MovieChat Forums > Red Lights (2012) Discussion > For all the negative reaction...

For all the negative reaction...

posted 12 years ago by NormanCroucher
11 replies | jump to latest

Not only did I like the movie but I thought the ending completely made it worthwhile! It had a good message/metaphor behind it - you can't deny who you are or hide your true self out of fear or shame.

Sure, it's no classic, but it's not awful by any stretch of the imagination. Slow and methodical pace, yes. Slightly muddled, yes. But not awful.

I found it to be well made and acted, and surprisingly atmospheric. As far as I'm concerned the twist at the end genuinely blindsided me and I don't get that very often with movies so it's really nice when that happens! :D

I cannot understand why such a relatively small, unassuming and well intentioned film got so thrashed. There are far, far, far worse films out there on general release, made for much more money and undeservedly taking much more money at the box office that have nothing to say, no style, no story and no surprises.

I hope Red Lights finds its audience in the years to come. It deserves one I think. Even if it is a small one.

[–] kjs-2 12 years ago

Hey 75% of IMDB voters like this movie. You have to understand that the people who complain are 10 times more likely to post comments compared to those that like something. If I see 1 pro and 10 con I assume the truth is pretty even for pro and con. The fact that you have a complaint drives you to the forum. Liking something or even loving it might make you tell your friends but isn't very likely to make you search out the film's forum to tell others who have already seen it that you liked it.

The apologetic tone of your post shows that even though you liked it you feel some peer pressure to not feel that way. Your perception is that all these people don't like it so you doubt yourself. How many others feel similarly and either don't write anything at all or even write something kind of negative just to "not be crazy".

Just remember: If 10 people write something bad about something in a forum but 27000+ have said nothing or something positive then it is not fair to say that there is a lot of negative reaction.

[–] NormanCroucher 12 years ago

"Your perception is that all these people don't like it so you doubt yourself."

Just like the message of the movie!! lol

[–] mystee_reyne 12 years ago

I've noticed that when people don't like or agree with the ending of a film they say it's bad. Or if the movie appears to have an ideological message that a lot of people disagree with, they hate the film. In this movie, the paranormal beats science, and Tom says, "there IS something after," referring to life after death. Lots of people view movies that touch these points, negatively. People forget, films are fictional and can literally be about whatever subjects they want. Cabin in the Woods got rated higher than this film. That baffles the sh@t out of me.

[–] NormanCroucher 12 years ago

Cabin in the Woods was aimed at teenage boys/twenty-somethings and that demographic is probably more likely to rate and rave about films of that type.

Red Lights was aimed at an adult audience. But because it has that horror vibe, the same audiences that loved Cabin in the Woods and thought it was "the best thing eva!" will watch this and most likely hate it.

It's down to tastes I expect.

But I know this is the kind of film that my grandparents would really enjoy. It doesn't pander to gore or superfluous set-pieces. It's not noisy or glossy or edited in an ADD style. It looks like a film and tells a complete story that has a message at its core.

While I liked Cabin in the Woods because it was a cute idea, it was hardly "the best thing eva!" It was just a sassy little horror pastiche really. But nothing more than that.

Red Lights was better as far as I'm concerned. But we live in geek culture times where Cabin in the Woods is held up as something of great value but says absolutely nothing. It's a vacuum that has plenty of wit but nothing to say or explore.

Red Lights did. May not have been executed entirely perfect but it was a good film that entertained and intrigued with something worth saying in the end.

I'll take that. :D

[–] thefinalsaw 12 years ago

First of all, Cabin in the Woods and Red Lights are TWO totally different films. One is a clever take on the horror genre with some satire. The other is a small neat drama that turned into a thriller with a cool twist.

Also Cabin in the Woods definitely had something to say about the American culture and horror, and was damn exciting when telling it.

Now I don't know if I can really talk because I am one of those people that bashed the Avengers and said that it was alright for pretty much the same reasons you said that you kind of liked Cabin in the Woods. I thought the only purpose for the Avengers was that it was fun and actiony! One liners, overlong car chases, huge battles in New York that lasts 30 minutes. Hell yah the Avengers! I didn't get it. I watched a little of it recently and liked it better seeing that Whedon took these characters that are nothing a like except that they are super heroes and wrote them to work together. But do I think it is really over hyped. Absolutely. Was it fun though? yes.

[–] NormanCroucher 12 years ago

Red Lights is a horror in the same way The Sixth Sense was a horror. Both deal with supernatural worlds and both have a variety of "jump" moments and eerie goings-on. They don't do blood and guts, sure. But blood and guts is another type of horror film altogether. Incidentally, that is something Cabin in the Woods did very well!

Out of curiosity, and because I failed to see it myself, what exactly did Cabin in the Woods have to say about anything? I get that it was trying to do what Scream did by being a post-modern horror littered with references to cliches of the genre but what else?

I just thought it was fun and witty splatter but ultimately shallow. Although I do recall it having that whole "human beings aren't worth saving because we're so horrible" message tacked on at the end, which wasn't particularly radical. Most horror movies end on downers and with message likes that, right?

[–] thefinalsaw 12 years ago

The entire film was a satire on the current state of American horror. Obviously, the characters were real before the scientists (writers of a horror film) changed them into their stereotypes. Then the film asks the question, why do Americans like the same thing all the time with horror (cause if you could see, the international characters beat the system and did things differently).

The characters play out the horror film like a generic one with little depth and just these stereotypes getting killed off. Then when "the virgin" got out of the water and the stoner beat up the zombie, things started to change. The scientists had to stop them or the horror film would be different and they would again fail (Like I said, they need atleast one success for the system to work and all the international "films" already failed because they were different/actually scary).

The two characters then take the writer's out with their own medicine (excessive gore). So now without writers, they now created a different version of a horror film. Now the world is going to end because they didn't fail like everyone else.

The whole point was to exagerate what would happen if an American horror film was unique and different. Wouldn't that just kill us? Wouldn't it not be a success?

In all reality, it would probably get praised (like Cabin in the Woods was), but unfortunately in this day in age, people are flocking in droves to Chainsaw 3D and House at the End of the Streets and making them successes so we'll get more of the same. They are all the same with the writers, like in the beginning, pretty much playing mad libs (ok so kids are in the woods. Good. What monster. Ok good. How will ________ die. Ok good. moving on.)

At the end, they realized that the end of the world would be worth it because (as exagerated as this is (ie: it's an extreme satire on the situation)) they realized "it was time to give someone else a chance for a change."

I thought it was amazing. Clever, funny, bizarre, surprising, fun, etc etc.

I hope this all made sense. I'm sure someone else could have explained it better and I am sure that there is more to it, but Cabin in the Woods is definitely not, in my opinion, a shallow film. It was all about changing American horror.

They are TWO completely different films and I would definitely not classify Red Lights as horror. The Six Sense was about ghosts. This was more of a supernatural thriller. One is a complete clever satire while one fits a genre (If You say horror that is fine). I would not call Cabin a horror. Haha I don't know what I'd call it. It doesn't frighten, it isn't a comedy. Is satire even a genre?

[–] christ-sbi 11 years ago

I'am 15 years old, but i like both Red Lights and Cabin In The Wood.....

[–] Mrpinkeye 12 years ago

i'll tell you why i didnt like it....the best character is killed off way too early after getting the viewer all involved in a plot about her son and Cillian Murphy sucks and although i dont mind violence the bathroom scene was just totally unnecessary.

[–] theCurlyone 11 years ago

They may have killed Weaver off but her presence was still strong throughout the movie and it was Murphy's guilt for her that, in the end, became his driving force.
I can't tell you what your opinion should be, but I wonder if you considered her role wasn't over once she died.

I think it's a joke

[–] sexyca_3 12 years ago

I thought the movie was really good. I enjoyed the plot and, although it moved slower than I normally enjoy for a thriller, I thought it was well done. They built up characters to fall in love or like with, and also kept you on the edge of your seat by killing one of the main characters, making it feel unsafe. Even though there were parts of the movie that I predicted (them turning off the machine in the hospital, etc) they went about getting there in a non-traditional way.

What was awesome was that the hints at the truth behind Cillian's character were so subtle that there was no need to be sure that the movie would end at the discovery of who he is... I thought it was very clever.

It is true that more people will chat when they feel frustrated or annoyed with a film..but it is great that you posted your positive feedback because it validates other people like me who liked it and gets the positive talk flowing too! :)