Empire of Light (2022)
6.215 /10
73 Reviews
Rate This Movie:
The duty manager of a seaside cinema, who is struggling with her mental health, forms a relationship with a new employee on the south coast of England in the 1980s.
Videos & Photos
cast
... Hilary
... Stephen
... Norman
... Donald Ellis
... Neil
User reviews
FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/empire-of-light-spoiler-free-review-lff-2022
"Empire of Light works best as a love letter to the art of filmmaking and the theater experience. Brilliant performances. Astonishing to behold. Emotional to listen to - score is the technical highlight. Not so captivating narratively, considering that Sam Mendes' first solo script lacks depth in the most important themes.
It's a beautiful tribute to the magic of cinema that cinephiles will enjoy, but for viewers less passionate about the 7th art, it might be difficult to genuinely care."
Rating: B-
Reviews of
Empire of Light
FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://www.msbreviews.com/movie-reviews/empire-of-light-spoiler-free-review-lff-2022
"Empire of Light works best as a love letter to the art of filmmaking and the theater experience. Brilliant performances. Astonishing to behold. Emotional to listen to - score is the technical highlight. Not so captivating narratively, considering that Sam Mendes' first solo script lacks depth in the most important themes.
It's a beautiful tribute to the magic of cinema that cinephiles will enjoy, but for viewers less passionate about the 7th art, it might be difficult to genuinely care."
Rating: B-
"Hilary" (Olivia Colman) is the shift leader at a grand old cinema living a routine life and largely just going through the motions each day. When the young "Stephen" (a strong and engaging performance from Micheal Ward) arrives, she takes him on a tour of the building and that takes them to the upper echelons of the building - now disused - where they discover an injured pigeon. They also discover something else, and soon are having bit of a clandestine affair. Thing is, she's also having one of those with her boss "Ellis" (Colin Firth) and keeping secrets amongst her small team isn't the easiest! Things come to an head, however, when some fascist thugs are marauding down the local esplanade and they see the young man through the locked doors. Soon, he is in hospital and everyone is having to re-evaluate their relationships and priorities - and it's at this point that "Hilary" comes off the rails a little. Years of resentment and frustration - coupled with a bit of booze - all come to the fore just as her young friend comes to some conclusions about his own future too! Toby Jones is wonderful here as the projectionist, allowing the intensity of the personal stories to be diffused with a nostalgic look back at just how (even as recently as the 1980s) films were synched from a series of projectors, with cue dots and played from reels. He ("Norman") even demonstrates to the enthusiastic young "Stephen" as we go. The themes of racism, tolerance, ageism and ignorance are never far from the surface, though, and essentially this film is a cleverly nuanced piece of drama that uses a cinema - itself a conduit for so many different aspects of human life and behaviour - to serve as the focus for a brief observation of two lives that overlap for a while. It does have some sentiment to it - but for me that was about the old days of cinema gone by; otherwise this is a complex and thought-provoking look at life in Mrs. Thatcher's Britain long before she had had any real chance to mould it...
Cast & Crew of
Empire of Light
Cast
... Hilary
... Stephen
... Norman
... Donald Ellis
... Neil
... Delia
... Janine
... Ruby
... Rosemary Bates
... Mr. Cooper
... Brenda Ellis
... Jim Booth
... Frankie
... Brian
... Finn
... Doctor Laird
... Mikey
... Colin
... Sean
... Pogo
... Bill
... Mr. Podd
... Paramedic
... Ballroom Instructor
... Mayor
... Constable Bramah
... Receiving Doctor
... Nurse
... Trevor
... Martin
... Chas
... Premiere Guest (uncredited)
... Premiere Guest (uncredited)
... Brandy (uncredited)
... Ryan (uncredited)
Crew
... Director
... Producer
... Writer
... Director of Photography
... Production Design
... Original Music Composer
... Editor
... Supervising Art Director
... Stunt Coordinator
... Costume Design
... Casting
... Producer
... Music Supervisor
... Supervising Producer
... Original Music Composer
... Co-Producer
... First Assistant Accountant
... Script Supervisor
... Sound Re-Recording Mixer
... Assistant Art Director
... Gaffer
... Sound Designer
... Supervising Sound Editor
... Hair Designer
... Makeup Designer
... Supervising Sound Editor
... Graphic Designer
... Still Photographer
... Executive Producer
... First Assistant Director
... Visual Effects Producer
... Co-Producer
... Associate Editor
... Sound Effects Editor
... Standby Property Master
... Makeup & Hair
... Assistant Costume Designer
... Key Grip
... Dolly Grip
... Assistant Location Manager
... Location Assistant
... Health and Safety
... Special Effects Supervisor
... Rigging Gaffer
... Stunt Coordinator
... Unit Production Manager
... Costume Supervisor
... Electrician
... Lighting Supervisor
... Lighting Programmer
... Researcher
... Best Boy Grip
... Location Assistant
... Health and Safety
... Set Decoration
... Supervising Producer
... Assistant Set Decoration
... Camera Loader
... Sound Re-Recording Mixer
... Executive Producer
... Production Supervisor
... Video Assist Operator
... Digital Imaging Technician
... Camera Trainee
... Colorist
... VFX Artist
... Assistant Art Director
... Props
... Camera Loader
... VFX Artist
... Draughtsman
... Costume Standby
... Imaging Science
... Lighting Technician
... Graphic Designer
... Standby Art Director
... Health and Safety
... Props
... Assistant Director
... Assistant Set Decoration
... Art Direction
... Art Direction
... Script Supervisor
... Location Assistant
... Assistant Location Manager
... First Assistant Editor
... Assistant Editor
... Assistant Editor
... Set Decoration
... Makeup Artist
... Crowd Assistant Director
... Third Assistant Director
... Production Assistant
... Key Costumer
... Costume Assistant
... Costume Assistant
... Digital Imaging Technician
... Lighting Supervisor
... Standby Rigger
... Lighting Technician
... Grip
... Electrician
... Electrician
... Driver
... Transportation Captain
... Driver
... Stand In
... Stand In
... Set Production Assistant
... Logistics Coordinator
... Assistant Production Coordinator
... Location Assistant
... Art Department Assistant
... Set Dressing Artist
... Set Dressing Artist
... Art Department Assistant
... Draughtsman
... Conceptual Design
... Graphic Designer
... Standby Property Master
... Petty Cash Buyer
... Standby Painter
... Props
... VFX Artist
Videos & Photos of
Empire of Light
Videos (2)
Official UK Trailer
1: 31
Official Trailer
1: 31
Photos 27
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