom Buckley (played by Cillian Murphy, who I kept thinking reminded me of Brian Cox for some random reason!) and the apparently somewhat legendary, powerful healer Simon Silver (played by Robert De Niro). The relationship between Margaret and Tom is quite interesting and there are some good pieces of dialogue, although I didn't especially think much of Robert De Niros portrayal in this specific title, other than he seems his usual cool headed self, portraying someone who clearly has an element of arrogance which is part of their known persona, that people buy into and that suits him well.

Content wise, there's definitely at least moderate (bloody) violence present here, particularly towards the end - I found one somewhat extended scene quite shocking and difficult to watch, due to the violence present I felt that was somehow unnecessarily unpleasant - I suppose I wasn't expecting it so thats why it shocked me more but it is what I'd call pretty grim. Otherwise there's the usual strong language present and sinister tone throughout but not a whole lot else thats especially worth mentioning, unless you can count the odd scene which may make people jump.

To me, this movie seemed like a story based on a novel and brought to life on screen, in that it relied heavily on character interaction and dialogue. Trying to concentrate, I still felt a bit lost regarding some plot elements and characters, at one stage it did seem a bit muddled and complicated but I stuck with it all the same. I should perhaps also mention that I felt a bit cheated by the ending of the movie, which (to me anyway) didn't seem especially plausible and seemed perhaps even annoyingly typical for such movies of its ilk. I'd say it involves a sentimentality which didn't appear to be present until then. There's also a nice, probably quite poignant message right at the very end but I still feel the ending was somewhat clumsy or muddled and it didn't quite work for me somehow, if you know what I mean.

One thing I did quite like was a particular plot twist that came to light (pardon the title related pun(!)) quite slowly but was done pretty well, I thought, so the plot isn't entirely bad I guess. I won't say much about it so I don't give it away but thinking back, it did surprise me a bit, although I admit that sometimes I don't see things coming as quickly as others can.

This has the feel of a classic style thriller and it does ok at that, although I wouldn't say it stands out a great deal but its certainly easy enough to watch for the most part and has a decent enough story so I give it 5 out of 10.