History Film / RedLights

* ArbitrarySkepticism: Both Matheson and Buckley.

* ForScience: Apparently the motivation of Silver and Shackleton.

* PhonyPsychic: Margaret and Tom work on exposing these, so much of the film's plot involves whether or not Silver is also one or if he's the genuine article. [[spoiler:He's a phony, but ''Buckley's'' real]].

* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: Many of them, especially to ''XFiles'' - Margaret shares the surname of Senator Matheson from the series, the TV-presenter's name is [[ScullySyndrome Dana]], and in Buckley's room there is a poster identical to that in Mulder's office but with 'I want to believe' replaced by 'I want to understand'. Also to many famous (or infamous) RealLife events/arguments in the paranormal debate: the debunking of Leonardo is done the same way as faith healer Peter Popoff was exposed by the skeptical magician James Randi, the arguments of Buckley/Matheson, the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a common technique to expose confirmation bias, the initials SPRC (Scientific Paranormal Research Center) are close to that of the actual 130-year old SPR (Society for Psychical Research), etc.

* TalkingToTheDead: Played with and averted. Margaret writes to her comatose son David because she knows he can't hear her and [[spoiler: in the end, Tom does the same to Margaret]].

* HollywoodAtheist: Apparently the case of Dr. Matheson, complete with a DeadLittleSister.

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[{{Torchwood}} Owen]] makes an appearance on TV debating against Matheson.

* HollywoodAtheist: Apparently the case of Dr. Matheson, complete with a dead little sister.

The two main characters are [[Creator/SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]], comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]]) begin to happen around him and Margaret. As usual, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

* AgentMulder: Dr. Shackleton, a rare negative example.

-->"Sure, I can amplify single pixel, click it up by magic and make it so bright and shiny you'll need sunglasses to look at it. This isn't a movie, Sally."

* EvilPhone: Phones and phone calls never appear in positive contexts in the film.
* FlatEarthAtheist: Apparently the case of Dr. Matheson, complete with a dead little sister.

* OccamsRazor: Mentioned by Matheson- she believes that everything has a simple explanation.

* PhonyPsychic: Margaret and Tom work on exposing these, so much of the film's plot involves whether or not Silver is also one or if he's the genuine artice. [[spoiler:He's a phony]].

* RealAfterAll

* [[spoiler: TomatoInTheMirror / TomatoSurprise: Depending on your interpretation of Buckley. Either he knew long before the plot and joined Matheson to try and discover others like himself, or during the course of his work in trying to expose Silver he discovered that the phenomena occurring to him were his powers manifesting, not Silver's.]]

* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: Many of them, especially to ''XFiles'' - Margaret shares the surname of [[RichardMatheson senator Matheson]] from the series, the TV-presenter's name is [[ScullySyndrome Dana]], and in Buckley's room there is a poster identical to that in Mulder's office but with 'I want to believe' replaced by 'I want to understand'. Also to many famous (or infamous) RealLife events/arguments in the paranormal debate: the debunking of Leonardo is done the same way as faith healer Peter Popoff was exposed by the skeptical magician James Randi, the arguments of Matheson/Buckley, the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a common technique showing people read into things, the initials SPRC (Scientific Paranormal Research Center) are close to that of the actual 130-year old SPR (Society for Psychical Research) etc.

!!Provides examples of:

* EnhanceButton: Averted, but not without a brutally sarcastic [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] by Ben.

* DeadLittleSister: David, Margaret's son, who is in a coma.

* FlatEarthAtheist: Apparently the case of Dr. Matheson, complete with a DeadLittleSister.

* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: Many of them, especially to ''XFiles'' - Margaret shares the surname of [[RichardMatheson senator Matheson]] from the series, the TV-presenter's name is [[ScullySyndrome Dana]], and in Buckley's room there is a poster identical to that in Mulder's office but with 'I want to believe' replaced by 'I want to understand'. Also to many famous (or infamous) RealLife events/arguments in the paranormal debate: the debunking of Leonardo is done the same way as faith healer Peter Popoff was exposed by the skeptical magician James Randi, the arguments of Matheson/Buckley, the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a common technique showing people read into things, etc.

* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: Many of them, especially to ''XFiles'' - Margaret shares the surname of [[RichardMatheson senator Matheson]] from the series, the TV-presenter's name is [[ScullySyndrome Dana]], and in Buckley's room there is a poster identical to that in Mulder's office but with 'I want to believe' replaced by 'I want to understand'. Also to RealLife events/arguments in the paranormal debate: the debunking of Leonardo is done the same way as faith healer Peter Popoff was exposed by the skeptical magician James Randi, the arguments of Matheson/Buckley, the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a common technique showing people read into things, etc.

The two main characters are [[Creator/SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, a brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]], comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]]) begin to happen around him and Margaret. As usual, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

* ActuallyThatsMyAssistant: in one of the first scenes, Tom is mistaken for Margaret.

* ArbitrarySkepticism: both Matheson and Buckley.

* BlindSeer: Silver, the famous psychic, is able to awe his audiences by describing things he shouldn't know because he is blind.

* CrisisOfFaith: Happened to Margaret when his son fell into a coma at the age of 4.

* [[DotingParent Doting Parents]]: the parents of a painter boy fall victim to the deception involving the paranormal because of their total admiration for their son.

* DreamingTheTruth: happens to Tom.
* EnhanceButton: Averted, but not without a brutally sarcastic lampshading by Ben.

* EvilPhone: phones and phone calls never appear in positive contexts in the film.
* ForScience: apparently the motivation of Silver and Shackleton.
* GaveUpTooSoon: if Buckley did not leave the search for evidence to Ben, he would probably know Silver's secret much earlier.

* MindOverMatter: these exact words appear in Shackleton's speech.

* PhonyPsychic: Margaret and Tom work on exposing these, and much of the film's plot involves whether or not Silver is also one or if he's the genuine artice. [[spoiler:He's a phony]].

* PullARabbitOutOfMyHat: jokingly mentioned by Buckley, when he explains to Sally his magical tricks.

* TheReveal: partial, in the end.

* [[ScienceHero Science Heroes]]: both Buckley and Matheson.

* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: many of them, especially to ''XFiles'' - Margaret shares the surname of [[RichardMatheson senator Matheson]] from the series, the TV-presenter's name is [[ScullySyndrome Dana]], and in Buckley's room there is a poster identical to that in Mulder's office but with 'I want to believe' replaced by 'I want to understand'.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: changes with the events.
* TheSparkOfGenius: happens to almost everyone.

* TheUnReveal: with the elements of TheReveal, but still.
* WillingChanneler: the medium at the beginning of the film.

* AlliterativeName: Margaret Matheson.

* [[spoiler:DeadPartner: Margaret dies about halfway into the film.

The two main characters are [[SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, a brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]], comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]]) begin to happen around him and Margaret. As usual, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

* CreepyMonotone: a false medium at the beginning of the film.
* CrisisOfFaith: apparently happened to Margaret at some time.

* [[spoiler:DeadPartner]]: Margaret.

* TheDeterminator: Buckley, in his pursuit of the truth about Silver.

* BlindSeer: Silver.

* ShallowLoveInterest: Sally, for the most part of the movie. [[spoiler: Subverted a bit at the end, when she comes in to help Ben and play a key part in discovering Silver's secret]].

* RewindReplayRepeat

* ShallowLoveInterest: Sally, for the most part of the movie. [[spoiler: Subverted a bit at the end, when she comes in to help Ben and discover Silver's secret]].

* TalkingToTheDead: Played with an averted. Margaret writes to her comatose son David because she knows he can't hear her and [[spoiler: in the end, Tom does the same to Margaret]].

* PsychicChildren: subverted, as [[spoiler:children indeed turn out to be the cause of the disturbing phenomena, but they do not use any supernatural powers]].

* TalkingToTheDead: Margaret to David and [[spoiler:Tom to Margaret]].

* UndyingLoyalty

* {{Poltergeist}}: alleged.

The two main characters are [[SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, a brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]], comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]]) begin to happen around him and Margaret. Of course, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

The two main characters are [[SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, a brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]] comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]]) begin to happen around him and Margaret. Of course, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

The two main characters are [[SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged 'professional sceptic' whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, a brilliant physicist [[CillianMurphy Dr. Tom Buckley]]. They work as a team, running classes about scientific explanations of the paranormal and occasionally [[WhoYouGonnaCall answering the calls]] of persons who have problems with what they think belongs to the area of parapsychology. One day a particularly impressive MonsterOfTheWeek, the famous blind psychic [[RobertDeNiro Simon Silver]] comes onto the stage. Buckley is determined to investigate him and find out the secret behind his performances, but Matheson, whose attempt to debunk Silver's magic a long time ago ended with failure, is not willing to face him again. [[ReversePsychology Of course,]] Tom starts the investigation - and, from the very beginning, strange things (like being hit with a glass shard mysteriously detached from the ceiling in the middle of the [[PhoneCallFromTheDead phone conversations with unidentified interlocutors]] begin to happen around him and Margaret. Of course, [[XFiles the truth is out there]].

* [[DotingParent DotingParents]]: the parents of a painter boy fall victim to the deception involving the paranormal because of their total admiration for their son.

Take a paradigm PsychologicalThriller, add some ParanormalTropes, make the relation between main characters sufficiently complicated not to qualify as romantic, give them some epistemological problems to deal with in the middle of an unfriendly academy - or, better, let the man who made {{Buried}} do it - and you will have ''Film/RedLights'': yes, yet another film about whether the supernatural exists, but this time additionally addressing the problem of human motivations lurking behind seemingly rational decisions and rationality itself.