Movies: Empire of Light

A magical movie about finding lightness in a damaged life

This is a magical film about repairing a damaged life. Every frame glows, washing over the audience and theater, which is where I watched Empire of Light. I’m glad I did, too. Ever since ArcLight Cinemas was killed—another victim of LA’s asinine lockdown during 2020’s cataclysmic coronavirus pandemic—I pass by the former San Fernando Valley theater at the interchange of America’s busiest freeways, always wanting to experience new movies there. Empire of Light, a movie about the magic of the movies, played there just in time. The British drama, written and directed by Sam Mendes, who directed 1999’s anti-American American Beauty, is the first film I’ve seen at the former ArcLight Sherman Oaks, now a Regal Cinemas theater property.

It’s by Mendes, so there’s a disturbing twist. The shift slips into place better than you might suppose. For its naturalism and jarring plot twist, Empire of Light blends muted color, lightness and the tenderness of youth into a kind of compact. With Olivia C…