At one point during this film the lead character is described as schizophrenic.  Unfortunately, that’s the problem with this movie.  It has a great deal of merit as a love letter to cinema and the business of movie exhibition, yet it also has larger ambitions which dilute that part of the magic.  Perhaps it is a matter of expectation: if we view this film as a period British drama of 1980 that happens to be set largely at a seaside cinema it is more effective than if we (as I do) think of it as a tribute to the business of exhibition populated by odd characters whose stories are incidental to what is most important.  You can see the dilemma I have with this story.

Sam Mendes’ drama focuses on the small, tight-knit staff of a seaside British cinema in 1980.  Hilary Small (Olivia Colman) is the duty manager who takes an instant liking to the newest employee, Stephen (Micheal Ward), a young black man who wants to study architecture.  They grow close at the cinema but a national wave of racism threatens their insulated world, as does Hilary’s unaccountable mood swings.  Various dramatics ensue until Stephen is finally able to attend college in another city, and Hilary must carry on without him.

This is a love story on several levels — between Hilary and Stephen, between the staff and the theatre, between the characters and their idyllic setting, and between the audience and the experience of moviegoing.  Oddly it is the last relationship which gets short shrift, until a scene near the conclusion when Hilary finally, evidently for the first time, actually watches a movie in the building she so loves.  Sam Mendes’ story generally works well, and is pretty strong on the details (except for leaving the popcorn out overnight, which is a definite no-no), but the story remains oddly unsatisfying.  I attribute this to Hilary’s largely unexplained behavioral issues and the lack of a happy ending.

There’s a lot to like about this film, and the setting is exceptional.  I’ve not managed a theatre as opulent or extensive as this one, yet watching the staff care for it took me back to many fond memories I have of my own experiences.  But the graphic racism and sexual scenes seem out of place in this setting, as though real life should stay outside on the streets.  The politics are also vague and contradictory to me, though perhaps not to people who lived in Britain at the time.  This is one of those stories that I think needs more exposition, not less.  But enjoy it for the setting and the acting if not for the specific story.  ☆ ☆ ☆.  30 December 2022.