Empire of Light

Liebesfilm/Romantic Drama mit Olivia Colman, Micheal Ward, Toby Jones, Colin Firth, Monica Dolan, Tom Brooke, Tanya Moodie, Hannah Onslow, Crystal Clarke • US/GB 2022, 116' • Musik: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross • Drehbuch & Regie: Sam Mendes

Aktuell nicht im Programm
Currently not playing at Kino Intimes

Das Empire ist ein wunderschöner, in die Jahre gekommener Filmpalast in einer englischen Kleinstadt am Meer. Für die Mitarbeiter, eine bunte Truppe skurriler und liebenswerter Typen, ist er Arbeitsstätte und Familie in einem. So auch für Hilary (Olivia Colman), die nach längerer Abwesenheit ins Empire zurückgekehrt ist. Routiniert geht sie ihrer Arbeit nach und erträgt stoisch die Übergriffigkeiten ihres Chefs (Colin Firth). Als Stephen (Micheal Ward), ein charismatischer junger Mann im Empire anfängt, entsteht zwischen den beiden eine spontane Zuneigung. Die beiden Außenseiter finden aneinander den Halt, den sie so lange gesucht haben. Doch bald werden sie von der Wirklichkeit eingeholt.

Empire of Light ist eine kraftvolle und ergreifende Geschichte über menschliche Verbundenheit und die Magie des Kinos vom Oscar-prämierten Regisseur Sam Mendes.

Hilary (Olivia Colman) is a cinema manager struggling with her mental health, and Stephen (Micheal Ward) is a new employee longing to escape the provincial town where he faces daily adversity. Together they find a sense of belonging and experience the healing power of music, cinema, and community. Set in an English coastal town in the early 1980s, EMPIRE OF LIGHT is a compelling and poignant drama about the power of human connection during turbulent times, from Academy Award winning director Sam Mendes.

Do Yourself a Favor and See this Ode to Movies on the Big Screen
"What better definition of 'movie magic' can one find than the sight of Olivia Colman and Micheal Ward's faces, reflecting their feelings for one another?"
Peter Debruge, Variety

An Exquisite Story of People in Flux
"A humble little tale of human connection... it's the director’s most delicate, a wistful short story about two people seized by circumstance who help one another find their way through life. It’s an achingly lovely film - the best Mendes has yet made."
Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair

Olivia Colman Shines in Darkening Hymn to Cinema
"The ‘love letter to the movies’ genre is revived in this poignant, wonderfully acted drama about love, life and films... A sweet, heartfelt, humane movie, which doesn’t shy away from the brutality and the racism that was happening in the streets outside the cinema... It’s clearly a labour of love for Sam Mendes: love requited."
Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

Celebrates the Power of Film to Heal Lost Souls
"Olivia Colman delivers an alternately delicate and ferocious performance as a cinema manager; a tender, tear-soaked valentine to the ineffable joys of moviegoing... here, the theater is a great democratizer: a convener for misfits, loners and dreamers of every stripe. With this bittersweet gem of a film, Mendes has given spectators a modest but profound gift: the reminder that, at their best, movies offer us not just a refuge, but a way to join the thrum of life, in all its pain and ungovernable glory."
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post