Empire of Light (2022, R)

*Premise spoilers.*

This film garnered Roger Deakins his fifteenth nomination for Best Cinematography, so you know it looks gorgeous. Similarly, the acting is terrific. The story, meanwhile, feels like it’s reaching for something that it only manages to realize part of the time.

In an English coastal village in the 1980s, Hilary manages an old cinema. She’s recently returned after a hospitalization for her mental health, and she moves carefully through each day. When Stephen, a young Black man with university ambitions, is hired on, the two find themselves drawn to each other. Amid personal trials and public unrest, both look for a bit of comfort and connection in one another.

One thing the film does very well is create a sense of place. From the beautiful but crumbling cinema to the picturesque streets that bristle with xenophobic tension, each setting feels strongly developed, pulling us into the emotions of these different locales. Hilary’s small home can feel safe or stifling, depending on the circumstances, and the rooftop of the cinema on New Year’s Eve suddenly becomes the center of the universe. The design, music, and cinematography all come together to paint evocative pictures of the time and place throughout.

When it comes to the plot, the film is little more uneven. There are flashes where everything comes together exquisitely, small moments of connection or scenes that feel replete with foreboding. However, there are points the movies sets out to make that get executed a little clumsily, either making its statement too pointedly or stopping just shy of the mark. And it’s hard for the narrative dynamic between Hilary and Stephen not to feel imbalanced—while Stephen is a nicely rounded character on the whole, there are times when, in service of the story, he’s flattened for the sake of Hilary’s journey, which is frustrating.

But even if the script doesn’t always bring it home, the actors sell everything they’re given with commitment. Olivia Colman excels as Hilary, a life-of-quiet-desperation type who longs for something more from her life but is afraid of what might happen if she steps too far outside what she knows. I’m not familiar with Micheal Ward, but he gives a warm, natural performance as Stephen, playing off of Colman beautifully. Toby Jones is lovely as the devoted projectionist Norman, and Colin Firth is very effective as the bastard-of-an-owner Ellis, a small man if there ever was one. The film also features Crystal Clarke, who I recognize as Georgiana Lambe on Sanditon.

Warnings

Sexual content, violence (including racist violence,) language, drinking/smoking, and strong thematic elements.