A Single Man
2009
***½
Director: Tom Ford
Cast: Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Hoult, Matthew Goode, Jon Kortajarena, Paulette Lamori, Ryan Simpkins, Ginnifer Goodwin, Teddy Sears
Colin Firth gives a subtle, mesmerising performance as a gay English college professor who is heartbroken and suicidal over the death of his lover. His only friend, played by Julianne Moore, is a self-deluding alcoholic. Fashion designer Tom Ford's directorial debut is very stylised, but the film's beautiful visuals do tie in with its protagonist, whose impeccable exterior hides a broken man. The ending feels like a lazy punch line, although it makes poetic sense and provides nice symmetry to the whole story. Adapted from Christopher Isherwood's 1964 novel.
