In 1980, Hilary Small works as a duty manager at the "Empire Cinema", Margate, on the north coast of the English county of Kent. Hilary struggles with bipolar disorder, lives alone, has been prescribed lithium by her GP, and is having extramarital sex with her boss Donald Ellis.
New employee Stephen, who is Black British and lives with his mother Delia, a nurse, starts his new job at the cinema. Hilary is taken with the handsome and charming Stephen, and the two bond when she shows him the cinema's beautiful but disused upper floor.
Hilary becomes jealous when Stephen begins hanging out with Janine, a younger employee. While watching New Year's Eve fireworks from the cinema roof, Hilary impulsively kisses Stephen. The two of them begin a sexual relationship. Hilary cuts off Donald and, happy about the new relationship, stops taking her medication.
Hilary sees Stephen being harassed by a group of skinheads on the street and later deal with a racist customer and Stephen confides in her about the racism he faces. Hilary and Stephen go to the beach, where Stephen tells her about his first love, Ruby, who works at the same hospital as his mother. When Stephen asks about her past, she goes on an agitated rant about men and angrily destroys a sand castle they had been building.
Neil, a colleague, discovers their relationship and warns Stephen of Hilary's mental health. He tells Hilary it would be best if they end their sexual affair. Donald informs the workers that the cinema has been chosen for the regional premiere of Chariots of Fire (1981). At the premiere, a manic Hilary gets on stage and delivers an agitated speech before informing Donald's wife about their affair. Hilary's mental health deteriorates. While Stephen is at her flat checking on her, mental-health authorities break down her door and take her to be re-institutionalised. (He watches while hiding in the next room.)
Weeks later, back at the theatre, Donald has been replaced and Stephen begins training with Norman, the cinema's projectionist. He runs into Ruby at the cinema, and they start dating again. Hilary is released from the hospital and returns to work. Stephen advises her to see a movie at the cinema, something she has never done. During her welcome-back party, a skinhead crowd marches past the theatre. When they see Stephen, they break in and assault him. Hilary accompanies him to the hospital, where she meets Stephen's mother.
As Stephen recuperates, Hilary initially stays away. Norman confides in her that he has a son he has not seen in many years because he abandoned his family and cautions her not to run away. She visits Stephen in the hospital. His mother tells Hilary that she makes Stephen happy. An overjoyed Hilary rushes back to the theatre and has Norman play a movie for her: Being There (1979).
Stephen returns to the cinema but informs Hilary that, following her advice, he has decided to return to college and will be leaving town. Stephen remembers his times with Hilary at a going-away dinner with Ruby and his mother. The two meet in a park, where Hilary gives him a book and finally bids him goodbye.
The film was released for VOD on 7 February 2023, followed by a Blu-ray and DVD release on 21 February 2023.[18][19][20]
Reception
Critical response
The performance of Olivia Colman received critical acclaim.
The film has received mixed reviews. On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 45%, based on 242 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "Empire of Light contains some fine performances and a few flashes of brilliance, but this tribute to the magic of cinema is disappointingly mundane."[21] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 54 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[22] A more favourable review in The Guardian said the film was a "poignant, wonderfully acted drama".[14]
Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com, rating the film 2.5 out of 4 stars, wrote that it "starts out a bit dim and unfocused and becomes sharper and more illuminating as it unreels." He also praised Roger Deakins' cinematography and Olivia Colman's performance, but was more critical of the character of Stephen: "[H]e remains an abstraction for too long, to the point where it looks like the film is setting him up as more of a plot device (or sacrificial lamb) than a man. The movie trembles with intimations of impending doom for Stephen, and the dialogue mentions then-recent racial incidents. But [Sam] Mendes presents his anger, fear and distress with the same dissociated stare that freezes Hilary in her tracks when she sees skinheads tormenting Stephen on a sidewalk."[23]
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