74
Metascore
28 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittStrange, scary, and atmospheric, with a delicious Claude Debussy score.
- 90The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenThe brilliant, sinister French thriller Red Lights is a twisty road movie in which every sign points toward catastrophe.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterThe Hollywood ReporterA classy and clever French thriller. Jean-Pierre Darroussin's performance as a browbeaten husband is entertaining, and Kahn's script brings wit and imagination to a straightforward story.
- 80The A.V. ClubScott TobiasThe A.V. ClubScott TobiasWith ruthless efficiency and wit, Kahn ratchets up unbearable tension and releases it in startlingly visceral fashion, but his placid denouement is the most chilling scene of all.
- 80Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanA satisfyingly well-wrought, old-school thriller: Character drives the plot, literally.
- 75Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonChicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonThe sights, sounds and traffic in Red Lights are oppressively ordinary; the people are unnervingly real. That reality doubles the suspense we might feel in a more slickly made but thinly plotted thriller.
- 75New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickSomewhat leisurely paced, by American standards, especially in the beginning, but it's well worth sticking around for the payoff.
- 75New York Daily NewsJami BernardNew York Daily NewsJami BernardThe movie's clever ambiguity allows a number of interpretations. Perhaps it is all a dream, a parable, or a combination of wishful thinking and reality.
- 70Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumDirector Cedric Kahn, Laurence Ferreira Barbosa, and Gilles Marchand collaborated on the well-honed script, derived from a Georges Simenon novel. The film works well with quiet tensions, but becomes less convincing and interesting once it moves beyond them.