Red Lights

"How much do you want to believe?"

2012 1h 54m EN

😐

6.2

MID

🥫

30%

ROTTEN

😬

METACRITIC

⭐

6.2

IMDB

★6.2TMDB · 1,459🥫30%Rotten Tomatoes●36Metacritic★6.2IMDB · 70,158

Thriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Two investigators of paranormal hoaxes, the veteran Dr. Margaret Matheson and her young assistant, Tom Buckley, study the most varied metaphysical phenomena with the aim of proving their fraudulent origins. Simon Silver, a legendary blind psychic, reappears after an enigmatic absence of 30 years to become the greatest international challenge to both orthodox science and professional sceptics. Tom starts to develop an intense obsession with Silver, whose magnetism becomes stronger with each new manifestation of inexplicable events. As Tom gets closer to Silver, tension mounts, and his worldview is threatened to its core.

“How much do you want to believe?”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Amazon Prime VideoSubscription

fuboTVSubscription

Amazon Prime Video with AdsSubscription

Shout! Factory Amazon ChannelSubscription

Howdy Amazon ChannelSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

YouTubeRent

Amazon VideoBuy

Apple TV StoreBuy

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Cast

Cillian Murphy
Tom Buckley
Sigourney Weaver
Margaret Matheson
Robert De Niro
Simon Silver
Elizabeth Olsen
Sally Owen
Toby Jones
Paul Shackleton
Joely Richardson
Monica Handsen
Craig Roberts
Ben
Leonardo Sbaraglia
Palladino

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Rodrigo Cortés
Writers: Rodrigo Cortés, Carlos de la Sotilla
Languages: English
Countries: Spain, United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 97% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 14 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Spain, United States of America.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CAST

Did you know

204+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Rodrigo Cortés, shot by Xavi Giménez. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Víctor Reyes. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Rodrigo Cortés shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Cillian Murphy and Sigourney Weaver and Robert De Niro carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Rodrigo Cortés directs. Xavi Giménez behind the camera. Víctor Reyes scores. Rodrigo Cortés cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in Spain, United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 97% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
2Released 14 years ago.
3International production across 2 countries: Spain, United States of America.
4204+ people credited in cast and crew — a small city's worth of labour.
5Directed by Rodrigo Cortés, shot by Xavi Giménez. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Víctor Reyes. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Rodrigo Cortés shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Cillian Murphy and Sigourney Weaver and Robert De Niro carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "How much do you want to believe?".
10IMDB entry: tt1748179 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 21 themes, including "dreams", "experiment", "talk show", "obsession".

The technical file

Cinematography: Xavi Giménez
Original score: Víctor Reyes
Editing: Rodrigo Cortés
Production design: Antón Laguna
Costume design: Patricia Monné
Makeup / hair: Eva Quilez
VFX supervisor: Àlex Villagrasa
Sound: José A. Manovel
Runtime: 114 min · 1h 54m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $14,000,000
Box office: $13,551,174
Return: 97% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Red Lights (2012)
Rotten Tomatoes: 30% 🥫 Rotten
Metacritic: 36/100
IMDB rating: 6.2/10 · 70,158 votes
MPAA: R

Awards

2 nominations total

Also by

Rodrigo Cortés

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2019-10-02
★ 6/10
When I hear the drumming of hooves, I don't think unicorns, I think horses. Red Lights is written and directed by Rodrigo Cortés. It stars Cillian Murphy, Sigourney Weaver, Robert De Niro, Toby Jones, Joely Richardson and Elizabeth Olsen. Music is by Victor Reyes and cinematography by Xavi Giménez. A sceptical psychologist and her physicist assistant specialise in exposing fraudulent paranormal phenomena. But when one of the world's most renowned psychics resurfaces onto the circuit, it opens up a whole new can of worms. It's a tricky film to recommend with any sort of confidence, this in spite of a high calibre of actors assembled for the shenanigans. For a good portion of the play it's a deft examination of the cons and belief values involving psychics and faith healers etc. The leading protagonists naturally have issues, and some secrets will have to will out, while Cortés has a keen eye for an other worldly vibe. Yet come the big reveal at pic's denouement there's a feeling of "really, is that it"? Ultimately this doesn't deliver on its promise or enhance the core base ideas on the page. It's creepy at times, even fascinating with the subject matter, but it ends up unfocused and confused and frustrating as a viewing experience. 6/10
r96sk2020-09-04
★ 8/10
Honestly, I don't even truly know what I just watched. Did I, however, absolutely thoroughly and undeniably enjoy it? You betcha! That's probably thanks to the outstanding cast, rather than anything else. Cillian Murphy is utterly superb in this, I loved his performance as Tom. It's no surprise given what else he has done, he's a great actor to watch. Murphy isn't alone in <em>'Red Lights'</em> though, as he is joined by other notable performers. Sigourney Weaver (Margaret) and Robert De Niro (Simon) are also terrific, they add a lot with what they give. You also have Elizabeth Olsen (Holly) and Toby Jones (Paul) involved too. Top casting! On the other hand, the premise - or at least how it's shown - isn't as great as it could've been. I still enjoyed it wholly, but that's probably because the film makes a lot of noise around the story and builds up the tension well. However, when you break it down after watching it isn't anything as outrageous as you might feel at the time - at least that's how I view it. Some more development into the characters would've been nice, for example. Nevertheless, the film done its job and made me feel entertained and enthralled into what was happening. It's difficult to criticise it due to that, to be honest. I'll leave it to others to dive deeper into it, but all I can say is I practically loved it.