By Red Lights got some negative buzz at Sundance for its bizarre ending. I can’t say I was a fan of it myself, despitet liking he rest of the film quite a bit. My source said that director/editor/writer Rodrigo Cortés finished editing the film only ten days before its premiere and no one saw the cut. I can imagine he was shocked then when he saw audiences laughing at what is supposed to be a dramatic, sincere ending.
He is now considering changing it, which may include filming a new ending — at least, I hope that’s the case. If not, the film could get strong negative buzz on opening night that will easily kill the hype around it.
In a recent interview with Collider, Cortés suggested that he wanted to film alternate scenes and spend more time editing but didn’t have the money. He also said he was rushing to finish the film for Sundance.
With Millennium Entertainment picking up the film and slating it for a 2012 release, hopefully Cortés can explore other avenues for the ending and leave the original as an extra for its inevitable home release. It’s hard to discuss what is so problematic about the ending without spoiling, but when an audience is laughing instead of gasping you know something went wrong. In all honesty, the film could be a minor classic if it were not for that strong left turn at the end.So, here’s hoping Millennium and Cortés address this flaw.
The bad news? My entire review will read like nonsense if Cortés does make the change!