Empire of Light

You're trapped inside a world of make believe, where people take their seats to be deceived, lose themselves in fantasy, reels conjure alchemy, this is no paradise or palace, that you perceive. Behind closed doors, torment and distress are at play, where advantages are taken day by day, but you plough your lonely furrow, cage the rage, the pain, the sorrow, then someone new arrives, projects a fresh pathway.

I spent two hours spellbound at the incredible Olivia Coleman, who takes you into the unstable world of Hilary in early 1980s Britain. More than ably supported by Michael Ward, the pair paint a picture of the challenges of the day, from different backgrounds and perspectives, that rollercoast your emotions to extremes. Great story, great direction and great performances - what more do you need from a film?

The movie "Empire of Light" is filled with metaphors about human relationships. Writer and director Sam Mendes does a beautiful and sensitive job of bringing two socially marginalized individuals together through the art of film, music, and poetry.

Hilary (Olivia Colman), a movie theater manager is suffering from mental illness and Stephen (Micheal Ward), a movie theater helper is suffering racial discrimination in the community. Two worlds apart that together manage to understand each other's pain.

Olivia Colman's interpretation is once again absolutely perfect, she manages to convey all the pain of her character without uttering a word, only through her body language.

A beautiful soundtrack that helps enhance the mood of the movie.

Anyone who goes to see "Empire of Light" expecting another cosy movie about the love of cinema, both the medium and the building, will be sadly disappointed since Sam Mendes' superb new movie is about so much more. Yes, it's a love letter to all aspects of 'cinema' but it's also about racism and mental illness, lonliness and our ability to connect and it works on all these levels.

The setting is an unnamed town on England's South Coast in the early 1980's and the Picture Palace in question, (the Dreamland Cinema in Margate standing in for the Empire), really is a Picture Palace of the old school, (well, the bits of it that are open to the public are, at least), and Hilary, (an Oscar-worthy Olivia Colman), is the unhappy, lonely and mentally challenged duty manager who has allowed herself to drift into a casual sexual relationship with her married boss, (Colin Firth), and who now finds herself drawn to a new young employee who happens to be black, (Michael Ward, excellent).

Today, even with the age difference between them, this wouldn't be thought of as a problem but this was the early '80's and the National Front were on the march and Mendes' 'romance' doesn't shy away from the racism directed at Ward's character or from Hilary's mental problems. But this isn't a glum picture. Gorgeously photographed by Roger Deakins it is indeed a love letter to the movies and if like me you don't go stir crazy over "Stir Crazy", the joys of "Being There" should draw you in. Beautifully written, (also by Mendes), directed and acted, (as another employee Tom Brooke is also outstanding), this moving and intelligent picture really shouldn't be missed.

Empire of Light is such a beautiful piece of cinema, oozing class, poignancy and power.

The story follows Olivia Coleman's Hilary, who forms an unlikely bond with Micheal Ward's Stephen whilst working together at the Empire cinema in Margate.

This style of story is right up my street. A mismatched pair who find solace and comfort in each other. It is beautifully done and packs in so many themes and different angles. I do think that some of the themes are dealt with in a bit of a ham-fisted way, and a bit more refinement would have been welcome but this is a relatively minor criticism. On the whole the story is very well crafted.

The performances are top notch. Olivia Colman really shines and is pushed to the limit by the layers of her character. Micheal Ward is a more than worthy opposite for her with a great leading performance.

With the cinematography in the hands of Roger Deakins the film was always going to be a visual treat. There is a melancholic majesty to the cinema set that Deakins captures which is gorgeous. As always he photographs the characters with such sympathy and feeling.

To top it all off the soundtrack perfectly compliments the themes of the film and brings even more emotion to the piece.

I'm surprised this film isn't getting more love as it really blew me away and has so much power and emotion to it. Empire of Light is a real triumph in my opinion.

At times, it's intimate and intricate. At others, it's strikingly hollow.

Firstly, highest praises must be given to Roger Deakins' lush cinematography and Reznor & Ross's ethereal, atmospheric musical score. Both these elements added such a rich sensory element to the film that elevates the experience high above what's on the page.

Because what's on the page is a disjointed collection of individually compelling pieces.

Olivia Colman and the rest of the cast really do give it their all and bring a great deal of life to their half-baked characters. Nearly all of them have backstory and struggles introduced, but not much, if anything, is ever done with it.

The "story" is made up of runtime-padding dramatic beats that always begin in a very strong manner but are always either resolved without any real struggle or conflict or are abandoned entirely. No consequences are ever seen or felt, and it dampens the impact of the whole film. I felt nothing when the credits rolled.

Also, Colin Firth is woefully miscast as the cinema manager; not because he's bad in the movie, he's great in the movie. But because he has such limited screen time and has such a thankless, undemanding roll. It's far beneath an actor of his calibre and experience. He's tragically under-utilised.

And that's how I would describe just about every element of this film: not bad, but under-utilised.