Image courtesy of Cinematic Passions

A Single Man
Directed by: Tom Ford
Written by: Tom Ford & David Scearce (screenplay), Chris Isherwood (novel)
Starring: Colin Firth, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Hoult, and Matthew Goode

Looking for that depressing British movie about interesting broken people?  In A Single Man, director Tom Ford’s impressive debut, you’ve found it and then some.

After his lover (Matthew Goode) dies, George Falconer (Colin Firth), an English professor in early 60’s L.A., falls into a deep sadness.  Much of the film revolves around his plan to kill himself and the different things distracting him from it or holding him back.  He goes over to his best friend Charley’s (Julianne Moore) house to get boozed up and talk, has an encounter with a gay James Dean-wannabe outside a liquor store, and has an interesting chat with the neighbor’s daughter at a bank.

All of these events, combined with a prospect at a rebound lover in a young student (Nicholas Hoult), prevent George from pulling the trigger.  I went into this film expecting an Oscar-worthy performance from Firth, mostly just because he was nominated for one.  Though he delivers a quietly devastating portrait, I’m not sure he would’ve been nominated on a year with more memorable lead performances.

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