Right on the heels of that Branded trailer, I was forwarded the trailer for another solid piece of genre cinema that is currently coming down the pipeline. Directed by Rodrigo Cortes, the Spanish filmmaker who helmed the critically heralded Buried, Red Lights has so many things that have me personally intrigued. It isn’t often that you will find a Robert DeNiro film being promoted on Varied Celluloid, but this is the rare exception where you will find A) a visionary director behind the scenes, B) a really brilliant cast, and C) a plot that might actually feature some inspiring questions/content.
The cast for Red Lights does indeed look pretty intense. I’m so glad to see Sigourney Weaver working again, and this time she has a starring role in this story about skeptics who investigate bogus paranormal phenomena. Also along for the ride is one of my favorite young actors, Cillian Murphy. The guy has an intense presence, and he always grabs my attention. With these two, Robert DeNiro, and Elizabeth Olsen, I would say that this one certainly has acting legitimacy. Hopefully the story will do more than just paint skeptics as villains, but instead explore areas of cynicism and questions poised for those who intend to “question.” There are certainly areas worth exploring in this content, and I hope the filmmakers get it right. The trailer, which features an introduction by Sigourney Weaver, certainly makes this one look artistically viable. Due for release on July 13th, this one is quickly rushing towards us! Hopefully it lives up to the expectations! For those who are interested, the plot synopsis is described as follows:
Veteran paranormal researchers Dr. Margaret Matheson (Sigourney Weaver) and Tom Buckley (Cillian Murphy) debunk fraudulent claims of ghost whispering, faith healing and other psychic phenomena by detecting what Matheson calls “red lights,” the subtle tricks behind every staged supernatural occurrence. But when the legendary blind psychic Simon Silver (Robert De Niro)comes out of retirement after 30 years, his once-fearless adversary Matheson warns Buckley to back off, fearing reprisal from the powerful Silver.
Determined to discredit Silver, Buckley and his star student (Elizabeth Olsen) use every tool at their disposal to uncover the truth behind the charismatic, spoon-bending, mind reader. But Buckley is forced to reexamine his own core beliefs as his quest builds to a mind-blowing conclusion in this taut psychological thriller from award-winning writer and director Rodrigo Cortés (Buried).
To view the trailer yourself, follow this link to the Appple website in order to view the embedded trailer.