History Film / RedLights

* ObfuscatingDisability: [[spoiler: Silver, who is revealed not to be blind when he catches the coin Tom throws]].

%%* RewindReplayRepeat: Buckley does this exhaustively to Silver's experiment footage.

* WhamShot:

'''Tom:''' [[spoiler: [[[[PsychicPowers Phony.]]]]

%%* BloodSplatteredWarrior: Buckley, during the final confrontation with Silver.

'''Tom:''' [[spoiler: [[[[PsychicPowers Phony.]]

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

%%* NotSoStoic: Margaret, during the interview.
%%* ObfuscatingDisability: [[spoiler: Silver]].

%%* {{Kuudere}}: Margaret.

%%* ArbitrarySkepticism: Matheson from the beginning, and Buckley becomes the same when [[spoiler:she dies]].

* CreepyMonotone: A false medium at the beginning of the film basically drones to height his creepy image.

* OccamsRazor: Mentioned by Matheson-she believes that alleged paranormal phenomena have mundane, natural explanations.

* SatelliteLoveInterest: Sally, for the most part of the movie, isn't involved in importance with the film's plot. [[spoiler: Subverted a bit at the end, when she comes in to help Ben and play a key part in discovering Silver's secret]].

** Many of them, especially to ''Series/TheXFiles'' - 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) real life 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 are common, along with the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a technique used 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), Leonardo has the same last name as famous fraud medium Eusapia Palladino, Shackleton shares one with Basil Shackleton, a star of the Soal-Goldney experiments of the 1940s that were later found to rely on faked data, etc.

* ThrowTheBookAtThem: Buckley, in a rage, throws a student's books at Shackelton.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The film has many plot threads left dangling. [[spoiler: Did Buckley call ''himself'' all those times with his powers and not know it? Was he responsible for the strange things going on at Silver's office, and were the apparently possessed people there stooges, or did he unconsciously influence them? Additionally, while Silver's supposed "thought transference" was explained, they never said anything about the "thought photographs" which he produced that Shackleton said had "no scientific explanation." Of course that might have been faked too-we don't see how though.]]

%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExamples are not allowed on this wiki. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

[[quoteright:301:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/redlights_3134.png]]

* FakeFaithHealer: a fake faith healer named Leonardo is debunked in a scene which closely follows the real-life debunking of faith healer Peter Popoff by stage magician and skeptic James Randi.

%% ZeroContextExamples are not allowed on this wiki. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

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

* OccamsRazor: Mentioned by Matheson- she believes that alleged paranormal phenomena have mundane, natural explanations.

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

* AgentMulder: Dr. Shackleton is a believer of paranormal phenomena, portrayed as a rare negative example, though he means well and is willing to admit he could be wrong.
* AgentScully: Matheson and Buckley specialise in debunking supernatural phenomena. Buckley takes it UpToEleven after [[spoiler:Matheson's death]].

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

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

** Also to many famous (or infamous) real life 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 are common, along with the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a technique used 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.

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 ''Film/{{Buried}}'' do it - and you will have ''Red Lights'': 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.

The two main characters are Dr. Margaret Matheson (Creator/SigourneyWeaver), a middle-aged "professional skeptic" whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, brilliant physicist Dr. Tom Buckley (Creator/CillianMurphy). 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 Simon Silver (Creator/RobertDeNiro), 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 alleged powers a long time ago ended in failure, is not willing to face him again, warning Buckley to stay away, that he's dangerous. [[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, [[Series/TheXFiles the truth is out there]].

Numerous allusions to particular tropes and {{cliche}}s associated with the paranormal, often [[AvertedTrope averting]] or [[SubvertedTrope subverting]] them, are to be found in the movie. In spite of its gloomy atmosphere, the film (especially its first half) displays a subtle sense of humour, which, if it were not for an overall gravity of the problems faced by the characters, would signify AffectionateParody.

* ActuallyThatsMyAssistant: In one of the first scenes, Tom is mistaken for Margaret.
* AgentMulder: Dr. Shackleton, a rare negative example, though he means well and is willing to admit he could be wrong.
* AgentScully: Matheson and Buckley. Buckley takes it UpToEleven towards the end.
* AlliterativeName: Margaret Matheson and Simon Silver.
* AnyoneCanDie: [[spoiler:Margaret Matheson]].
* ArbitrarySkepticism: Matheson from the beginning, and Buckley becomes the same when [[spoiler:she dies]].

* BloodSplatteredWarrior: Buckley, during the final confrontation with Silver.
* {{Chiaroscuro}}: A ''big'' part of the movie.
* TheConfidant: Tom to Margaret.
* CreepyMonotone: A false medium at the beginning of the film does this.

* [[DeadpanSnarker Deadpan Snarkers]]: both Buckley and Matheson, but Silver also has his moments.
* DeadPartner: [[spoiler:Margaret dies about halfway into the film.]]

* DescriptionCut: Ben reassures Sally that "Tom's perfectly alright." [[spoiler: Cut to the NoHoldsBarredBeatdown.]]
* TheDeterminator: Buckley goes to great lengths to expose Silver, despite the paranormal events causing constant danger to him.
* [[DotingParent Doting Parents]]: The parents of an "automatic painting" boy fall victim to the deception involving the paranormal because of their total admiration for their son.
* DramaticShattering: Tom does it when feeling helpless.
* DreamingTheTruth: Happens to Tom.
* EnhanceButton: Averted, but with [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] by Ben.
-->"Sure, I can amplify a 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."
** [[spoiler: They opt to use another camera angle instead.]]

* GutFeeling
* HairTriggerTemper: Tom. Even more so after his SanitySlippage.
* HiddenDepths
* HollywoodAtheist: Apparently the case of Dr. Matheson, complete with a [[CynicismCatalyst dead little sister]].

* HotScientist: Tom.
* {{Kuudere}}: Margaret.
* LargeHam: Leonardo, the first stage psychic they take down.
* LovedINotHonorMore: Tom towards Sally.
* MindOverMatter: These exact words appear in Shackleton's speech.
* MrFixit: Tom.
* NotSoStoic: Margaret, during the interview.
* ObfuscatingDisability: [[spoiler: Silver]].

--> "When I hear hooves, I think horses, not unicorns."
* [[OccultDetective Occult Detectives]]
* ParanormalInvestigation

* {{Poltergeist}}: Alleged.
* ProperlyParanoid: Tom.
* PsychicChildren: Subverted in the first case they investigate. Children indeed turn out to be the cause of the disturbing phenomena, but they do not use any supernatural powers. They fake a poltergeist haunting by pushing a closet against a wall.
* PsychicPowers:
** {{Clairvoyance}}
** HealingHands
** [[ISeeDeadPeople Mediumship]]
** {{Precognition}}
** PsychicSurgery
** SuperSenses
** {{Telekinesis}}
** {{Telepathy}}
* PsychicRadar
* PullARabbitOutOfMyHat: Jokingly mentioned by Buckley, when he explains to Sally his magical tricks.

* RedemptionInTheRain [[spoiler: Buckley]].
* ReflectiveEyes: [[spoiler:Shackleton's glasses]].
* TheReveal: Partial, in the end.
* RewindReplayRepeat: Buckley does this exhaustively to Silver's experiment footage.
* SarcasticDevotee: Buckley to Matheson.
* [[ScienceHero Science Heroes]]: Both Buckley and Matheson.
* ScullySyndrome: [[spoiler:Buckley, though it is a very non-typical example, as it is more about himself and not external phenomena.]]
* SatelliteLoveInterest: 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]].
* [[ShoutOut Shout Outs]]: Many of them, especially to ''Series/TheXFiles'' - 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 are common, along with the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a technique used 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.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: Changes with the events.
* TheSparkOfGenius: Happens to almost everyone.
* StageMagician: Silver. Buckley knows many of their tricks himself.
* SugarAndIcePersonality: Margaret.
* SugaryMalice: Silver.
* TallDarkAndHandsome / TallDarkAndSnarky: Buckley.
* TalkingToTheDead: {{Played with}} and {{averted}}. Margaret writes to her comatose son David because she knows he can't hear her [[spoiler: and in the end, Tom does the same to Margaret]].
* TeacherStudentRomance: Buckley and Sally.

* ToneShift: DarkerAndEdgier
* UndyingLoyalty: Buckley to Margaret.
* TheUnReveal: With the elements of TheReveal, but still.

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 ''Film/{{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.

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

->''From the time of ancient Greece to the present day, philosophers and scholars have argued man is essentially rational. I don't happen to agree. If one observes and studies another person without having first studied oneself, how do we know whether our instruments are appropriately set? How do we know we are reliable? We have no proof.''

* [[spoiler:DeadPartner: Margaret dies about halfway into the film.]]
* [[spoiler: DecoyProtagonist: Margaret sure looks like the heroine of the film...until she kicks the bucket halfway through and the rest of the movie focuses on Buckley hell-bent on bringing down Silver to reinstate Margaret's reputation.]]

* [[spoiler:ScullySyndrome]]: Buckley, though it is a very non-typical example, as it is more about himself and not external phenomena.

* [[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. It's not clear if he's sure himself which is the case]].

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.

The two main characters are [[Creator/SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged "professional skeptic" whose academic work concentrates on debunking the alleged cases of paranormal phenomena, and her assistant, brilliant physicist [[Creator/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 alleged powers a long time ago ended in failure, is not willing to face him again, warning Buckley to stay away, that he's dangerous. [[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, [[Series/TheXFiles the truth is out there]].

* ArbitrarySkepticism: Matheson from the beginning, and Buckley becomes the same when she dies.

The two main characters are [[Creator/SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged "professional skeptic" 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 alleged powers a long time ago ended in failure, is not willing to face him again, warning Buckley to stay away, that he's dangerous. [[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, [[Series/TheXFiles the truth is out there]].

* HollywoodLaw-It's quite unlikely Leonardo would get arrested when his act is exposed as fake, let alone imprisoned. The scene is obviously based on the debunking of faith healer Peter Popoff by James Randi (see ShoutOut below), and not only was Popoff not prosecuted, his followers were outraged with Randi for exposing him ([[KarmaHoudini Popoff]] is still going strong to this day). In the same way, if the people hoodwinked were unwilling to press charges (very likely) he obviously wouldn't go to jail. These cases are notoriously hard to prosecute in RealLife, though Randi offers to testify for the prosecution if they do, and has done so before.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The film has many plot threads left dangling. [[spoiler: Did Buckley call ''himself'' all those times with his powers and not know it? Was he responsible for the strange things going on at Silver's office, and were the apparently possessed people there stooges, or did he unconsciously influence them? Additionally, while Silver's supposed "thought transference" was explained, they never said anything about the "thought photographs" which he produced that Shackleton said had "no scientific explanation." Of course that could have been faked too-we don't see how though.]]

* HollywoodLaw-It's quite unlikely Leonardo would get arrested when his act is exposed as fake, let alone imprisoned. The scene is obviously based on the debunking of faith healer Peter Popoff by James Randi (see ShoutOut below), and not only was Popoff not prosecuted, his followers were outraged with Randi for exposing him. In the same way, if the people hoodwinked were unwilling to press charges (very likely) he obviously wouldn't go to jail. These cases are notoriously hard to prosecute in RealLife, though Randi offers to testify for the prosecution if they do, and has done so before.

The two main characters are [[Creator/SigourneyWeaver Dr. Margaret Matheson]], a middle-aged "professional skeptic" 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 alleged powers a long time ago ended in failure, is not willing to face him again, warning Buckley to stay away, that he's dangerous. [[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]].

* [[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 are common, along with the paranormal tests, Simon Silver resembles the real Uri Geller, the identical horoscopes is a technique used 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.