A love letter to cinema, set in an English seaside town in the early 1980s, Empire of Light is a powerful and poignant story about human connection and the magic of cinema from Academy Award winning director Sam Mendes (1917, Skyfall).
Created with touching tenderness and compassion by writer-director Mendes, this drama features a stellar ensemble cast led by Academy Award winner Olivia Colman (The Favourite, The Lost Daughter), BAFTA winner Micheal Ward and Academy Award winner Colin Firth (The King’s Speech).
Set in and around a beautiful old picture palace on the south coast of England, the love story between Hilary (Colman) and Stephen (Michael Ward) offers an impassioned ode to the people who come together under the glow of cinema, and to the life affirming tales they share.
Oscar winning composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score the film whilst master cinematographer (and fellow Oscar winner) Roger Deakins exquisitely photographs the inhabitants of this narrative. Empire of Light is 24 frames a second of pure movie magic that will remind you of the restorative power of cinema and storytelling.
OFFICIAL SELECTION – Toronto International Film Festival 2022
"An engrossing, poignantly observed and beautifully acted drama about love, life and the fragile art of moviegoing. "
- The Guardian
Wednesday 19th October
113 min
18+
Colin Firth, Olivia Colman, Toby Jones, Crystal Clarke, Micheal Ward
Sam Mendes
Film Festival
English
Astor Theatre
