Sam Mendes’ Empire of Light lacks a compelling story
Empire of Light review and star rating: ★★☆☆☆
Empire of Light is one part of a broader artistic response to the peril cinemas found themselves in during the pandemic. Steven Spielberg’s love of the big screen will soon be explored in The Fabelmans, and Babylon was another of 2023’s odes to cinema.
Olivia Colman stars as Hilary, the duty manager of a seaside cinema in the early eighties which has seen better days. She meets Stephen, played by Top Boy’s Micheal Ward, a new hire who is energetic and friendly despite experiencing racism in their small town. The two forge a bond that forces both to examine what they really want from life.
Working with regular collaborator Roger Deakins, Empire of Light so beautiful it’s almost more enjoyable with the sound off. We see the beautiful art deco cinema, and the broken screens that have been left to disrepair.
Sadly, this gorgeous aesthetic isn’t matched with a story worth telling. For someone who made their name with urgent, biting stories like American Beauty and Jarhead, it’s strange to see Mendes make a film so content to be humdrum. Hilary’s loneliness and depression are never explored adequately despite Colman’s best efforts, and the racist abuse Stephen suffers at the hands of skinheads is used as a narrative device rather than social commentary. Ward and Colman are brilliant together, embracing the quiet moments as two lost souls who found each other.
A collection of fine supporting actors also gives the story a pulse, from Toby Jones’ curmudgeonly projectionist to Colin Firth as the aloof manager who keeps to his office. However, Empire of Light feels disjointed, like a series of events loosely tied together.
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